Assessment of Mode Choice of Urban Commuters in Benue State, Nigeria

Abstract

Mode choice behaviour is a key element in public transport planning. The main objective of this study is to examine the mode choice of urban commuters in Benue State. The travel data collected from 1545 respondents in four towns namely Makurdi, Gboko, Katsina-Ala and Otukpo, while multinomial logistic regression analysis was performed using SPSS version 23 to identify attributes that influence travel mode choice and willingness of commuters to switch from one mode to another in Benue State. Age, gender, marital status, household income, level of education, vehicle ownership, in-vehicle time and transport fare were the most significant variables that contributed towards predicting the mode choice behaviour of commuters in Benue State. Results show that the working class make more trips using motorcycles, while the high-income class uses motor cars more than other means of transportation and has varying degrees of switching willingness. Finally, policy implications are recommended in the context of providing improved transportation systems and services with a view to improving the mobility of urban dwellers in Benue State.