We recommend including a definition of “daily commutes” in the introduction. Since this will make the introduction longer, we also recommend visually highlighting the connection to car travel. If respondents who use carpooling for daily commutes are expected to take this into account when answering the question, this should be explained in the instructions:
Please think about the daily routes you currently take by car. Daily routes are all the routes you make as part of your daily routine—for example, to work, to go shopping, or to regular leisure activities or social gatherings.
Would you generally be willing to replace at least some of these daily car trips with bike rides?
Please also keep in mind car rides where you aren't the one driving, but are riding along with others.
General Probing, Specific Probing, Category-Selection Probing, Emergent Probing
Information on the aim and purpose of the test:
This question is intended to assess the general willingness to replace everyday car rides with bike rides. This includes both situations where respondents are currently considering replacing daily car rides with bike rides and situations where they would like to do so in the future. Even if there are currently barriers, such as distances that are too long, “yes” should be checked if there is a general willingness to do so.
Question 6 is asked of all respondents, including those who indicated in Question 1 that they had “never” used a car for daily trips in the past four weeks. The reason for this is that the past four weeks could represent an exception. Respondents who generally do not travel by car (including by taxi, carpool, or rental car) should answer “I do not travel by car.”
As part of the testing, the aim was to determine whether the question was understood as intended—that is, that it was designed to gauge respondents’ fundamental willingness to replace car trips with bicycle trips, even if barriers currently exist. In addition, the goal was to verify whether only respondents who use a car at least occasionally would answer the question with “Yes” or “No.”
Findings:
All participants answered the question; five stated that they would generally be willing to replace car trips with bike trips, four said they would not be willing to do so, and three said they would not use a car for their daily commutes.
How do the participants come to their answers? What are the reasons they give for being (un)willing, in general, to replace some of their car trips with bike rides?
Five participants stated that they would generally be willing to travel distances they currently cover by car by bicycle instead. In some cases, the participants had specific routes in mind; in others, their response reflected a general willingness to do so should a favorable opportunity to switch modes of transportation arise. Even one person who already cycles some routes felt this applied to them and answered “yes” without hesitation.
§ “In general, I’m ready. Being generally ready for something is a pretty broad or all-encompassing concept. And I’d definitely be ready if there were some kind of route.” (TP02)
§ “Yes, for example, within the city. I’m planning to do that, too. I’ll buy a good bike as soon as my knee has recovered from the surgery.” (TP09)
§ “I’m generally willing to do that, yes. I do try to get around a lot by bike and keep it in good working order. And as I said, I try to avoid using the car. The bike is always a convenient option. You’re not tied to any schedules, like with trams and buses, where you have to be on time to the minute.” (TP10)
However, one test person—who had previously replaced car trips with bike rides but was currently driving again due to a knee injury—had a hard time finding the right answer. In the end, she, too, answered “Yes,” but only after a lengthy thought process.
“That's tricky right now because I've already done part of it, but I just can't do it at the moment. That's why I don't know how to answer that. I'm ready, though. If I can do it, I'll do it. But I just can't.” (TP07)
Of the four participants who answered “No” to the question, it was clear in two cases that they categorically ruled out cycling in the future (TP11, 12), while the other two participants tended to base their answers on their current circumstances (TP01, 04).
§ “When I drive to work, I can’t ride my bike in the morning because of the time. I’d have to get up much earlier, and it’s only 5 kilometers anyway. And on the way back, it’s too dark, and I’d have to go up the hill. That’s why I take the car […] It would be different in the city, but out in the countryside it’s difficult.” (TP01)
§ “I say ‘no’ because the drive is simply too long to replace it with a bike ride.” (TP04)
§ “Because riding a bike is no longer an option for me. Of course, I won’t drive 50 meters—I’ll walk with my walker. But as soon as the distance is a little longer, I’ll take the car.” (TP12)
However, the two participants who cited the length of their trips had both indicated in Question 5 that the bicycle was their least preferred mode of transportation, so it can still be assumed that they were not willing to replace car trips with bicycle trips (TP01, 04).
Do only respondents who use a car at least occasionally answer the question with “Yes” or “No”?
In response to Question 1, only one participant stated that they never drove a car (Participant 06). This person also stated in response to Question 6 that they did not use a car for everyday trips.
Conversely, however, two test persons who did not own a car but only rode along with others and had answered Question 1 with “1–3 days a week” stated in response to Question 6 that they did not use a car for everyday trips. When asked about this, both argued that they did not interpret their rides as “daily commutes” in the context of this question. One of them was surprised that Question 6 was even displayed to her.
§ “I like that I can specify right away that I don’t use my car for everyday trips […] Because it didn’t say ‘for shopping or leisure activities’ like the first question did […] So I didn’t think about shopping anymore, because that just isn’t on my mind.” (TP03)
§ “Wait a minute, there’s also the answer ‘I don’t drive for everyday trips.’ Yeah, well, that’s actually more accurate. It’s not every day, but every week. Actually, they should include a plausibility check here—to verify whether you even drive for everyday trips—because that’s what confused me: why they’re now assuming that I drive a lot.” (TP08)
