Does e-shopping for intangible services attenuate the effect of spatial attributes on travel distance and duration?

•E-shopping for intangible services is likely a challenge for the transportation system.•The effect of spatial attributes on travel distance and duration is attenuated by online shopping.•Spatial interventions aiming to moderate travel distances and durations may not be as effective as before. E-sho...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Transportation research. Part A, Policy and practice Vol. 141; pp. 86 - 97
Main Authors: Shi, Kunbo, De Vos, Jonas, Yang, Yongchun, Li, Enlong, Witlox, Frank
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier Ltd 01.11.2020
Subjects:
China
Intangible services
Online shopping
Spatial attributes
Travel distance
Travel duration
Travel duration
Spatial attributes
Travel distance
Intangible services
China
Online shopping
ISSN:0965-8564, 1879-2375
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:•E-shopping for intangible services is likely a challenge for the transportation system.•The effect of spatial attributes on travel distance and duration is attenuated by online shopping.•Spatial interventions aiming to moderate travel distances and durations may not be as effective as before. E-shopping for intangible services (e.g., eating out services, hairdressing, and visits to movie theatres) refers to searching and paying for services online, but it requires e-shoppers to travel to use these services. In theory, e-shoppers’ search space via the internet is less constrained by spatial attributes. As a result, spatial attributes may barely affect the distance and duration of trips resulting from e-shopping for intangible services. The present study used data from 714 valid face-to-face interviews in Beijing, China, to verify this hypothesis. The results showed that e-shoppers were likely to travel farther after purchasing intangible services online. The effect of spatial attributes on the distance of a single trip was largely attenuated due to online purchases of these services, and the effect on the duration was correspondingly weaker to a limited extent. Therefore, spatial interventions aiming to moderate travel distances and durations may not be as effective in the age of online shopping.
ISSN:0965-8564
1879-2375
DOI:10.1016/j.tra.2020.09.004