Tralee Active Town May 2015

Bachelor of Arts in Information System Management Page i

AN EXPLORATION OF THE PERCEPTION OF EMPLOYEES IN THE KERRY

TECHNOLOGY PARK IN RELATION TO SUSTAINABLE TRANSPORT

Research Project Prepared for:

Anna Meria Costello, Planner, Capital Infrastructure Unit

Kerry County Council

Bachelor of Arts in Information Systems Management Page ii

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Disclaimer of Liability .................................................................................................... 1

1.0 Introduction Chapter ............................................................................................ 2

1.1 Introduction ...................................................................................................... 3

1.2 Kerry County Council ...................................................................................... 3

1.3 Tralee Active Travel ........................................................................................ 4

1.4 Kerry Technology Park .................................................................................... 4

1.5 Research Objectives ......................................................................................... 6

2.0 Research Methodology Chapter .......................................................................... 8

2.1 Introduction ...................................................................................................... 9

2.2 Problem Definition ......................................................................................... 10

2.3 Research Design ............................................................................................. 12

2.3.1 Exploratory research ............................................................................... 13

2.3.2 Descriptive research ................................................................................ 13

2.3.3 Causal research ....................................................................................... 14

2.4 Data Collection Method ................................................................................. 15

2.4.1 Secondary Research ................................................................................ 15

2.4.2 Primary Research .................................................................................... 16

2.5 Sampling ........................................................................................................ 18

2.6 Fieldwork ....................................................................................................... 20

2.7 Data Analysis ................................................................................................. 21

2.8 Presentation of the Results ............................................................................. 21

3.0 Secondary Research Findings Chapter .............................................................. 22

3.1 Introduction .................................................................................................... 23

3.2 Smarter Travel Towns Findings ..................................................................... 24

3.3 Smarter Travel Campus IT Tralee Survey Staff and Students ................... 34

3.3.1. IT Tralee Smarter Travel Campus Survey - Staff ................................... 34

Bachelor of Arts in Information Systems Management Page iii

3.3.2 IT Tralee Smarter Travel Campus Survey - Students ............................. 38

4.0 Qualitative Research Findings Chapter ............................................................. 44

4.1 Introduction .................................................................................................... 45

4.2 Objectives of Qualitative Research ................................................................ 45

4.3 Qualitative Research Findings ....................................................................... 46

4.4 Expert In-depth Interview .............................................................................. 50

5.0 Quantitative Research Findings Chapter ........................................................... 54

5.1 Introduction .................................................................................................... 55

5.2 Objectives of Quantitative Research .............................................................. 55

5.3 Observation .................................................................................................... 80

6.0 Conclusions Chapter .......................................................................................... 81

6.1 Introduction .................................................................................................... 82

6.2 Outlined Conclusions ..................................................................................... 82

7.0 Recommendations Chapter ................................................................................ 86

7.1 Introduction .................................................................................................... 87

7.2 Recommendations .......................................................................................... 87

8.0 Appendices A ..................................................................................................... 91

8.1 ESOMAR Guidelines ........................................................................................ i

8.2 Ethical Guidelines for Recording Interviews/Group Discussions ................... v

8.3 ESOMAR Guideline for Passive Data Collection and Observation ............. vii

8.4 In-depth Interview Ethics Statement/Explanatory Note ............................... xiii

8.5 Introduction Letter ......................................................................................... xv

9.0 Index ................................................................................................................. xvi

9.1 Table of Figures ........................................................................................... xvii

9.2 Table of Tables .............................................................................................. xxi

10.0 References ........................................................................................................ xxii

Bibliography .............................................................................................................. xxiii

Bachelor of Arts in Information System Management Page 1

DISCLAIMER OF LIABILITY

This project has been undertaken by the group on behalf of the Institute of

Technology, Tralee. Every reasonable effort has been made to present reliable and

accurate information and advice. Much of the analysis is subjective in nature and is

based upon primary and secondary research, which has been subject to group

interpretation.

Thus, no warranties or promises are made by the writers, the Faculty or staff of the

Institute of Technology, Tralee. Furthermore, neither the group, nor the Faculty of the

School of Business assume any responsibility or liability for the reliance by any party

upon the information and advice contained in this report.

While no responsibility can be accepted by the group for actions taken on the basis of

information contained in this report, we would hope that it would provide an accurate

and reliable basis for actions that might be taken as a result of this report.

Bachelor of Arts in Information Systems Management Page 2

1.0 INTRODUCTION CHAPTER


1.1 Introduction

This Research report is created as part of the Marketing Research Project module by

Bachelor of Arts in Information System Management students at the Institute of

Technology Tralee. The project was commissioned by Kerry County Council to

research and gather findings about behavior patterns on transport modes of employees

of Kerry Technology Park.

1.2 Kerry County Council

Kerry County Council (KCC) is the authority accountable for local government in

County Kerry, Ireland. The council is responsible for housing and community; roads

and transportation; urban planning and development; amenity and culture; and

environment (Kerry County Council, 2014). In 2011, KCC commissioned a Transport

Strategy for Tralee town –Tralee Transport Strategy (TTS). The strategy explored the

transport conditions in and around the town at the time and identified issues

surrounding traffic congestion and movements (Kearns, 2011).

Arising from the study, a number of key recommendations and actions were proposed.

Recommendations included increasing the amount of shared space within the town,

the development of a public transport strategy and the development of walkways from

the old railway lines within the town. One of the overall objectives of the Transport

Strategy was concerned with the future public transport service for Tralee and

providing viable public transport service linking the existing and future significant

residential and employment zones to each other and to the town centre (Kearns, 2011).

The service will work with the other transportation initiatives (Tralee Active Travel

Initiative) to form part of an integrated public transport service. The service will assist

in achieving a viable modal split from the use of the private car and will be an

important element in achieving the sustainable development of Tralee.

Following on from the TTS, Kerry County Council applied for and was successful in

its application to the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport for the Tralee

Active Travel Initiative (ATT) (Hartnett, 2014).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/House

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transport

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urban_planning

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Culture

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_environment


1.3 Tralee Active Travel

The aim of the ATT is to create a modal shift in travel patterns in Tralee town; a move

away from a dependency on the car towards sustainable modes of transport, i.e.

walking, cycling, public transport or car sharing.

The infrastructural measures that will be undertaken as part of this initiative include:

Creating 6km cycleway from Forge Cross, connecting the I.T. Tralee to

Blennerville via the town centre.

Introducing a 30km / hr speed limit in Tralee town centre.

Creating a shared space concept in Tralee town centre.

Initiating two-way traffic movement with cycle and pedestrian facilities

(Crean, 2014).

The research team has been requested to conduct research in order to identify the

variety of transport modes used by the personnel in Kerry Technology Park and to

gather evidence that indicates how likely are employees of Kerry Technology Park to

instigate a change to more ecological types of transport to travel to and from the

workplace. Another aim of the research is to generate a better understanding of the

barriers that discourage employees of Kerry Technology Park to switch to sustainable

modes of transport. Kerry County Council can use the findings of this research project

to discover the best approaches that can be utilized to encourage the personnel of

Kerry Technology Park to use more sustainable modes of transportation.

1.4 Kerry Technology Park

Kerry Technology Park was firstly opened in 2001 and is located in the same campus

as the Institute of Technology Tralee. The Park is owned and managed by Shannon

Development and was developed in partnership with IT Tralee (Anon., 2011). Some

of the most innovative and high-tech orientated businesses in Kerry are positioned in

this park.


The Park plays a critical role in the development of the Tralee town as around

400 people, mostly local, are working full-time and part-time in this park (Radio

Kerry, 2014).

Outlined in two tables are the lists of the businesses based in the Kerry Technology

Park and the Tom Crean Centre respectively.

Kerry Technology Park

Aten solutions Glen Dimplex Group Purchasing

Castel International Education Ltd. Muller Ireland Ltd

Enercon Windfarm Service Ireland Neustock Media

Eventcell (VerbLondon) PN Software

FreeFlow Pulse Learning

GlenAran Saorgus Energy

JRI America Shannon Development

Continuum Commerce Solutions Woodley Hall Insurances

Table 1: Businesses located at Kerry Technology Park

Tom Crean Centre (Tom Crean Center, 2015)

Rigbag Action Sports ViClarity

WizZki PST Sport

Bio Atlantis RClub Sports Wear Ltd

Premier Irish Golf Tours Ltd CEED

Sports Clinic Plus Irish TV

ZEIT Sulotion Gael Force Wind Energy

New Frontiers Aten Solution

Access Heritage Ltd Corvus Software

Imar Technology Gateway Peregreen

Text Republic Relate Labs

Table 2: Businesses positioned at Tom Crean Center


1.5 Research Objectives

The overall aim of the research is to examine the behaviour patterns of those who

work in Kerry Technology Park (hereafter referred to as ‘the Technology Park’) with

regard to their daily commute to and from work.

The objectives of the research are:

1. To identify the current mode of transport used by the employees of the Technology

Park.

2. To identify the distance employees of the Technology Park travel to get to work

each day.

3. To determine the likelihood of changing the behaviour patterns and attitudes of the

employees from using cars to more sustainable modes of transport e.g. bike, public

transport and/or carpooling.

4. To identify barriers or reasons for drivers of cars not willing or able to shift to

more sustainable modes of transport e.g. bike, public transport, walking and/or

carpooling.

5. To determine the likelihood of a shift in modal transport from driving a car to

work to cycling or using public transport, walking and/or carpooling.

6. To identify the best approach to raising awareness among the employees of the

Technology Park of the Tralee Active Travel Initiative.

7. To establish where employees of the Technology Park get their information with

regard to public initiatives within the Technology Park and locality.

Also included in this report are some of the main findings generated from the

Smarter Travel Campus research conducted last year (2014) with IT Tralee staff and

students.


The findings from this research will assist KCC in developing an evidence-based

awareness and education strategy aimed at 3rd

level students and staff of the Institute

and employees of the Technology Park, in making a modal shift from the car to

sustainable forms of transport (walking, cycling and public transport/carpooling).

Infrastructural measures will be undertaken as a result of the Tralee Active Travel

Initiative

The remainder of this report sets out the main findings, conclusions and the

recommendations derived from the research conducted as part of this research project.

The Research Methodology chapter (Chapter 2) outlines the techniques which were

selected by the research team to collect qualitative and quantitative data.

Chapter 3 (Secondary Findings Chapter) presents the findings that the research team

has uncovered while conducting desk research. In this chapter the research team

uncovered and explored similar projects/initiatives introduced in other sustainable

travel initiatives in Ireland.

The Qualitative Research Findings chapter (Chapter 4) consists of qualitative research

methods that were agreed by the research team to collect non statistical data that can

be used to support findings gathered from the questionnaire. The research team has

decided that the most appropriate qualitative methods to be used in this project is in-

depth interview research, conducted with experts in the introduction/implementation

of sustainable transport initiatives.

The Quantitative Research Findings chapter (Chapter 5) includes findings gathered

from the quantitative methods (survey and observation research) that the research team

has employed to gather primary data.

Chapter 6 (Conclusion Chapter) presents the main conclusion drawn by the research

team in light of the secondary and primary research conducted.

Finally Recommendation chapter (Chapter 7) lists all the recommendations that the

research puts forward from analysing the data gathered from the online survey, in

depth interviews, observations and secondary research findings.


2.0 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY CHAPTER


2.1 Introduction

The purpose of this methodology chapter is to briefly outline the marketing research

process and its stages and how they were applied to this research project.

In order to achieve reliable research in the marketing world the researcher should

adhere to a series of steps and stages known as the research process (Domegan &

Fleming, 1999).

“The marketing research process is a systematic planning, gathering, analysis

and reporting of information to management to assist with a specific decision”

(Domegan & Fleming, 1999, p. 13)

According to Domegan and Fleming the marketing research process contains seven

stages which are inter-related. They can be referred as a set of stages that display a

number of tasks that help the researcher to gather reliable and valid information, which

will help in the decision making process (Domegan & Fleming, 1999).

The stages of the marketing research process (Domegan & Fleming, 1999) are set out

in Figure 1.

Figure 1: The marketing research process (Domegan & Fleming, 1999, p. 20)

Stage 1 - PROBLEM DEFINITION

Stage 2 - RESEARCH DESIGN

Stage 3 - DATA COLLECTION METHODS

Stage 4 - SAMPLING

Stage 5 - FIELDWORK

Stage 6 - ANALYSIS OF DATA

Stage 7 - PRESENTATION OF THE RESULTS


2.2 Problem Definition

At this stage it is vital to fulfil the client’s requirements and needs and to accurately

define the objectives of the research and to correctly define the research problem. The

research cannot be meaningful unless the “why” and “what” aspects of the problem

are clearly identified and established (Joselyn, 1977).

Problem definition involves several tasks that are critical for defining the problem

accurately. Firstly, it is necessary to engage with the client to discuss the research

brief and identify relevant data or an expert to identify current trends in a particular

area (Parasuraman, 1991).

