You have full access to this open access article. This paper reviews the use of conceptual frameworks in research on active travel, such as walking and cycling. Generic framework features and a wide range of contents are identified and synthesized into a comprehensive framework of active travel behavior, as part of the Physical Activity through Sustainable Transport Approaches project PASTA. Along with an exponential growth in active travel research, a growing number of conceptual frameworks has been published since the early s.
Earlier frameworks are simpler and emphasize the distinction of environmental vs. Based on the reviewed frameworks and various behavioral theories, we propose the comprehensive PASTA conceptual framework of active travel behavior. We discuss how it can guide future research, such as data collection, data analysis, and modeling of active travel behavior, and present some examples from the PASTA project.
Sustainable transport modes, and in particular walking and cycling, have gained growing interest by decision makers, planners, and the general public as potential solutions to challenges rooted in urban transport, including environmental, economic, and health issues [ 1 , 2 ]. This trend is also reflected in an exponentially growing body of research addressing a wide range of aspects of active travel, including identifying and quantifying determinants of active travel behavior [ 3 ], assessing the effectiveness and sustainability of measures to promote it [ 4 , 5 , 6 ], understanding and remedying safety related issues [ 7 ], developing methods to measure or survey active travel [ 8 ], and assessing effects and impacts of active travel on travel, health, and environmental outcomes through various pathways [ 9 , 10 , 11 ].
Studies from various fields, such as transport and health, have repeatedly identified and confirmed the role of specific determinants of walking and cycling and regularly presented quantitative effect estimates [ 12 ].
However, most studies concentrate on a particular domain of influence, such as the policy context, the built environment, the social environment, or personal and trip attributes. Often, they are also limited by their specific topical perspectives, such as transport issues or public health. While taken together the whole body of knowledge does paint a fairly extensive qualitative picture of determinants of active travel, it remains challenging to build robust comprehensive models combining quantitative estimates.
