Public transportation in Hanoi: Applying an integrative model of behavioral intention

Hanoi is a populous capital with consistently growing transportation demands. This study applies an integrative model based on the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB), service satisfaction, and environmental concern, in order to examine behavioral intention to use public transportation systems. Using 873 completed questionnaires collected from residents in Hanoi who have used public transport before. The study demonstrates that attitude, perceived behavioral control, personal norms, and descriptive norms influence behavioral intention. The impact of subjective norms lessens when descriptive norms and personal norms are included in this integrative model. Environmental concern indirectly affected behavioral intention through attitude, perceived behavioral control, and personal norms, thus strengthening the TPB model. This shows the appropriateness of this TPB-based integrative model, while service satisfaction is not an important motivation for changing from private vehicles to public bus systems. Theoretical and policy implications are discussed, along with suggestions for future research.