The research team therefore met with the client, Ms Anna Meria Costello from Kerry

County Council; during this meeting the required objectives for this research were

discussed. This research is primarily concerned about examining travelling behaviour

of Kerry Technology Park employees and establishing a list of the most appropriate

ways in how to raise awareness of Tralee Active Travel (TAT) which is part of an

integrated public transport service. This project aims to determine the best

promotional tactics to inform the people of Tralee about the initiative which intends to

create a modal shift in travel behaviour and patterns among those living and working

in Tralee. The tasks associated with the problem definition stage are broken down into

sub stages.

As Domegan and Fleming stated, “In this manner, the tasks involved in

problem definition: problem identification, clarification, formulation and

objectives, are highly inter-related and dependent upon each other

(1999, p. 21).”

Figure 2: Problem definition stages (Domegan & Fleming, 1999, p. 21)

PROBLEM IDENTIFICATION

PROBLEM CLARIFICATION

PROBLEM FORMULATION

OBJECTIVES/HYPOTHESES


Problem clarification requires the researcher to define the background of the problem

(Domegan & Fleming, 1999).

In this case two in-depth interviews with experts in their respective field were held;

namely Mr Ken Hegarty, Travel Plan Facilitator NTA Smarter Travel Campus /

Workplace Programme & Transport Consultant (BE, MEngSc, CEng MIEI, CIHT)

and Mr Donal Hunt - Estates Manager, Institute of Technology, Tralee (B.E., F.I.E.I,

Dip. Plan, Dip. Env. Cert. S&H@W).

The research team also engaged in external research regarding a number of similar

schemes (e.g. Limerick Smarter Travel, Westport Smarter Travel) identified by the

client as examples of best practice. The research team used a questionnaire conducted

by the NTA (National Transport Authority), this questionnaire was used in both

secondary and primary research. This questionnaire was designed to understand

travelling behaviour patterns of large-size companies and third-level institutions in

Ireland.

Problem formulation involves a research of previous questionnaire conducted for other

study with a similar purpose. A previous questionnaire’s questions can be used as a

foundation when conducting survey for present study (Domegan & Fleming, 1999).

In the problem formulation stage the team selected the NTA Tool in the form of

Smarter Travel – Employee Travel survey conducted by Smarter Travel Program for

students of ITs (Institute of Technology) all over Ireland. This survey helps the

research team to build a foundation for its own survey questions for TAT.

The last stage of the problem definition involves a statement of the objectives or the

hypotheses. The primary objective is to understand the travelling behaviour of KTP

employees and their chosen mode of transport and the secondary objective is to

understand the current Kerry Technology Park (KTP) employees’ behaviours towards

daily transport from and to work.


The primary and secondary objectives are:


Park.

2. To identify the distance employees of the Technology Park travel to get to work

each day.

3. To determine the likelihood of changing the behaviour patterns and attitudes of the

employees from using cars to more sustainable modes of transport e.g. bike, public

transport and/or carpooling.



carpooling.




Technology Park of the Tralee Active Travel Initiative.



2.3 Research Design

Research design is the blueprint stage where the researchers design a plan of action or

framework. Research design may be classified into three terms: exploratory,

descriptive and causal research design (Domegan & Fleming, 1999).


2.3.1 Exploratory research

Exploratory research is mainly defined as an informal or investigative baseline in the

marketing research process.

The main purpose is to determine new ideas based on secondary or qualitative data

collection (Sontakki, 2010).

“A research that aims to explore and to discover issues about the problem on

hand.” (Domegan & Fleming, 1999, p. 23)

Exploratory research was used to identify and examine the behavioural patterns of

Kerry Technology Park employees with regards to their daily commute to and from

work. It was also used to determine their level of awareness of the TAT project.

In-depth interviews were held with experts to gain an understanding of how to

generate awareness and change the behaviour of people towards their mode of

transport.

Three KTP employees were interviewed on why a certain mode of transport might be

used and any difficulties that may impede a move towards a modal shift.

In the secondary research stage the exploratory research was conducted to uncover

tools that would measure the employees’ behavioural habits regarding which mode of

transport they use most often.

The survey used was the NTA Smarter Travel – Employee Travel Survey. This

survey is a questionnaire which is sent out to large-scale employers and third-level

institutions by the Smarter Travel Programme which is operated by the NTA (Travel,

2015).

2.3.2 Descriptive research

Descriptive research is designed to describe variables and their relevance to the

forthcoming decision. This research is fact-orientated (Sontakki, 2010).

“A research that is concerned with describing the associations between two or

more variable.” (Domegan & Fleming, 1999, p. 24).


In addition to the exploratory work conducted, descriptive research in the form of an

online survey, the NTA Smarter Travel – Employee Travel Survey was utilised by the

research team to understand the behaviour of KTP employees. Finally, descriptive

secondary research data in the form of a survey findings was collected to understand

the attitudes and behaviours of I.T. Tralee staff and students in relation to Smarter

Travel Programme.

2.3.3 Causal research

Causal research is defined as an experiment or collection of data showing certain

effects which are manipulated by one or more variables in all experiments (Sontakki,

2010).

“...aims to establish a cause and effect relationship between two or more

variables” (Domegan & Fleming, 1999, p. 24).

The reason why the casual research was not used in this project was mainly due to its

lack of relevance in this study as the research team was attempting to understand and

describe behaviour and attitudes. A combination of descriptive research and

exploratory research was deemed more applicable.

A brief summary of actions taken during research design are displayed in Table1:

Exploratory research

2 Expert interviews To established understanding how to generate awareness

and change behaviour.

3 Interviews with

employees of the KTP

To gain understanding of chosen mode of transport and

defining any barriers to a modal shift.

Secondary research To uncover existing findings to measure behaviour

towards travelling to work.

Descriptive research

NTA online Smarter

Travel Employee

Travel survey

Was used for comparison with previous finding and

findings established in this project.

Table 3: Exploratory and Descriptive research actions


2.4 Data Collection Method

At this stage the research team is faced with a question: “What type of data should be

collected”? This question should be answered by outlining the purpose of this study,

while also defining all previous stages. It should also involve a complete list of data

required to conduct this study (Parasuraman, 1991).

The third stage of this research had two main sources of data collection: secondary

research data and primary research data. The secondary research sources are collected

sets of data for previously accomplished research and in most cases secondary

research data cannot answer required objectives in the present study. Primary data is

specifically collected for the current study (Parasuraman, 1991).

2.4.1 Secondary Research

The main objective of this research is to gather information on the general publics’

behaviour patterns as regards to their mode of transport to and from work. This

secondary information was collected from similar initiatives conducted by NTA

(Smarter Travel – Employee Travel Survey).

The following are examples of reports used in secondary research:

Limerick Smart Travel Initiatives report

Go Dungarvan

Sligo Smarter Travel, Active Travel Towns Funding Scheme 2012-2013

2011 census by the Central Statistics Office

Environmental Protection Agency

IT Tralee Smarter Travel Campus Survey2014

Smarter Travel, A Sustainable Transport Future, A New Transport Policy for

Ireland 2009-2020.


In 2012, Limerick City, Dungarvan and Westport were awarded funding to transform

into Ireland’s first Smarter Travel Areas, promoting cycling and walking, the use of

public transport and reducing car travel, as these initiatives are still in progress the

research team based their secondary research on these three areas as well as reference

to statistics from the 2011 census and reports from the Environmental Protection

Agency.

The research team also included Sligo town as Sligo has a lot in common with Tralee

as it has a similar population size and is also home to an Institute of Technology.

Sligo also put forward a proposal to the Active Travel Towns Funding Scheme 2012-

2013 to be part of the Smarter Travel Program.

All these initiatives and programmes were researched to understand peoples’ travelling

patterns, their behaviour towards travelling on a daily basis and to identify practices on

how to promote sustainable modes of transport.

2.4.2 Primary Research

Primary research is a combination of a qualitative and quantitative research, at this

stage the researcher is collecting data to solve a problem in current study (McDaniel &

Gates, 2002).

According to Jobber (1995, p. 167)“When the researcher actively collects new

data, for example by interviewing respondents, this is called primary

research”.

2.4.2.1 Qualitative Research

Qualitative research closely examines the attitude and behaviour of participants mainly

by holding a focus groups or in-depth interviews. There are two main methods of

qualitative research: focus groups and in-depth interviews.

A focus group is run my mediator and 8-12 participants. Focus groups are based on

interaction between moderator and participants where the moderator intents to find out

what is the perception about a product or a service (McDaniel & Gates, 2002).


In-depth interviews are discussions on one-on one bases where interviewee is

responding to a set of questions asked by the interviewer (McDaniel & Gates, 2002).

Qualitative research can be defined “as the collection of data which is open to

interpretation, for instance on attitudes & opinions, and which might not be

validated statistically” (Domegan and Fleming 2003).

In-depth interviews were chosen over focus groups for this project, as it was not

possible to assemble a focus group from within the employees of the Technology Park

due to their demanding schedules. In-depth interviews helped the researchers

understand the attitudes of employees of the Technology Park towards travelling to

work. Also these interviews helped improve the final questionnaire to make sure that

the questions asked were as clear as possible on the final survey.

There was total of five in-depth interviews, two interviews with experts to identify

current trends toward sustainable transport both locally and nationally.

The remaining three in-depth interviews were with KTP employees to understand their

behavioural patterns towards traveling to work on a daily bases and if there were any

barriers that existed that prevented them from choosing a more sustainable from of

transport.

2.4.2.2 Quantitative Research

“Following careful exploratory research, the design of the main data

collection procedures will be made. Two alternative approaches are

descriptive and experimental research” (1995, pp. 172-173) .

If interviewing is involved the researcher should assume that the research will be

based on the following questions:

How many participants will be involved in the sampling process?

What type of participants will be involved in the sampling process?

What types of questions will be asked-questionnaire design (Jobber, 1995, p.

172).


The research team selected an online survey as the most appropriate method for

collecting data as this way the survey it would not interrupt the employee work and it

gives them the chance to complete the survey on their own time. Also, in keeping

with sustainability, the research team felt an online survey was also very appropriate to

the message they were delivering about making sustainable everyday choices and

being environmentally friendly. The minimum number of participants required by the

client was 10% of employees.

2.5 Sampling

This stage involves deciding who to talk or who to observe. Sampling allows the

researcher to make conclusions from the analysis of data from a small portion of a

target market about the population from which it is drawn (Domegan and Fleming,

2007).

The researcher has to decide whether to use a Sample or a Census.

“The term sample denotes a smaller group of items, members or objects, taken

from a particular population that we measure or observe” (Domegan and

Fleming, 2007, p. 374).

“A census is where all members or cases of a given population are

observed/measured” (Domegan and Fleming, 2007, p. 374).

In this case the research team has decided to use census. The reason behind this is

because the research team could not acquire a list of everyone in the population of

interest because of data protection issues.

The first stage of sampling is defining the population from which the sample is going

to be selected. Regarding to this Marketing research project, the target population was

defined as the employees of Kerry Technology Park

The next stage involves identifying a sampling frame. Malhotra and Birks have

defined sample frame as a representation of the elements of the target population

(Malhotra and Birks, 2007). In this case as no sampling frame could be accessed, it

precluded the research team from using probability sampling method.


According to Domegan and Fleming (2007), when using a probability sampling

method, each individual or unit has a known and equal chance of being selected. This

type of sampling is less prone to bias and the sampling error can be estimated.

On the other side, non-probability sampling is not based upon any probability

principles or laws and the probability of selection is unknown.

Domegan and Fleming (2007) divided this method into three techniques:

Quota sampling it is the most popular and it is a way to replicate the

population without using random selection (Domegan and Fleming, 2007).

This method involves the selection of participants with specific characteristics

required by the researcher.

Judgment sampling uses the expertise of the researcher to hand-pick the

sample units (Domegan and Fleming, 2007). This method is cheap and time-

saving but it depends on the researcher’s knowledge of population.

Convenience sampling allows the researcher to select the sample at his

convenience, or includes whoever is happy to respond to the survey. In this

case, measuring representativeness of the sample is difficult.

The selected sampling method in this project was convenience sampling. The research

team decided to use this method because could not obtain a list of details of all Kerry

Technology Park employees. The main advantages of this method are that it gathers a

large number of responses in a short period of time; while listed as a disadvantage is

the difficulty to measure the representativeness of the sample. Convenience sampling

is a type of non-probability sampling which means individual units in the population

do not have an equal chance of being selected (Domegan and Fleming, 2007).


2.6 Fieldwork

Domegan and Fleming 2007 state that fieldwork involves physically collecting the

data and this phase refers to the type of contact the researchers have made with

respondents, how the questionnaire was administered and what methods were used to

record and process data.

The in-depth interviews with three employees of Kerry Technology Park were

undertaken in the month of February 2015 in the Institute of Technology Tralee

building. Each interview lasted around 15 minutes and recording equipment was used

to record the interview.

