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How real is a reported desire to travel for its own sake? Exploring the ‘teleportation’ concept in travel behaviour research

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Abstract

The ‘teleportation test’ has been used in travel behaviour research for more than a decade, as a means of assessing whether an individual views travel purely as a disutility. The teleportation concept has been used successfully in qualitative research to elicit responses and clarify attitudes to travel time. However, survey-based studies have revealed an apparent inconsistency, in that many people who report an ideal travel time greater than zero, and/or do not consider their travel time as wasted, also report wanting to teleport. This note reviews a range of studies involving the teleportation concept, highlights the inconsistency, suggests reasons for it, and proposes a research approach for testing the validity of those reasons.

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Comments by three referees have improved this note.

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Correspondence to Marie Russell.

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Russell, M., Mokhtarian, P. How real is a reported desire to travel for its own sake? Exploring the ‘teleportation’ concept in travel behaviour research. Transportation 42, 333–345 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11116-014-9546-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11116-014-9546-1

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