This paper derives from doctoral research funded by the Centre for Alternative and Sustainable Transport (CAST) and Staffordshire University. It reports on the qualitative aspect of research into attitudes towards walking to work of a group of public sector employees within Staffordshire. The key geographical concept of space/time is central to decisions about walking to work and this is particularly true for those who currently travel to work by car. In the past, the specific literature on deterrents to walking has treated time in a narrow and mechanistic fashion, which assumes an unquestioned commodified view of time of equal measure to all. This paper contributes to understanding walking as a potential mode of commuter transport through identifying a range of complex and interrelated temporal constraints that influence people's attitudes to, and decisions about, walking to work. (A)
Abstract