The in-depth interviews with experts were conducted in the month of March. The in-

depth interview with Ken Hegarty from Smarter Travel Campus was done by email on

26 February. The in depth interview with Donal Hunt was conducted on 10 of March

in the IT Tralee building from 12.30 to 13.30.

The online questionnaire was administered from 6th

March to 20th

of April. Firstly the

research team conducted an introduction letter for all companies located in KTP

outlining the purpose of the survey and requesting their participation. These letters

were delivered by hand to the KTP building on the 4th

March 2015. With support

from Mrs Mary Dolan, the main receptionist in the KTP complex, a letter was handed

out to each company wrapped in a reflective cycle wrist band. In the Tom Crean

centre, a letter was delivered to each company’s post box. Within two days five

companies had agreed to take part in the survey. The online survey was sent to all

companies on the 6th

March 2015 to the contact address on their company website.

However, again with the help of Mrs. Mary Dolan, all employees in KTP received the

survey to their work email address from Mrs. Dolan, as is policy within the

Technology Park of no unsolicited emails. A reminder email was sent via Mrs. Dolan

on the 11th

and 18th

March 2015.

The observation research took place during the months of February and March. The

researchers observed the traffic flowing in and out Kerry Technology Park on sunny

and rainy weather.


The days and times of observation are outlined in Table 4:

DATE OF OBSERVATION START TIME END TIME

26 March 8.25 8.55

26 March 17.25 18.00

24 February 8.20 8.50

23 February 17.00 17.35

23 February 8.30 9.00

Table 4: Observation research on transport modes used by Kerry Technology Park employees

2.7 Data Analysis

According to Domegan and Fleming (2007), data analysis is defined as a set of

methods and techniques that can be used to obtain information and insights from the

data.

For this project the research team used the online survey. Survey Monkey software

was used to distribute questionnaires, gather and analyze the information. All the

information gathered was analyzed using techniques such as summarizing the data,

creating customized charts, using filters and viewing individual specific responses.

2.8 Presentation of the Results

The presentation of the results has to be written and in oral format. The researcher’s

role is to communicate the findings to the client (Domegan and Fleming, 2007).

The findings of the secondary, qualitative and quantitative research are set out in

chapters 3, 4 and 5 respectively.


3.0 SECONDARY RESEARCH FINDINGS

CHAPTER


3.1 Introduction

This chapter researches sustainable transport initiatives that have been implemented

across towns and cities in Ireland. Below is a list that outlines the areas of research

that the team concentrated on in this chapter;

Section 3.3 presents the findings from the recent survey conducted on the students and

staff of IT Tralee for the Smarter Travel Campus which was completed in December

2014. The NTA kindly gave us permission to include these findings in our report.

Table 5 below lists secondary research resources which the team refer to consistently

throughout this chapter.

Limerick Smarter Travel (Limerick Smarter Travel, 2010)

Westport Smarter Travel (www.westportsmartertravel.ie)

Go Dungarvan (www.godungarvan.ie)

Sligo Smarter Travel, Active Travel Towns Funding Scheme 2012-2013

2011 census by the Central Statistics Office (hereafter known as the CSO)

Environmental Protection Agency (hereafter known as the EPA)

IT Tralee Smarter Travel Campus Survey 2014

Table 5: List of Secondary Research Resources

Identify Smarter Travel Towns

Identify current travel trends

Identify change of behaviour patterns and attitudes towards using more

sustainable modes of transport

Identify the best practise approach to raising awareness and what promotional

activities will encourage people to change their mode of transport

Examine Smarter Travel Campus IT Tralee Survey of Staff and Students

2014/2015


3.2 Smarter Travel Towns Findings

Identify Smarter Travel Towns

When Smarter Travel was launched in 2008 as Ireland’s Sustainable Transport Future

Policy, both the then Taoiseach, Brian Cowen and Minister for Transport, Noel

Dempsey mentioned the change of mind set needed in Ireland, to help people move to

more sustainable forms of transport (www.smartertravel.ie, 2009). The National

Spatial Strategy and its alignment with Transport 21 in 2009 lead to the launch of the

Smarter Travel Program. It is with these initiatives that the research team conducted

further detailed research for this chapter.

In 2012, Limerick City, Dungarvan and Westport were awarded funding to transform

into Ireland’s first Smarter Travel Areas, promoting cycling and walking, the use of

public transport and reducing car travel. Because these initiatives are launched and in

progress, the research team based their secondary research on these three areas as well

as reference to statistics from the 2011 census and reports from the Environmental

Protection Agency. However, for comparison purposes the team decided to include

Sligo town in place of Limerick City as Sligo has a lot in common with Tralee as it has

a similar population size and is also home to an Institute of Technology. Sligo also

put forward a proposal to the Active Travel Towns Funding Scheme 2012-2013 to be

part of the Smarter Travel Program.

To compare Tralee with Sligo, Westport and Dungarvan, we must firstly look at the

population of each area. Figure 3 outlines the difference in population between the

four areas studied.


Figure 3: Population of Smarter Travel Town

Identify Current Travel Trends

Overall the census of 2011 showed nationally, that the most common method of

commuting to work, school or college is the car or van with this form of transport

accounting for 63% of all commutes (www.cso.ie, 2012).

Figure 4 shows Tralee came in just below the national average with 60% along with

Westport at 60% for all journeys made by car. Sligo on the other hand at 55% by

2011, is already on the road to reaching 45%, the percentage put forward by the

Department of Transport as the target for Ireland for 2020 (www.smartertravel.ie,

2009).

Figure 4: Percentage of population who travel by car (www.cso.ie, 2012)

0

5000

10000

15000

20000

25000 Tralee, 23693

Sligo, 19452

Dungarvan, 12300

Westport, 5150

50

52

54

56

58

60

62

64

66

Tralee, 60%

Sligo, 55%

Dungarvan, 66%

Westport, 60%


Figure 5 shows the average journey time for people commuting by car to work each

day was between 16-20 minutes. As the team discovered through their research,

journey time is an important factor for people when considering how they travel each

day.

Figure 5: Average journey time in minutes (www.cso.ie, 2012)

Figure 6 shows that the majority of workers in Tralee, Sligo and Westport who face a

commute in excess of 30 minutes ranges between 10% and 11%, and 20% from

Dungarvan.

Figure 6: Percentage of workers with a commuting time in excess of 30 minutes (www.cso.ie, 2012)

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

20

TRALEE SLIGO DUNGARVAN WESTPORT

18

16

20

17

0

5

10

15

20

25

TRALEE SLIGO DUNGARVAN WESTPORT

10%

7%

20%

11%


Identify barriers or reasons for not changing mode of transport to

more sustainable modes

To identify barrier or reasons for not changing mode of transport to more sustainable

mores, the EPA as part of a project conducted on their behalf by Trinity College

Dublin, noted in a report that

“Eighty-six per cent of respondents considered that local cycling and walking

facilities were inadequate. Local authority perceptions of barriers to cycling

and walking indicate that a lack of suitable road space, followed by the

perception that cycling and walking are unsafe, and the cost of developing a

cycle network are the primary barriers.” (Browne, et al., 2011)

Although, the report mentioned above considers the barriers in a broader sense, the

same themes carried through to the people who live within these local authority areas.

All surveys carried out by the Smarter Travel Areas (Limerick ,Dungarvan and

Westport) noted that lack of infrastructure along with safety concerns were the main

barriers as people are not confident cycling to and from work, school and college.

As with most towns, cycle paths are only beginning to appear but there does not seem

to be a coherent link between the paths in towns as of yet. Cyclists could find

themselves suddenly on a busy main road with no identifiable cycle path to continue

their journey.


Dungarvan clearly identified five core barriers and principles to modal shift that it

experienced in its research, shown in Table 6;

THEME PRINCIPLE ADDRESSING

BARRIERS

Safety

Routes should make

cycling/walking as safe as possible.

Both from a road and personal

safety viewpoint.

Safety/Attitude

Coherence

The routes should form a coherent

network and have a consistent

design. Permeability, desire lines

and way finding information are

essential.

Accessibility/Information

Directness

Cycle/Walk ways should offer

direct and fast routes for both users.

Attractiveness

It should be attractive and pleasant

to use the routes

Environment

Comfort

Using the routes should be

comfortable.

Table 6: GoDungarvan Barriers and Principles to modal shift (www.GoDungarvan.ie, 2010)

Another report produced by the EPA in 2008 stated that the challenges ahead were

‘reducing reliance on the private car, particularly in a low-density, dispersed

population such as Ireland’s’. It also noted that with economic growth came urban

sprawl and low-density development, which has ‘locked-in’ unsustainable travel

patterns.


In 2008 the EPA also stated that

‘Research suggests that two overriding issues are important in developing

policies to reduce reliance on private cars. First, there is a strong persistence

in car ownership in Ireland, making the policy challenge to switch transport

modes one not just of providing transport alternatives but also of aggressively

tackling entrenched behaviours. The second issue is delivering alternative

transport options with attractive journey times (and the associated issue of

frequency of service). While many factors are important, journey time is a

particularly important factor influencing choice of mode of transport to work.

The policy challenge to switch transport modes is not just one of providing

transport alternatives but of proving attractive alternatives’ (www.epa.ie,

2008).

Thus, barriers to sustainable transport have been known for quite a number of years,

yet they still exist in every town and village in Ireland.

Identify change of behaviour patterns and attitudes towards using

more sustainable modes of transport

The largest challenge for sustainable travel in Ireland is changing the behavior patterns

of people. Ireland has a dispersed population and towns like Tralee involve a wider

hinterland in which people travel from to work, college and school each day. The

Smarter Travel program in Limerick recognized that the majority of people driving to

work, school or college actually travel relatively short distances and offer the greatest

potential for modal shift, with 2km being an acceptable distance that a healthy person

can walk in under 20 minutes and cycling 10km in around 35 minutes. (Limerick

Smarter Travel, 2010)

Journey planning was a consistent theme across all Smarter Travel research (Westport

Smarter Travel, 2010) (www.GoDungarvan.ie, 2010) (Limerick Smarter Travel,

2010). If a person is confident that their journey is safe, attractive and efficient, then

they are more likely to try a more sustainable form of transport.


The lack of awareness of alternatives, the inability of people to plan their journey

outside of using the car and the lack of knowledge of what it would be like to shift

modes of transport are all barriers to people choosing a sustainable form of transport.

Westport noted in their Attitude Survey as part of their Smarter Travel proposal

(Westport Smarter Travel, 2010), that the majority of respondents indicated the need

for better information, speed reduction and walking/cycling infrastructure in achieving

a switch to sustainable modes.

Waterford County Council as part of the Smarter Travel Program has “adopted a

holistic and innovative approach to implementing Smarter Travel in Dungarvan. This

recognizes that provision of infrastructure, development of an educational and

promotional campaign, and ongoing consultation are required to achieve behavioural

change, ultimately leading to a modal shift from single-use cars to walking, cycling,

public transport and car-sharing” as outlined figuratively below in Figure 7

(www.GoDungarvan.ie, 2010).

Figure 7: Dungarvan’s Behavioural Change model (www.GoDungarvan.ie, 2010)


Changing behavioural patterns amongst all smarter travel areas included highlighting

not only the health and environmental benefits, but also the financial and social

elements. Both Sligo and Limerick segmented sections within their areas and worked

closely with each section in order to encourage modal shift. By doing this they

recognised that different parts of the city require different measures to tackle

sustainable transport.

Sligo is working with the main employers in Sligo town to kick start their Active

Travel Program and Limerick has adopted a ‘unique hub based approach’, which

sections of parts of the city to allow a more customised approach e.g. Southill where

car ownership is low to the University of Limerick Campus where out of the 11,000

graduates, 13% of students live within a 6km radius of the campus and drive to

college. By approaching different areas with customised programs, the Limerick

Smarter Travel Committee can address concerns that are local to each area within the

city (Limerick Smarter Travel, 2010).

Identify the best practise approach to raising awareness and what

promotional activities will encourage people to change their mode of

transport

Realising that a major behavioural change was needed led each Smarter Travel town

to the question of how this can be achieved. The Smarter Travel Program put forward

by the National Transport Authority suggests a range of soft and hard measures that

can be implemented, these can be viewed at www.smartertravel.ie. However, each

town applied a customised approach to how they promoted smarter travel within their

communities.

http://www.smartertravel.ie/


Sligo (Sligo Local Authorties, 2012)

Regular local Media slots - radio and newspaper on project update, safe cycling and

general cycling and walking issues

Map of Routes - map of routes provided (origin & destination based) to be updated

annually both in hard and soft copy

Updates and Maps on www.sligo.ie

Work with Sligo Partnership & 2 local cycling clubs in promoting events such as the

An Post Cycle, Bike Week Events etc.

