Socio-economic Characteristics of Commuters and Travel Demand in Ikeja Metropolis, Lagos

Abstract

This paper examines the structural relationship between socioeconomic characteristics and travel demand of commuters within Ikeja-Lagos. Data used were obtained from primary and secondary sources. The primary data focused on commuters within four purposively selected routes in Ikeja in order to capture their socioeconomic and travel demands characteristics. A total of nine (9) registered bus stops were identified for the study from which an average total count of 38,196 commuters was obtained between the peak periods (7-9am, 12-2pm, 4-6pm) on Mon, Wed and Sat. A sample size of 234 was used and this represented the total number of questionnaires that were administered through convenience sampling to the commuters within the studied route. The study adopted the use of descriptive and inferential data analytical tools. Travel purpose showed that98.3% of the commuters travelled for work, commercial and educational purposes. On frequency of travel, 74.2% made more of daily trips than weekly trips (22.3%), with a slight preferential increase for private cars (40.2%) over conventional buses (36.8%) as modal choice. The Correlation Analysis for the study reveals a positive relationship between age of commuters and purpose of travel (travel demand). This was further supported by the multiple stepwise regression analysis. The study concluded that socioeconomic characteristics and travel demand should be further improved upon to make commuters trip making and distribution flexible within Ikeja-Lagos.

Keywords: Socioeconomic characteristics, Travel Demand, Traffic Purpose, Traffic congestion

DOI: 10.7176/JESD/14-13-03

Publication date:August 31^st 2023