Unravelling the determinants of carpool behaviour in Flanders, Belgium: Integration of qualitative and quantitative research

The goal of this study is to identify those factors that trigger carpoolers to share their rides and the barriers that restrain non-carpoolers from doing so. To this end, four focus group sessions were organized. In addition, information from the 2009-2010 Flemish household travel survey was analysed. From the focus group discussions, it can be concluded that the concept of carpooling is generally well known, but that the media attention and stimuli for the topic seem to have faded away over time. The main motivations to carpool are the social aspect, the financial benefit or a combination of both. The quantitative analysis underlined for the difference between the distinct types of employees. Furthermore, the finding that the home-work distance increases the likelihood to carpool emphasizes the importance of the financial benefits of carpooling. Financial stimuli are thought to have the most potential to increase the share of carpooling in the modal split.