Table 7:Sligo Active Travel Town Promotions (Sligo Local Authorities, 2012)

Dungarvan (www.GoDungarvan.ie, 2010)

Travel Centre – information centre for locals and tourists on the availability of

sustainable travel options in the town

Local Guide – information guide of sustainable travel options in the town

Website

Development of Shared Transport Portal

Bike Hire Scheme

Table 8: Dungravan Smarter Travel Program Promotions (www.GoDungarvan.ie, 2010)

http://www.sligo.ie/


Westport (Westport Smarter Travel, 2010)

Website and Social Network

Promotional Material

Workplace Travel Plans

School Travel Plans

Brand Name – Westport –Let’s Get Out

Travel Information Shop

Information Displays in Civic Centres, Library and Leisure Centre

Greenway cycle and walking route

“Share the Journey-CarShare!”

Table 9: Westport Smarter Travel Program Promotions

Westport has implemented the above strategies and its greenway cycle and walking

belt is becoming well known nationally as a result of their campaigns. Again, the

theme of journey planning is common amongst all towns. Social Media and clear

information plans on message boards in and around the towns helps spread the smarter

travel message and keep it alive.

The NTA informed us on the 15th

April 2015 that they are in the midst of preparing an

interim evaluation report on the Smarter Travel Programmes. It has not yet been

finalised, and will only be ready in May 2015. The results that they have at the

moment are interim only as the programmes have a further 2 years to run before

completion, so they will not assess until 2017 if targets have been met.


3.3 Smarter Travel Campus IT Tralee Survey Staff and Students

This section presents a synopsis of both the staff and student Smarter Travel Campus

Survey that was conducted in December 2014 by the National Transport Authority in

conjunction with the estates office of IT Tralee. The researchers compare the results

of the Staff survey of IT Tralee with the staff survey of Kerry Technology Park in

Chapter 5.

Please bear in mind that this survey was conducted in winter, when most people would

possibly use their car more regularly due to weather conditions. All the information

below is courtesy of the Smarter Travel Campus by the National Transport of Ireland

(www.smartertravel.ie, 2015).

The researchers examined the survey under the following three objectives;

1. Modes of transport used.

2. Reason for choice of transport.

3. Possible shift in behaviour patterns towards sustainable transport.

3.3.1. IT Tralee Smarter Travel Campus Survey - Staff

In total 119 members of staff responded to IT Tralee’s travel survey, which was

conducted online through www.surveymonkey.com in December 2014. This

represents a response rate of 36% based on an approximate staff population 330 staff

members.

Modes of transport used

The largest proportion of staff members who responded to the survey travel to campus

by driving a car (85%), followed by car sharing (5%), on foot (4%), bicycle (4%), bus,

minibus or coach (1%) and motorcycle/scooter (1%) as Figure 8 below shows.

http://www.surveymonkey.com/


Figure 8: How do you usually travel TO campus? Pick one box only, for the longest part, by distance, of your usual

journey to campus. If you are based in more than one location, please refer to the one you are in most often.

Reason for choice of transport

A lack of an alternative and the quickest option to and from work were the main

reason given for staff’s choice of transport on their daily commute to and from campus

(Figure 9).

Figure 9: The main reasons the staff choose their mode choice is (each respondent could identify up to 3 reasons) (total

respondents = 107)

0.00%

10.00%

20.00%

30.00%

40.00%

50.00%

60.00%

70.00%

80.00%

90.00%

4%

4% 1%

1% 1%

85%

2% 3%

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40 38

28

21

7 7 2 2 1 1

16


Possible shift in behaviour patterns towards sustainable transport

The survey indicates that the percentage of IT Tralee staff that regularly cycle is

currently 4% of the respondents. However, 20% of respondents indicated that they

would occasionally cycle to IT Tralee, while 26% of respondents indicated that they

would consider cycling, either their own or a rental bicycle. In total 71% of all staff

respondents indicated that they own/or have access to a bicycle on a daily basis.

When asked if a bike scheme (similar to Dublin Bike Scheme) existed at ITT, would

staff be interested in using it for travelling between the north and south campuses,

32% (Figure 10) indicated they would.

Figure 10: If a bike scheme (similar to Dublin Bike scheme) existed at ITT, would you be interested in using same for

travelling between north / south campuses?

There is some potential for promoting walking on the commute in IT Tralee as while

only 4% of respondents regularly walk to campus and 9% of staff indicated they

would occasionally walk to campus; 11% of all respondents indicated that they would

consider walking as a means of travelling to and from the campus. A total of 28% of

respondents live within 5km of their campus (Figure 11). A further 19% live between

5-10km from campus. These people could be targeted for occasional walking or

cycling to campus.

0.00%

5.00%

10.00%

15.00%

20.00%

25.00%

30.00%

35.00%

YES NO MAYBE NO INTEREST AT ALL

SOUNDS GOOD BUT

PROBABLY NO ONE WILL USE

SOUNDS LIKE A WASTE OF MONEY AND

TIME

32%

18%

30%

7%

14%

3%


Figure 11: How far, in kilometres, do you travel to campus?

When asked what would help staff to choose more active commuting modes to and

from the campuses, the majority of respondents indicated that the provisions of

changing areas/showers/lockers and more cycle parking/more secure parking would

help them to change their mode of travel.

Almost 89% of staff who responded to the survey drive on their own to and from the

campus. A total of 44% of staff indicated that they do not need their car for pick-ups

or drop-offs on their commute to campus. Another 8% of staff indicated that they

always need their car for work, while 65% occasionally need their car for work during

the day. When asked what would encourage them to choose an alternative to the car

on your commute, staff indicated that a car pooling scheme, improved cycle facilities

on campus and a bike purchase discount scheme would be beneficial.

Demographics of Staff of IT Tralee

Figure 12: Profile of Respondents

0.00%

5.00%

10.00%

15.00%

20.00%

25.00%

30.00%

LESS THAN 5KM BETWEEN 5KM AND 10KM

BETWEEN 10KM AND 20KM

BETWEEN 20M AND 40KM

MORE THAN 40KM

28%

19% 22%

23%

8%

Male, 36.8%

Female, 63.2%

Rather not say, 0.0%


Figure 13: Age range of respondents

3.3.2 IT Tralee Smarter Travel Campus Survey - Students

A total of 318 students responded to IT Tralee’s travel survey, which was conducted

online through www.surveymonkey.com in December 2014 with 63% of students who

responded indicated that they live in Tralee during the college week. Over 37% of

students who responded commute daily. This represents a response rate of 11% based

on an approximate student population of 3,000 students.

Mode of transport used

The largest proportion of respondents to the IT Tralee Travel survey travel to campus

by driving a car (40%), followed by on foot (23%), car sharing (16%), bus, minibus or

coach (12%) and bicycle (5%). The remaining respondents (4%) reported travelling

by other means. There is great potential for promoting walking on the commute in IT

Tralee as 23% (Figure 14) of respondents regularly walk to campus and 27%

occasionally walk to campus. A positive 21% of all respondents indicated that they

would consider walking as a means of travelling to and from the campus.

0.0%

5.0%

10.0%

15.0%

20.0%

25.0%

30.0%

35.0%

40.0%

45.0%

UNDER 18 18-21 22-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55 OR OVER

Under 18 18-21 22-24

25-34

35-44

45-54

55 or over


Figure 14: How do you usually travel to campus? Pick one box only, for the longest part, by distance, of your usual

journey to campus. If you are based in more than one location, please refer to the one you are in most often.

Reason for choice of transport used

As with the staff survey, the lack of an alternative and the choosing the quickest means

to travel to and from campus were the reasons given for modal choice of transport

(Figure 15).

Figure 15: The main reasons the students choose their mode choice is (each respondent could identify up to 3 reasons)

(total respondents = 293).

0.0%

5.0%

10.0%

15.0%

20.0%

25.0%

30.0%

35.0%

40.0% 23%

5%

12%

0.9%

40%

10%

5%

2% 0.3%

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

9090

69 65

28

15 10 8 4

4

31


In total 49% of students who responded indicated that their term address was different

from their home address. When asked how much do they spend on travel to and from

campus monthly (include fuel, tax, insurance, public transport costs, bicycle

equipment, etc, 34% of students who responded indicated that they spend under €49 a

month (Figure 16). Students could be encouraged to spend less on transport by

choosing a more sustainable form of transport.

Figure 16: How much do you spend on travel to and from campus monthly (include fuel, tax, insurance, public transport

costs, bicycle equipment, etc.)?

Possible shift in behaviour patterns towards sustainable transport

A total of 13% of respondents are already and 22% are occasionally using public

transport. A further 29% of all respondents indicated that they would consider using

public transport as a means of travelling to and from the campus. It appears that there

is further scope to increase regular use of the bus and train, as 31% of respondents live

within 400m (approx. 6 minutes) of a bus stop which provide a direct bus to their

campus and 21% live within 800m (approx.12 minute walk) of a train/rail connection

to Tralee town. Just under 23% of the students who responded to the survey indicated

that they used the shuttle bus which operates between the North and South campuses.

0.00%

5.00%

10.00%

15.00%

20.00%

25.00%

30.00%

35.00%

0-€49 €50-€99 €100-€199 €200-€299 €300-€499 €500-€699 €700+ I DON’T KNOW

34%

18% 19%

12%

7%

1% 1%

8%


While car sharing is an option in terms of more sustainable travel, it should ideally be

targeted at those currently driving alone, i.e. avoiding students switching from other

modes such as active travel.

1. Informal car-sharing is happening, with 16% of respondents (50 people)

regularly travelling to campus as a passenger in a car with driver going to same

destination or travelling to campus regularly as a passenger in a car with driver

going to different destination.

2. Another 40% of respondents are car-sharing occasionally either as a passenger

in a car with driver going to same destination or to a different destination.

3. Car-sharing could be increased by more formal promotion, with 75% of the

respondents indicated that they would be interested in car sharing., either as a

lift-seeker in someone else's car, or offering a lift in your car, or a combination

of both.

4. When asked about free campus car parking, 21% of respondents indicated that

free campus car parking affected their travel choices.

The survey indicated that IT Tralee’s students that regularly cycle is currently 5% of

the respondents. However, 13% of respondents indicated that they would occasionally

cycle to IT Tralee, while 32% of respondents indicated that they would consider

cycling, either their own or a rental bicycle. With 37% of all respondents indicating

that they own / or have access to a bicycle on a daily basis. When the students were

asked what would promote more sustainable travel to and from the campus, 46% of

respondents indicated that the introduction of a bicycle rental scheme on campus

would be the most beneficial initiative.

In total 37% of respondents live within 3km of their campus. A further 19% live

between 3-5km from campus (56% less than 5km from campus). These people could

be targeted for regular and occasional cycling on the commute. Another 8% of

respondents live between 5-10km of their campus and could also be targeted for

occasional cycling on the commute (Figure 17).


Figure 17: How far, in kilometres, do you travel to campus?

Student demographics

Figure 18: Profile of respondents.

0.0%

5.0%

10.0%

15.0%

20.0%

25.0%

LESS THAN 1KM

BETWEEN 1KM AND

3KM

BETWEEN 3KM AND

5KM

BETWEEN 5KM AND

10KM

BETWEEN 10KM AND

20KM

BETWEEN 20M AND

40KM

MORE THAN 40KM

14%

24%

19%

8% 11%

17%

8%

Male, 36.8%

Female, 61.1%

Rather not say, 2.1%


Figure 19: Age range of respondents

Based on occasional use of modes other than the car, or willingness to use other

modes, there is a good opportunity for IT Tralee to facilitate students and staff

interested in having a more active or sustainable commute to and from campus.

0.00%

5.00%

10.00%

15.00%

20.00%

25.00%

30.00%

35.00%

40.00%

45.00%

UNDER 18 18-21 22-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55 OR OVER

2%

44%

25%

18%

6% 5%

0%


4.0 QUALITATIVE RESEARCH FINDINGS

CHAPTER


4.1 Introduction

The purpose of this chapter is to interpret the findings gathered from qualitative

methods utilized in this research project. This data was gathered during in depth

interviews with the employees of Kerry Technology Park. This stage would help the

research team to identify the reasons why employees choose specific mode of

transport to travel to and from workplace, determine what the main barriers are and

discover methods and incentives that work best in order to encourage employees of

Kerry Technology Park to change to sustainable modes of transport. Furthermore,

outlined are findings from in-depth interview with experts in their respective areas.

4.2 Objectives of Qualitative Research

1. To discover the reasons that influences employees of Kerry Technology Park

when choosing transport mode to travel to and from workplace.

2. To ascertain the mode of transport that the employees of Kerry Technology

Park prefer to use as alternative mode of transport and the reason behind it.

3. To determine the barriers that prevents the employees of Kerry Technology

Park from changing to sustainable mode of transport.

4. To uncover the employees attitude about car-pooling or car sharing program.

5. To establish what facilities (e.g. shower rooms) would encourage the

employees of Technology Park to change to sustainable modes of transport.

6. To establish what schemes (e.g. bike to work scheme) would encourage the

employees of Kerry Technology Park to change to sustainable modes of

transport.

7. To determine what information is needed to encourage employees towards

more sustainable modes of transport.


