Travel based multitasking on the Mumbai Local and Metro : measurement, classification and variation

Abstract

Review of travel based multitasking (TBM) behavior has shown that activities performed during travel is of growing interest in the field of transportation planning and mobility behavior. There is a lack of literature looking at this subject in cities in developing countries. This thesis examines TBM activities occurring on mass transit modes in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region. It takes the Western Line of the Mumbai Suburban Railway and the upcoming Line I and Ill of the Mumbai Metro as case studies to understand TBM activities in the Indian context. Firstly, this thesis calculates the influence of socioeconomic and trip-related variables on the occurrence of ICT-related and social TBM activities through a framework of Positive Utility of Travel (PUT). Secondly, it identifies the possible causes of variation of TBM among different socio-economic groups. Thirdly, it charts how policy and infrastructure decisions on the Mumbai Suburban Railway and the Mumbai Metro can be informed by ICT-related and social TBM activities performed by riders during on-board travel time. An on-board intercept survey of 196 riders conducted in August 2018 on the Western line of the Mumbai Suburban Railway was used to analyze revealed and stated preferences of TBM activities. Results of choice models were further deconstructed with insights from unstructured interviews. Age and willingness to pay per minute were the strongest predictors of TBM activities. Riders younger than 34 years of age on the Mumbai Suburban Railway and younger than 29 years of age on the Mumbai Metro were more inclined to engage in ICT-related TBM activities. Female riders displayed a higher tendency to socialize on mass transit when compared to male riders and frequently perceived general compartments on the Mumbai Suburban Railway as unsafe to perform ICT-related activities.