Environmental concern and the determinants of night train use: Evidence from Vienna (Austria)

This paper investigates which factors determine the intention to take a night train, emphasizing the role of environmental concern, within a Theory of Planned Behavior framework. We built a survey based on an elicitation study, which resulted in an online survey being conducted on a convenience sample in Vienna (Austria). Employing Structural Equation Modelling, we find that positive attitudes towards characteristics of night trains, particularly getting sleep, arriving and departing from the city center, and arriving in the morning, are associated with taking a night train. On the other hand, high perceived costs, long travel times, personal security, and sharing cabins act as perceived barriers to night train intention formation. The last two barriers depend on the sex of the respondent, with women being more negatively influenced by a perceived lack of security and sharing spaces. Our results show that environmental concern and familiarity with night train services play a significant role in the formation of the intention to take a night train.