8. To reveal the opinions of employees of Kerry Technology Park towards a bike

rental scheme being put on place.

9. To uncover tools that employees of Kerry Technology Park use to get

information related to Tralee Town.

10. To discover the attitude of the employees of Kerry Technology Park towards

Tralee Active Town Initiative.

4.3 Qualitative Research Findings

To discover the reasons that influence employees of Kerry Technology Park when

choosing transport mode to travel to and from workplace.

All respondents taking part in in-depth interviews state that the type of transport they

are using to travel to and from work is by car. The main reason behind this is

convenience and the wet weather makes it harder for staff members who need to bring

work material with them. In addition some of the respondents expressed concern for

their safety when cycling as the infrastructure of Tralee town is not suitable and unsafe

at the present for cyclist.

“First of all for my own safety as Tralee doesn’t have the infrastructure to cycle.

But also I sometimes I bring my stuff that I need here during the day so it will suit

me better to use the car rather than cycling as well as the weather.”

To ascertain the mode of transport that the employees of Kerry Technology Park

prefer to use as alternative mode of transport and the reason behind it.

With regards to this all the respondents have stated that the most preferred option as an

alternative transport type is cycling. One of the respondents expresses the desire for

using the bike more often but points again to the poor infrastructure of Tralee town.


“Yes, I would like to use my bike more but then again I just wouldn’t because

the weather and roads. I live out in Ballymac so I don’t think I can because

there is no cycle line apart from a little part down the road by the Institute but

otherwise there isn’t any cycle lane and the roads are narrow.”

On the other side respondents express that car-pooling and public transport wouldn’t

be very suitable for them as both options are not reliable because of work hours and

the schedule of buses in Tralee. Even though, based on their opinions public transport

would be more likely to be chosen as an alternative type of transport rather than car-

pooling. One of the respondents quotes:

“I don’t know because my work hours vary from day to day for example

sometimes I finish at 5pm and sometimes 5.30pm and I can’t wait till the bus

comes. But if it was operating like it does in Dublin every 5 minutes I would”.

To determine the barriers that prevents the employees of Kerry Technology Park

from changing to sustainable mode of transport.

In relation to barriers, most of the respondents point out that the main barrier is road

safety. Likewise, the weather and the working hours and laziness can be barriers and

can affect the type of transport chosen to commute. One of the respondents’ recites as

follows:

“Safety would be the main thing. I have no problem cycling or walking. But it

is the roads again. Not having the space and the drivers do not always respect

people that are walking and cycling. I used to live in the Killarney and most of

the parts in the town have the little cycling lane and it was brilliant. I think

there were more people cycling because of that and the drivers were used to

cyclist and kept out. If I am cycling in Tralee I find it difficult with cars

passing closer because drivers are not used with cyclist on roads and they are

not into that yet.”

To uncover the employees attitude about car-pooling or car sharing program.

In regards to car-pooling or car sharing program all three respondent’s state that car-

pooling would not be suitable for them as they live near Tralee but they think that

might be a good idea for people who travel from other villages or nearby towns.


“I think is a good idea but in my case I am only 6 kilometres way and I think

would be more trouble than it is worth. But I know a lot of people who work in

Kerry Technology Park that have to travel from Killorglin or Killarney, I think

for those people it worth a while.”

To establish what facilities (e.g. shower rooms) would encourage the employees of

Technology Park to change to sustainable modes of transport.

One of the participant’s states that even though there are changing rooms and shower

facilities in the technology park, this has not encouraged him to change his behaviour

from driving to more sustainable mode of transports such as cycling. On the other

hand the other two employees state that having such facilities at workplace would

definitely influence the type of transports chosen.

“Yes. And I have done that before. I have cycled in and I have used those

facilities to freshen up before I went to work.”

To establish what schemes (e.g. bike to work scheme or tax saver on public

transport) would encourage the employees of Kerry Technology Park to change

to sustainable modes of transport.

In relation to this, two of the three respondents had not heard at all about the “tax saver

on public transport” initiative but they state that “bike to work scheme” might

encourage people to use the bike.

“Bike to work scheme is a very good one. That’s how I got my bike. I haven’t

heard about the other one.”

To determine what information is needed to encourage employees towards more

sustainable modes of transport.

According to the respondents more advertising and highlighting the health benefit

when using sustainable modes of transport should be highlighted to a greater extent.

Another respondent emphasised the need for a study to show the impact of all these

cars on the road.


One respondent pointed out that employers should reward the employees that chose to

use sustainable mode of transport. The respondent state as follows:

“Maybe study showing the impact of too many cars on the road, if they could

prove that it would actually take you less time to get to work, if they could have

incentives for you to bike to work or for you to use carpooling, maybe a bus

infrastructure to work from the college and to the designated point or to the

campus, just basic you know, better advertising needs to be done. We have

bike to work scheme, where you can get a bike and it’s written off against your

salary you know, you pay certain amount of it, but few people have done it, but

people who done it have done it for the bike, I didn’t see any of them cycle to

work, they are still driving.”

To reveal the opinions of employees of Kerry Technology Park towards a bike

rental scheme being put on place.

In relation to this, two of the three respondents stated that having a rental bike scheme

with a station in north campus might be useful but they see it as more appropriate for

the students rather than employees of Kerry Technology Park. Another respondent

expresses that he is not very excited about this because of two issues. Firstly what is

the fee for a bike and secondly concern for hygiene.

“Depends on how much would they would be charging for a bike, if I use a

bike I would prefer my own bike, is it not nice even in hygienic factor, it’s just I

prefer to have my own bike.”

To uncover tools that employees of Kerry Technology Park use to get information

related to Tralee Town.

When the respondents were asked where they get the information from about local

events, all three respondents’ state that the first place they look for information is

Facebook pages such as TraleeToday.ie. Likewise they would look up on free

magazines such as Tralee Advertiser and Tralee Outlook. On the contrary, the

respondents state that they would not buy local newspapers to search for information.

“Normally it is all on the web such as TraleeToday.ie or local Facebook

pages. I don’t buy the Kerry papers every week.”


To discover the attitude of the employees of Kerry Technology Park towards

Tralee Active Travel Initiative.

In conclusion, none of the respondents had heard about the Tralee Active Travel but

when explained by the interviewer the idea behind this initiative, the respondents think

that the initiative is a very good idea and beneficial for the Tralee residents.

“I think it is brilliant and if I was living in that area, which I am not

unfortunately, but if I was I’d be on that bike. If the weather is good I’ll be

cycling.”

4.4 Expert In-depth Interview

In-depth interviews with Mr. Ken Hegarty (B.E., MEngSC, CEng, CIHT) from the

National Transport Authority of Ireland and Mr. Donal Hunt (B.E., F.I.E.I., Dip. Env.

Cert. S&H@W), Estates Manager of IT Tralee were conducted to delve further into

their respective roles and gain access to their extensive knowledge of sustainable

transport both locally and nationally.

Mr. Hegarty and Mr. Hunt, under the umbrella of the Smarter Travel Campus

conducted a survey on sustainable transport with students and staff members of IT

Tralee in December 2014. The findings of this survey are discussed in further detail in

Chapter 5.

Smarter Travel Campus Survey

Firstly, both interviewees were extremely happy with the response that they received

to their survey. The response rate (35% of staff and 11% of students) was as a result

of Mr. Hunt’s commitment to making IT Tralee a Smarter Travel Campus, having

already secured IT Tralee the accolade of being the number one campus in the country

for conserving energy;

“I was very happy with the responses from both bodies. I suppose from the

staff point of view, a lot of the staff would know that the estates office that I

manage here, that we are number one in the county, the way we manage

energy. So a lot of people know from watching my emails, and there wouldn’t

be that many, that we are always chasing energy and that would row into it”

(Mr. Donal Hunt).


Both Mr. Hunt and Mr. Hegarty feel that being clear about the reason for the survey in

the initial contact email and how people will benefit, encourages more people to

partake as well as being very clear about what the survey is hoping to achieve;

“In relation to the length/time required to complete a survey, once it is clear

that the question’s being asked are relevant and a connection to the survey

aims and objectives is clear and obvious, then the participating

individual/organisation will engage fully and provide accurate and valuable

information”(Mr. Ken Hegarty).

Engaging people and organisations

When considering what avenue to take in attempting to increase individuals’ uptake of

sustainable modes of transport; the issue of saving money and pointing out the

financial benefits of switching to sustainable transport were mentioned in both

interviews. Mr. Hunt felt that the majority of people want to save money, and Mr.

Hegarty felt that once you start outlining the benefits that affect each and every one of

us, people are more open to considering switching to sustainable travel;

“Even the email I sent out day one with the survey, the subject box was very

important. The subject box didn’t say ‘hello I want to do a survey’, the subject

box said ‘do you want to save money?” (Mr. Donal Hunt)

“It is essential that all organisations are fully aware of the benefits to them in

relation to the introduction of Smarter Travel/Travel Plan within their

organisation. These benefits include environmental, health, social and

financial benefits for both employers and employees. Once they are fully

aware of the benefits, engagement of organisations proves a lot easier” (Mr.

Ken Hegarty).

Changing people’s behaviour towards sustainable travel

As with every change in our environment, people’s regular travelling habits are the

hardest to change. Mr. Hunt feels that ‘Rome wasn’t built in a day’ and the change to

sustainable transport modes will be a gradual change. However, he is dismayed that

people do not proactively search for information about alternative modes of transport.

Mr. Hegarty, being heavily involved on a day to day basis with the Smarter Travel

Program outlines that:


‘There has been a gradual shift in people’s attitudes towards sustainable travel

as they become aware of the benefits (environmental, health, social and

financial) of changing your travel behaviour for 1, 2 or more days a week. In

many cases people are unaware or chose not to notice alternatives that are

available to them as they wish to continue in the set ways. However, more and

more information is becoming available to raise awareness of the benefits.”

Follow up strategy for the Smarter Travel Campus

Now that the survey is completed, both Mr. Hunt and Mr. Hegarty spoke about their

follow up strategy. Mr. Hegarty, being the driver from the NTA’s perspective states

that:

‘….it is necessary to maintain the momentum once started. This can be

achieved by regular update reports, highlighting any changes (positive or not

so positive)…. And also getting and demonstrating to the organisation the

involvement of the local authority and transport operators so that they

understand that all parties are willing to address the issues and identify any

potential alternative solutions, if necessary.”

Mr. Hunt on the other hand is singly managing the Smarter Travel Campus program

within the campus, but that suits him. Like Mr. Hegarty, Mr. Hunt wants to follow up

with a regular report from Smarter Travel, but has bigger plans in place;

“The plan I have is that I am not looking at ITT, I am looking at Tralee and I

want to see if I could improve the travel patterns in Tralee.”

Promotions that would be recommend for Tralee Active Travel

Both interviewees were asked what promotions they would recommend for Tralee

Active Travel. Mr. Hegarty gave his recommendation based on a broader audience

stating that;

“It would be recommended that promotions to raise awareness are essential in

demonstrating the existence of and benefits of any initiatives, either

infrastructural or behavioural. Events days, promotional giveaways (with local

businesses / organisational involvement) etc. prove successful in raising

awareness.


Also it may be necessary to clearly define how to use / avail of the smarter

travel initiative so that the participant can find their initial experience to be

very easy to use / gain access to. Promotion leaflets are also a good tool to

spread the word along with social media, local press and launch days.

Obviously the method used depends on the initiative and profile of the target

audience.”

Mr. Hunt recommends the bike scheme that is available in Dublin as a great way to get

people to start thinking about cycling;

“Dublin has a bike scheme and two students here approached me that would

the college not do it. John Daly here who works with me and is very

environmentally conscious, we got together and looked at would we do it

between the two campuses, north and south. We looked at Limerick as they

have it with folding bikes between two of their big buildings. I am talking to

the council would we not do a bike scheme where for the winter season the

bikes would be parked between the two campuses and for the Summer season,

which is our down time, the bikes could be parked down town. I want to open

that conversation. Now, it could be a loss base, like it might not make a profit

but sometimes you can’t run a thing to make a profit all the time. But if you to

promote the environment, like if you want to be a leader of these things,

sometimes you have to have a loss maker. So I would be happy to make a

loss in the bikes if it promoted the environment.”

But it is not only the bike scheme that Mr. Hunt is thinking of. Taking Tralee as a

whole, he recommended looking at large employers in the area and targeting the

people in these organisations first.

“I would only like to get an award if it influences other campuses and other

large employers. I would say ‘ Let’s Go’ . I used to work with KCC before so

they know me there. KCC is a large employer in this town, ITT is a large

employer, the hospital is a large employer. Like if you go down to Manor, the

shopping centre, I know someone in Harvey Normans and 35 people work

there, 35 people. There must be 250 people working in Manor altogether. So if

you got KCC, ITT, Manor, the hospital, the Bons. If I could get 100 people to

car share, I would be happy.”

