Active commuting influences among adults

Objective: Active commuting (AC) is a behavior with many documented health benefits; however, influences on AC are not well understood. This paper examined a range of influences on self-reported AC behavior. Methods: Participants in Manhattan, KS, responded to an online survey (August-December 2008) with questions about walking, biking and driving patterns, influences on AC (motivators, barriers, self-efficacy, and workplace factors) and demographics. Separate logistic regression models predicted if participants walked, biked, or drove to work at least once/week according to the demographic factors and influences on AC, and significant factors were examined simultaneously in a multivariate logistic model. Results: Participants (n=375) were primarily young to middle aged adults, female, Caucasian, with at least a high school education, and 24.2% reported AC one or more times per week. Univariate analyses revealed several demographic variables, employment related factors, barriers, and motivators significantly associated with walking, biking, and driving. The multivariate models found multiple significant predictors associated with walking (Nagelkerke R ²=0.685), biking (Nagelkerke R ²=0.717), and driving (Nagelkerke R ²=0.799). Conclusions: AC is a complex behavior and this study noted a wide range of significant influences. These results provide insight for the development of policies and programs to enhance population level AC.