It is clear from the expert interviews that changing people’s behaviour towards

sustainable travel will be a gradual change not only locally but also nationally as Irish

people have an over reliance on private cars. However, the research team were left in

no doubt that both Mr. Hunt and Mr. Hegarty are committed to making Tralee a more

environmentally friendly town in which to work and live.


5.0 QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH FINDINGS

CHAPTER


5.1 Introduction

As described in Chapter 2 the researchers measured the behavioural patterns of 69

KTP employees who participated with regard their chosen mode of transport to and

from work.

5.2 Objectives of Quantitative Research

The main objectives of this research are:


Park.

2. To identify where the employees of the Technology Park are travelling from to get

to work each day.

3. To determine the likelihood of changing the behaviour patterns and attitudes’ of

the employees from using cars to more sustainable modes of transport e.g. bike,

public transport and/or carpooling.



carpooling.



6. To determine the level of awareness among the employees of the Technology Park

of the Tralee Active Travel Initiative (TAT).


Technology Park of the TAT Initiative.

8. To determine what kind of promotional activities employees would respond to in

order to increase their awareness of the Tralee Active Travel Initiative.




To identify the current mode of transport used by the employees of the

Technology Park.

As Figure 20 indicates a total of 69(17%) people responded to the question regarding

their preferred mode of transport to work. As anticipated, 93% of people use a car as

their preferred method of transport to travel to work which corresponds to 64 people in

total. Of the remaining 5 participants, 4% (3 employees) cycle to work each day and

3% (2 employees) are a passenger in a car with the driver going to a different location.

Figure 20: How do you usually travel to work? Tick one box only, for the main mode of transport used for your usual

journey to work. If you are based in more than one location, please refer to the one you are in most often.

There were no responses to the question 2 (If you currently use public transport for

your journey to or from work, do you avail of Tax Saver tickets through your

employer?).

0.0%

10.0%

20.0%

30.0%

40.0%

50.0%

60.0%

70.0%

80.0%

90.0%

100.0%

0% 4%

0% 0% 0%

93%

0% 3%

0% 0% 0% 0%


Of the 93% travelling by car, 84% of employees surveyed said that they drive on their

own to and from work. The remaining respondents travel with one other person (12%)

and even fewer travel with two passengers and three passengers both at just 2%

respectively (Figure 21).

Figure 21: Other than the driver, how many people normally travel in your car?

As depicted in Figure 22 the respondents were asked whether they need their cars for

either pickups or drop offs each day i.e. (school runs or crèche collections). There was

a good response to the question with 64 of the 69 participants responding to his

question. The percentage of 71% (46 employees) of those asked answered ‘no’. Only

28% (18 employees) of respondents need their cars for pickups or drops offs each day.

Figure 22: Do you need your car for pick-ups or drop offs (for example the school run, crèche etc.) on your commute to

work?

0, 85%

1, 13%

3, 6% 4+, 0%,

Yes 28%

No 72%


Figure 23 depicts the findings from the question asked KTP employees if they need

the use of their cars during work hours. Sixty-four of the 69 respondents responded to

this question. A large number of respondents (78%, 50 employees) said that they do

not need their cars during work hours.

Figure 23: Do you need a car for doing your job through the day?

To determine the likelihood of changing the behaviour patterns and attitudes’ of

the employees from using cars to more sustainable modes of transport e.g. bike,

public transport and/or carpooling.

In question six the research team asked those surveyed if any of the proposed active

travel options would encourage them to use another mode of transport to work. There

were 64 respondents with 5 respondents skipping the question. Many of those

questioned (34%) said nothing would change their mind as regards their preferred

mode of transport. A further 30% of KTP employees said that improved bicycle

shelters and shower facilities would encourage them to change their minds. Twenty-

seven per cent of those surveyed chose carpooling as an alternative option which.

Bike purchase discount schemes also proved popular with 15.6% of those questioned

Yes 22%

No 78%


saying that they would avail of this service. The remaining participants suggested

financial incentives as regards reducing parking tolls. Nine of the remaining

employees gave a variety of reasons for changing or not changing their minds on this

issue such as: more efficient public transport and safer cycling routes were also

suggested (Figure 24).

Figure 24: Would any of the following encourage you to choose an alternative to the car on your commute?

The issue of carpooling was then probed. The employees were asked whether they

would consider carpooling to reduce costs. Yet again, 64 of the 69 asked answered

this question with the majority (42%) stating that they would not consider this option.

Forty percent said that they would consider this alternative. A remaining number of

employees gave their suggested reason why they would not carpool including:

incompatible working hours compared to other work colleagues, living in a remote

location and losing their independence of coming and going to and from work when

they please (Figure 25).

0.0%

5.0%

10.0%

15.0%

20.0%

25.0%

30.0%

35.0%

17%

9%

30%

16%

9%

3%

27%

34%


Figure 25: Would you be open to considering carpooling to reduce costs?

To identify barriers or reasons for drivers of cars not willing or able to shift to


carpooling.

In this question participants were asked what would be the main obstacles to them

switching to a more sustainable mode of transport. Over half of those asked (59%)

said that the distance that they must commute every day would be quite a formidable

obstacle for them. The remaining employees were evenly spread out over four other

reasons including: weather (34%), infrastructure (35%), odd work hours (39%) and

34% indicating other commitments during the working hours (Figure 26).

Yes 41%

No 42%

Don't know 17%


Figure 26: What are the main barriers for you to switch from your current transport model to a sustainable mode? Tick

all that apply.

To determine the likelihood of a shift in modal transport from driving a car to


Employees were asked to select the main reason for their chosen mode of transport. A

lack of alternative transport was the top response with 31% of those asked responding

as such (Figure 8). The ease of use of their chosen mode of transport was another

popular answer with 29% giving this as their reason. The remaining participants gave

answers such as it being less stressful (12%), because of other commitments (13%),

force of habit (2%), and reliability (9%).

Of the 68 participants who answered the question, six people had other specific

reasons for their choice of transport. One person had no choice while the others enjoy

their independence to go shopping etc. during the day. A lack of shower and changing

facilities were also mentioned here (Figure 27).

0.0%

10.0%

20.0%

30.0%

40.0%

50.0%

60.0%

WEATHER INFRASTRUCTURE DISTANCE FROM WORK

WORK HOURS OTHER COMMITMENTS

DURING THE DAY

34% 35%

59%

39% 34%


Figure 27: Please select the main reason for choosing the mode of transport that you use most often.

To identify the best approach to raising awareness among the employees of the


This question asked which of seven modes of transport they would consider as an

alternative if they were available. There were 67 respondents to this question with

40% saying that they would use public transport, 37% said they would use their own

bicycle, with 5% opting for a rental bicycle. A carpooling option finished high on the

list with 36% of the employees saying they would avail of it if it were available.

Seventeen percent said that they would walk to work, while 33% of people answered

that they would use their car to work. The remaining 16% chose none of the above

(Figure 28).

0.0%

5.0%

10.0%

15.0%

20.0%

25.0%

30.0%

35.0%

2%

29%

2%

31%

12%

3%

0%

13%

9%


Figure 28: Which of the following modes of travel would you consider using for your journey to/from work, if they were

available?

To identify where the employees of the Technology Park are travelling from to

get to work each day.

Forty-six percent of people surveyed live more than 10 km from their workplace

which rules out the possibility of walking or cycling to work. A large of number of

those questioned live between three and five kilometres from their workplace which

would give them good reason to consider cycling or even walking to work; 18% said

that they live between five and ten kilometres and the remaining 3% live within one

kilometre (walking distance) of their workplace (Figure 29).

0.0%

5.0%

10.0%

15.0%

20.0%

25.0%

30.0%

35.0%

40.0%

45.0%

CAR SHARING

PUBLIC TRANSPORT

OWN BICYCLE

RENTAL BICYCLE

WALKING CAR NONE OF THE ABOVE

36%

40% 37%

5%

16%

33%

16%


Figure 29: How far do you travel to work?

The length of time it takes most employees to get to work is generally less than 15

minutes (48%). 28 of respondents take 16 to 30 minutes while 22% need 31 to 45

minutes to arrive. Only 2% of those surveyed need more than 46 to 60 minutes travel

time (Figure 30).

Figure 30: How long does it take you to get to work?

0.0%

5.0%

10.0%

15.0%

20.0%

25.0%

30.0%

35.0%

40.0%

45.0%

50.0%

Less than 1km Between 1 and3km

Between 3 and5km

Between 5 and10km

More than10km

3.0%

10%

22% 18%

46%

0.0%

5.0%

10.0%

15.0%

20.0%

25.0%

30.0%

35.0%

40.0%

45.0%

50.0%

Less than 15minutes

16-30minutes

31-45minutes

46-60minutes

61-90minutes

91 minutesand above

48%

28%

22%

2% 0% 0%


Participants were asked if they either own or have access to some commonly used

modes of transport on a daily basis. Sixty-seven of the 69 KTP employees that were

questioned replied. The two choices of transport were car and bicycle. A significant

65 participants have regular access to a car while only 34 of the 69 have access to a

bicycle (Figure 31).

Figure 31: Do you own/or have access to any of the following modes of travel on a daily basis?

The Irish weather was next on the agenda and how it affects it people’s choice of

transport each day. Sixty-seven participants answered with 51% saying no, i.e. the

weather makes no difference to their mode of transport whatsoever. The remaining 33

employees (49%) said that the weather does affect their decision on their choice of

transport (Figure 32).

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

BICYCLE CAR

25

1

34

65

Bicycle Car

No 25 1

Yes 34 65


Figure 32: Does the weather affect which mode of transport you use to travel to work?

Participants were asked if they live within approximately 6 minutes’ walk of a direct

bus to work. Ninety-one percent said that they do not. Only 3% of the employees can

avail of a bus route each day while the remaining 6% do not know (Figure 33).

Figure 33: Do you live within 400 metres (approx. 6 minutes’ walk) of a direct bus to your work place?

The KTP employees were asked if they live within 12 minutes’ walk of a rail

connection to Tralee town. Sixty-seven people responded with the majority (87%) of

Yes 49%

No 51%

Yes 3%

No 91%

Don’t know 6%


them saying that they do not. The remaining respondents said yes (9%) and 4.5% said

that they do not know (Figure 34).

Figure 34: Do you live within 800m (approx... 12 minutes’ walk) of a train/rail connection to Tralee town?

To determine what kind of promotional activities employees would respond to in

order to increase their awareness of the Tralee Active Travel Initiative.

This question raised the issue of employees knowing whether or not they could avail

of the Tax Saver commuter ticket for public transport through their employers.

Seventy percent said that they did not know about the scheme. Only 20 employees

(30%) of those asked knew of this offer (Figure 35).

Yes 9%

No 87%

Don't know

4%


Figure 35: Are you aware that public transport users can purchase a tax saver commuter ticket through your employer?

This can save you approximately 50% of the price of the ticket.

Continuing with the Tax Saver option, participants were asked if they are aware that

the tickets are available in both monthly and annual options. 72 said that they were

unaware of this fact and 28% of those asked knew of this service (Figure 36).

Figure 36: Are you aware that Tax saver tickets for public transport are available in both monthly and annual options?

This question asked participants if purchasing a discounted tax free bicycle through an

employer in the Cycle to Work Scheme would be of interest to them. Sixty-seven

0.0%

10.0%

20.0%

30.0%

40.0%

50.0%

60.0%

70.0%

80.0%

YES NO

30%

70%

0.0%

10.0%

20.0%

30.0%

40.0%

50.0%

60.0%

70.0%

80.0%

YES NO

28%

72%


percent said that it would, only 22 respondents (33%) said no that they would not avail

of this option (Figure 37).

Figure 37: Would you be interested in purchasing a discounted, tax-free bicycle through your employee Cycle to Work

Scheme?

To identify the best approach to raising awareness among the employees of the


Participants were asked which of the eight initiatives/facility upgrades would

encourage them to walk or cycle to work. They were asked to tick all that were

attractive to them. There was a tie in first place with lockers being provided and

shower areas being increased each selected by 57% of respondents. Forty-five per

cent of respondents selected a drying room for gear and improved shower areas would

encourage them to have an active commute.

Thirty-nine percent of the employees were looking for more secure areas to leave their

bikes. A further 24% wanted more space for their bikes, while another 22% would

like to see the introduction of a bicycle rental scheme around their workplace area.

The remaining initiatives that staff would like to see are: increase security on site

(27%) and cycle parking to be moved closer to entrances (9%) (Figure 38).

0.0%

10.0%

20.0%

30.0%

40.0%

50.0%

60.0%

70.0%

YES NO

67%

33%


Figure 38: Which of the following initiatives/facility upgrades would encourage you to have an active commute (walking or

cycling) to work? Tick all that apply.

The survey continued with question 21 where the research team asked the respondents

if they would be interested engaging in initiatives to promote walking or cycling.

Sixty-six participants answered this question. The most popular suggestion appeared

to be the incentive scheme for green commuters which were selected by up 43 yes

answers with only 16 employees saying no. Bicycle maintenance classes and Sli Na

Slainte walking routes also proved to be popular choices with 24 participants selecting

the former and 34 selecting the latter. Other initiatives put forward such as cycle

training/on road skills proved less popular with only 16 people saying yes and for a

cyclist forum 14 said yes (Figure 39).

0.0%

10.0%

20.0%

30.0%

40.0%

50.0%

60.0% 57%

45%

57%

45%

24%

9%

39%

22% 27%


Figure 39: Would you be interested in any of the following initiatives to promote walking or cycling?

Participants were asked if they would avail of a bike scheme, if it existed, for

commuting to and from work. Fifty per cent said that they would be very interested in

such a scheme while only 27% said no. The remaining 23% of respondents said that

they might make use of such a scheme if it became available (Figure 40).

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

8 5

7 3

8 8

3 7

5 4

29

38 38

33 33 31

16 20

34 34

24

16 14

25

19 19

43

34

20 20

Bicyclemainten

anceclass

offeredby an

experience

bicyclemechani

c

Cycletraining/on road

skills

A cyclist’s forum

(Bicycle users

group)

Lunchtime

walkinggroup

Bicyclerental

schemeon

campus

Greencommut

erscoffee

mornings (greencommuters arecyclists,pedestri

ans,public

transport usersand carsharers)

Incentive

schemefor

greencommut

ers

Sli naslaintewalkingroute

markedout in

the localarea/on

site

Information onelectric

bikesavailabl

ethrough

thecycle to

workscheme

Information onfold upbikes

(for useby

peoplecommuting partof the

way onpublic

transport or by

car)availabl

e…

Don't know 8 5 7 3 8 8 3 7 5 4

No 29 38 38 33 33 31 16 20 34 34

Yes 24 16 14 25 19 19 43 34 20 20


Figure 40: If a bike scheme (similar to Dublin Bike scheme) existed in the Technology Park, would you be interested in

using same for travelling between the park and town?

Respondents were then asked their thoughts on such a scheme being introduced to

KTP. Sixty-five per cent of those asked responded positively to such an initiative with

only 29% of those asked (19) to selecting the option ‘Sounds like a good idea but

probably no one will use it’ and an even smaller minority viewing as a waste of money

(6%) (Figure 41).

Figure 41: What would be your opinion if a bike scheme was put in place to/from Kerry Technology Park and town

centre?

Yes 50%

No 27%

Maybe 23%

Sounds like a good idea, and I think people will use it

65%

Sounds good but probably no one

will use it 29%

Sounds like a waste of money

and time 6%


This question asked the participants how they usually travel while on business. The

most popular answer was driving a car which represents 61% of the 66 people asked

this question. Eighteen per cent of those asked did not engage in business travel at all,

while the remaining employees gave a variety of answers such as: the use of taxis

(4%), the train (3%) and on foot (3%). Only 5% of those asked are usually passengers

in a car (Figure 42).

Figure 42: How do you usually travel when on business? Please choose the mode you take most often.

In this question the KTP employees were asked if they use a video or a tape

conferencing for business purposes. Eighty-three per cent 66) of the respondents

stated that they used this method of business interaction. The remaining 17% said that

they do not use these methods (Figure 43).

0.0%

10.0%

20.0%

30.0%

40.0%

50.0%

60.0%

70.0%

18%

3% 0% 0%

3%

61%

5% 5% 6%


Figure 43: Do you use video or tele conferencing for business purposes?

Question 26 asked respondents if they would be willing to walk, cycle, and take public

transport or car share for business where suitable. Of the 66 people who answered this

question, 68% said yes while the remaining 32% said no to the question (Figure 44).

Figure 44: Would you be willing to walk, cycle, and take public transport or car share for business where suitable?

Yes 83%

No 17%

0.0%

10.0%

20.0%

30.0%

40.0%

50.0%

60.0%

70.0%

YES NO

68%

32%


The question of carpooling arises yet again in Question 27 when the researcher asked

the participants if they would be interested in car sharing either offering or taking a lift

to or from fellow employees. On this occasion it was a 50/50 split answer, with a

similar number of the employees expressing opinion for and against this. Twelve

people gave other reasons for not carpooling which included unusual work hours,

invasion of privacy and other commitments outside of work (Figure 45).

Figure 45: Are you interested in car-sharing? This could be either a lift-seeker in someone else’s car or offering a lift in

your car or a combination of both.

To determine the level of awareness among the employees of the Technology Park

of the Tralee Active Travel Initiative (TAT).

As depicted in Figure 27 the respondents were asked if they are aware of the Tralee

Active Travel Initiative. Seventy per cent are not aware of the TAT initiative while

only 30% of those questioned said that they had heard of the scheme (Figure 46).

0.0%

5.0%

10.0%

15.0%

20.0%

25.0%

30.0%

35.0%

40.0%

45.0%

50.0%

YES NO

50% 50%


Figure 46: Are you aware of the Tralee Active Travel initiative? This initiative as mentioned above will encourage people

to use a more sustainable form of transport. KCC will develop a cycle path from Forge Cross near the IT Tralee Campus/

Kerry Technology Park to Blennerville, making it easier for students and employees of the technology park to commute to

the North Campus.

The next question was also in relation to the Tralee Active Travel Initiative by and

whether the employees of the KTP think that this scheme is worthwhile. Ninety-five

per cent of those respondents said yes while only 1 person (5%) think that it is not a

worthwhile project for the town (Figure 47).

Figure 47: If yes, do you think it is a worthwhile initiative for Tralee town?

0.0%

10.0%

20.0%

30.0%

40.0%

50.0%

60.0%

70.0%

YES NO

30%

70%

Yes 95%

No 5%


To establish where employees of the Technology Park get their information with


In question 30 the employees of the KTP were asked where their main source of

information regarding local events and initiatives comes from. Six different sources

were given by the researchers with the most popular being word of mouth at 68%, this

was closely followed by local newspapers at 53%. Both online social media and

various websites prove very popular among respondents with 49% of respondents

receiving their information through these sources. Local free magazines were selected

by 36% while local radio was selected by 26% (Figure 48).

Figure 48: Where do you look for information on local events and initiatives?

When asked how many participants had previously visited the Kerry County Council’s

website, 62% of respondents claimed to have visited the site. Of the 66 employees

questioned 38% had never been on that website (Figure 49).

0.0%

10.0%

20.0%

30.0%

40.0%

50.0%

60.0%

70.0%

ONLINE WEBSITE

ONLINE SOCIAL MEDIA

LOCAL PAPERS

LOCAL FREE MAGAZINES

WORD OF MOUTH

LOCAL RADIO

49% 49% 53.0%

36%

68%

26%


Figure 49: Have you ever visited Kerry County Council’s website?

This question gave the researchers an indication of the various age profiles of the

respondents involved. The majority of those questioned fell into the 26-34 age bracket

(44%), and the 35-44 age bracket (39%). Only 6% of those surveyed were under the

age of 25 which was exactly the same amount as the 45-54 age groups. Just 5% of

those questioned were over the age of 55 (Figure 50).

Figure 50: Please indicate your age group.

0.0%

10.0%

20.0%

30.0%

40.0%

50.0%

60.0%

70.0%

YES NO

62%

38%

0.0%

5.0%

10.0%

15.0%

20.0%

25.0%

30.0%

35.0%

40.0%

45.0%

UNDER 25 26-34 35-44 45-54 55 OR OVER

6%

44%

39%

6% 5%


With regarding to the gender of the respondents 59% were male while the remaining

41% were female (Figure 51).

Figure 51: Please select your gender.

A total of 12 of the KTP employees were generous enough to share their email

addresses with the research team for further information regarding this project.

Male

Female


5.3 Observation

In order to study in detail the means of transport used by employees of the Kerry

Technology Park, the research team took it in turn to observe traffic in and out of the

Technology Park. This observation was undertaken over several days in good and

bad weather conditions. The observations took place in the morning between 8.30 am

and 9.00 am and in the afternoon from 5.00 pm to 5.35 pm. When all the results were

gathered, it was very clear that the most used means of transport to travel to work,

with 94% of a total of 209 people observed, is the car, followed by pedestrians at 3%,

cyclists at 2%, and public transport at 1%. The majority of the cars had only one

occupant, with 191 out of 197. Only 6 cars had two or more occupants (Figure 52).

Observation Date Car Bike Public

Transport Walking

26-March 8:25-8:55 27 1 0 0

26- March 17:00-17:35 35 1 2 2

24-Feburary 8:20-8:50 35 2 0 1

23-February 17:00-17:35 30 0 0 1

23-February 8:30-9:00 70 0 0 2

Table 10: Observation on transport modes of Kerry Technology Park employees.

Figure 52: Observation on transport modes of Kerry Technology Park employees.

Car 94%

Bike 2%

Public transport 1%

Walking 3%


6.0 CONCLUSIONS CHAPTER


6.1 Introduction

This chapter sets out the conclusions of the research project. The main objectives of

this study were:

Identifying the current mode of transport used

Where are employees travelling from to get to work each day

Determine the likelihood of changing behaviour patterns

Identify Barriers or reason for drivers of cars not willing or able to shift to more

sustainable modes of transport

Table 11: Objectives to conclude.

6.2 Outlined Conclusions

Having worked through the secondary and primary research and continuously thinking

about sustainable travel, the Research team were left in no doubt from the survey

results discussed in Chapter 5 and the secondary research discussed in Chapter 3 that it

is lack of facilities and alternatives that affect mode of transport chosen by people on a

daily basis.

In drawing conclusions about the employees of the IT Tralee and Kerry Technology

Park campus, the researchers have compared the responses of those who work at the

Institute and who work in the Technology Park. Please bear in mind that the survey of

the staff of the Institute was conducted in December by Donal Hunt, Estates Manger,

IT Tralee in conjunction with the Smarter Travel Campus Initiative

(www.smartertravel.ie, 2015) and that of the staff of the Technology Park in March by

the research team. As discussed in Chapters 3 and 6 respectively, 119 staff members

of the Institute responded counter to 69 members of staff from the Technology Park.


Identifying the current mode of transport used

The largest proportion of staff members in both the Institute (84.7%) and the

Technology Park (92.8%) travel to work by car. Both figures are a lot higher than the

national average of 63% (www.cso.ie, 2012) and pose quite a challenge to reach the

national target of 45% for 2020. These percentages score quite high also against

towns like Westport (Westport Smarter Travel, 2010) who scored under the national

average in 2011 (www.cso.ie, 2012).

Where are employees travelling from to get to work each day

Over twenty seven percent of respondents from IT Tralee Staff and 35% of the Staff

from the Technology Park live within 5km of their work place. These people could be

targeted for walking or cycling to work. In essence they are what is known as ‘low

lying fruit’ that could be easily persuaded to change their mode of transport even if it

was for one day of the week. Limerick Smarter Travel estimated that 2km is an

acceptable distance that a healthy person can walk in under 20 minutes and a healthy

person can cycle 10km in around 35 minutes (Limerick Smarter Travel, 2010).

Therefore, people who are living within a 5km radius of work or college would offer

the greatest potential for modal shift as their journeys are relatively short.

Determine the likelihood of changing behaviour patterns

The largest challenge is changing behaviour patterns and this will be a slow and

gradual shift for most people. However, through the research carried out in this report

it became obvious that people are open to sustainable travel and would consider the

following alternatives if they were made available.

Car Pooling

When asked what would encourage them to choose an alternative to the car on their

commute, approximately one third of Institute staff (32%) and Technology Staff

(35.8%) indicated that a car pooling scheme would be beneficial.


This is a very positive outcome and indicates that over 30% of those travelling by car

would be willing to consider carpooling.

This in turn gives Kerry County Council a significant reason to consider developing a

car pooling website that is local to the Tralee and surrounding areas.

Facilities

If improved facilities such as secure bike shelters and changing areas were provided

almost 30% of staff at the Institute (28%) and the Technology Park (30%) would

consider changing their mode of transport.

Rental Bike Scheme

The bike rental scheme (similar to Dublin Bike scheme) was welcomed by some staff,

with 32% (Institute) and 50% (Technology Park) in favour of it being implemented.

Over 41% of the student respondents are in favour of this scheme and stated that it

would encourage them to cycle. The Research Team also feel that this scheme would

be a very visible promotion of sustainable travel and encourage more people to think

about how they travel each day. The team learned that most people become aware of

what is happening in a town through word of mouth, therefore leading by example

with the bike scheme would be a positive move for Tralee Active Travel Committee.

Identify Barriers or reason for drivers of cars not willing or able to

shift to more sustainable modes of transport

The main reasons that staff choose their mode of transport is because of the lack of

alternatives with 31% (Technology Park) and 32%(Institute) stating this reason. The

car seems to be the choice for those who look for the quickest and easiest way to get to

work with 29% (Technology Park) and 24% (Institute). Here is where journey

planning comes into play; those who look for the quickest way to work could be

convinced that walking or cycling provide those options in a more environmentally

friendly and also cost efficient way.


Journey planning is where you help people to plan their journey to and from work or

college, outlining alternative modes of transport and which is the most cost effective.

This can be done by having a journey planner on a website or by proving this

information via a social media app or map.

Overall the majority of respondents are open to choosing a greener life style and the

young age range of the staff in the technology park and staff and students in the

institute make them ripe for behaviour change, even if it is for one day a week.

However, poor facilities and lack of alternatives prevents the majority of people from

choosing a more sustainable form of transport. With Tralee Active Travel helping

promote sustainable transport, barriers will slowly break down and more people will

make an effort not only for the environment but also for a healthier lifestyle.


7.0 RECOMMENDATIONS CHAPTER


7.1 Introduction

This chapter outlines the recommendations the research team feel will work for both

students and staff of the Institute and the employees of the Kerry Technology Park.

These are ideas that we as a team concluded from our research and from our own

brainstorming sessions at weekly meetings.

7.2 Recommendations

Firstly the most obvious recommendation the research team would make is that the

Tralee Active Travel Committee work closely with the local NTA representatives, as

both organisations are trying to achieve the same objective – encouraging people to

choose a more sustainable form of transport.

The NTA itself puts forward a wealth of both soft and hard measures in helping

companies and campuses to achieve this, see www.smartertravel.ie for an extensive

list. However, the team would recommend on making the Tralee Active Travel a local

initiative, in that all measures but forward are beneficial to the local community e.g.

outlining local public transport alternatives both private and public.

The team recommend the following initiatives to get students/staff/employees

involved in choosing sustainable travel and also making them aware of what is

available within the town of Tralee.

1. Concentrate on those travelling within a 5km distance first – These people

will be easier to convert as they have such short distances to travel. Limerick

Smarter Travel stated that 2km is a reasonable distance for a healthy person to

walk within 15 minutes and 10km is a reasonable distance to cycle in 35

minutes for a healthy person (Limerick Smarter Travel, 2010).

2. Journey Planner - When students arrive in September, their welcome pack

from the Students Union should contain a travel pack including a Journey

planner which would inform them of the sustainable modes of transport

available to them within Tralee.

http://www.smartertravel.ie/


This would include information on how long it would take them to cycle from

student accommodation in the town to the college. How much they will save

by doing this and if they don’t have a bike what public transport options are

available to them. Public transport options should include both public and

private operators. We would also recommend including bus schedules for

places like Ardfert that are a short distance from Tralee.

3. Bus - Making a discounted bus pass available for the college term. The

research team casually spoke with students who travel by bus and they were

irritated that you could not buy a ticket for just the college term and there was

no incentive to buy a bus ticket to use to and from college.

4. Savings - Outline savings made by choosing sustainable modes of transport.

Everyone like to save as Donal Hunt pointed out in his expert interview

(Chapter 4). Looking at ways that both students and staff can save by

switching modes of transport and including this in social media and news

bulletins will get more people thinking about it.

5. Cycle - Organise a yearly ITT Charity Cycle, with training and maintenance

classes held beforehand. Cycling is such a huge leisure sport now, starting an

annual charity cycle for students of the ITT where they could raise money for

local charities. This would also lead to training and bike maintenance classes

that could be used to promote cycling on a daily basis.

6. Travel board - A travel board outside the main entrance to both North and

South campus outlining the distance to student accommodation either by

cycling or walking, savings made, bus schedules etc. Making information

more visible in order that people do not have to go searching for it. The travel

board could convince people to change their mode of transport because they

could easily see how easy it would be to get a bus to college/work.

7. Course Projects - Involve students in competitions to do with their courses,

e.g. develop apps, travel board design, green initiatives – this would keep

sustainable transport to the forefront throughout the college year.


8. Students would welcome the opportunity to work with Kerry County Council

by helping with initiatives that would be used in the real world.

9. Social Media - Be active on social media sites within the college – get students

to sign up to the Active Travel Tralee Town Facebook page and Website.

Social media is how most students communicate these days. Unless a

company is active on social media they are missing a large chunk of the

population who do not read traditional newspapers to get information.

10. Car Pooling Site - Set up a car pooling service explicitly for students of IT

Tralee – this might encourage more students to get involved as it will be with

like-minded students. A carpooling site for both staff and students of the

Institute and employees of KTP would bring together a large population

(approximately 3,500), who are travelling to the same destination every day.

11. Vouchers - Offer incentives like vouchers to those students who choose a

sustainable mode of transport to travel to college. Bus ticket discounts, free

bike maintenance vouchers, kit etc. Students love “freebies”.

12. Bike Rental Scheme - Implement the Bike rental scheme as put forward by

Donal Hunt of Tralee – this will be a very visible initiative that will encourage

more people to possibly cycle. This will in turn show that the college is

leading by example.

13. Sustainable Transport Day – Just like causal Friday have a bike day, walk

day, bus day, encouraging everyone to try sustainable transport even for one

day a week.

14. Facilities - Work with the Technology Park in improving facilities for those

who choose to cycle to work. This is a long term objective but companies who

are now looking for planning permission should be encouraged to include

facilities for people who choose to cycle to work.


Secure cycle parking, dry rooms, shower rooms and lockers should be included

to give employees the facilities required to make cycling to work a comfortable

and attractive experience.

15. Green Credentials - Work with employers on gaining green credentials that

benefit their company image. Again this is a long term objective, however

companies like to promote themselves as being “green”. This should apply to

their employees as well in their choice of transport to and from work.

Awarding company employees for their efforts in sustainable transport.

Since the launch of the Tralee Active Travel program, there has been very little in the

local press since the official launch date. The team would recommend that a

continuous marketing plan be put in place to let everyone know what is happening on

a step by step basis, thus keeping the momentum of the Tralee Active Travel Initiative

alive on a regular basis.

The team would like to take this opportunity to thank Kerry County Council for giving

them this wonderful opportunity to conduct a Marketing Research Project on their

behalf and wish the Tralee Active Travel Committee the very best of luck with this

worthwhile initiative.


8.0 APPENDICES A

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8.1 ESOMAR Guidelines

Students are obliged observe Irish legislation and the ICC/ESOMAR Code in

conducting the research project. The latter is included in this section for your

information.

A. General

1. Marketing research must always be carried out objectively and in accordance with

established scientific principles.

2. Marketing research must always conform to the national and international

legislation which applies in those countries involved in a given research project.

B. The Rights of Respondents

3. Respondents' cooperation in a marketing research project is entirely voluntary at all

stages. They must not be misled when being asked for their cooperation.

4. Respondents' anonymity must be strictly preserved. If the Respondent on request

from the Researcher has given permission for data to be passed on in a form which

allows that Respondent to be personally identified:

(a) The Respondent must first have been told to whom the information would be

supplied and the purposes for which it will be used, and also

(b) The Researcher must ensure that the information will not be used for any non-

research purpose and that the recipient of the information has agreed to conform to the

requirements of this Code.

5. The Researcher must take all reasonable precautions to ensure that Respondents are

in no way directly harmed or adversely affected as a result of their participation in a

marketing research project.

6. The Researcher must take special care when interviewing children and young

people. The informed consent of the parent or responsible adult must first be obtained

for interviews with children.

7. Respondents must be told (normally at the beginning of the interview) if

observation techniques or recording equipment are being used, except where these are

used in a public place.

Bachelor of Arts in Information Systems Management Page ii

If a Respondent so wishes, the record or relevant section of it must be destroyed or

deleted. Respondents' anonymity must not be infringed by the use of such methods.

8. Respondents must be enabled to check without difficulty the identity and bona fides

of the Researcher.

C. The Professional Responsibilities of Researchers

9. Researchers must not, whether knowingly or negligently, act in any way which

could bring discredit on the marketing research profession or lead to a loss of public

confidence in it.

10. Researchers must not make false claims about their skills and experience or about

those of their organisation.

11. Researchers must not unjustifiably criticise or disparage other Researchers.

12. Researchers must always strive to design research which is cost-efficient and of

adequate quality, and then to carry this out to the specifications agreed with the Client.

13. Researchers must ensure the security of all research records in their possession.

14. Researchers must not knowingly allow the dissemination of conclusions from a

marketing research project which are not adequately supported by the data. They must

always be prepared to make available the technical information necessary to assess the

validity of any published findings.

15. When acting in their capacity as Researchers the latter must not undertake any

non-research activities, for example database marketing involving data about

individuals which will be used for direct marketing and promotional activities. Any

such non-research activities must always, in the way they are organised and carried

out, be clearly differentiated from marketing research activities.

D. The Mutual Rights and Responsibilities of Researchers and Clients

16. These rights and responsibilities will normally be governed by a written Contract

between the Researcher and the Client. The parties may amend the provisions of Rules

19-23 below if they have agreed to this in writing beforehand; but the other

requirements of this Code may not be altered in this way. Marketing research must

also always be conducted according to the principles of fair competition, as generally

understood and accepted.

17. The Researcher must inform the Client if the work to be carried out for that Client

is to be combined or syndicated in the same project with work for other Clients but

must not disclose the identity of such Clients.

Bachelor of Arts in Information Systems Management Page iii

18. The Researcher must inform the Client as soon as possible in advance when any

part of the work for that Client is to be subcontracted outside the Researcher's own

organisation (including the use of any outside consultants). On request the Client must

be told the identity of any such subcontractor.

19. The Client does not have the right, without prior agreement between the parties

involved, to exclusive use of the Researcher's services or those of his organisation,

whether in whole or in part. In carrying out work for different Clients, however, the

Researcher must endeavour to avoid possible clashes of interest between the services

provided to those Clients.20. The following Records remain the property of the Client

and must not be disclosed by the Researcher to any third party without the Client's

permission:

(a) Marketing research briefs, specifications and other information provided by the

Client.

(b) The research data and findings from a marketing research project (except in the

case of syndicated or multi-client projects or services where the same data are

available to more than one Client).

The Client has however no right to know the names or addresses of Respondents

unless the latter's explicit permission for this has first been obtained by the Researcher

(this particular requirement cannot be altered under Rule 16).

21. Unless it is specifically agreed to the contrary, the following Records remain the

property of the Researcher:

(a) Marketing research proposals and cost quotations (unless these have been paid for

by the Client). They must not be disclosed by the Client to any third party, other than

to a consultant working for the Client on that project (with the exception of any

consultant working also for a competitor of the Researcher). In particular, they must

not be used by the Client to influence research proposals or cost quotations from other

Researchers.

(b) The contents of a report in the case of syndicated and/or multi-client projects or

services where the same data are available to more than one Client and where it is

clearly understood that the resulting reports are available for general purchase or

subscription. The Client may not disclose the findings of such research to any third

party (other than to his own consultants and advisors for use in connection with his

business) without the permission of the Researcher.

Bachelor of Arts in Information Systems Management Page iv

(c) All other research Records prepared by the Researcher (with the exception in the

case of non-syndicated projects of the report to the Client, and also the research design

and questionnaire where the costs of developing these are covered by the charges paid

by the Client).

22. The Researcher must conform to currently agree professional practice relating to

the keeping of such Records for an appropriate period of time after the end of the

project. On request the Researcher must supply the Client with duplicate copies of

such Records provided that such duplicates do not breach anonymity and

confidentiality requirements (Rule 4); that the request is made within the agreed time

limit for keeping the Records; and that the Client pays the reasonable costs of

providing the duplicates.

23. The Researcher must not disclose the identity of the Client (provided there is no

legal obligation to do so), or any confidential information about the latter's business, to

any third party without the Client's permission.

24. The Researcher must on request allow the Client to arrange for checks on the

quality of fieldwork and data preparation provided that the Client pays any additional

costs involved in this. Any such checks must conform to the requirements of Rule 4.

25. The Researcher must provide the Client with all appropriate technical details of

any research project carried out for that Client.

26. When reporting on the results of a marketing research project the Researcher must

make a clear distinction between the findings as such, the Researcher's interpretation

of these and any recommendations based on them.

27. Where any of the findings of a research project are published by the Client the

latter has a responsibility to ensure that these are not misleading. The Researcher must

be consulted and agree in advance the form and content of publication, and must take

action to correct any misleading statements about the research and its findings.

28. Researchers must not allow their names to be used in connection with any research

project as an assurance that the latter has been carried out in conformity with this Code

unless they are confident that the project has in all respects met the Code's

requirements.

29. Researchers must ensure that Clients are aware of the existence of this Code and of

the need to comply with its requirements.

Bachelor of Arts in Information Systems Management Page v

8.2 Ethical Guidelines for Recording Interviews/Group

Discussions

Respondents’ Agreement to the use of recording equipment

Respondents must be told at the beginning of the interview or group discussion that

tape or video recording techniques are to be used unless this knowledge may bias the

respondent’s subsequent behaviour.

The only other exception where advance notification is not essential is for recordings

made exclusively for supervisory, control or analysis purposes and where it will be

seen or heard only by the interviewer, moderator, supervisor or researcher working on

the survey. In both these situations, respondents must be told about the recording at

the end of the interview and be given the opportunity to see or hear the relevant

section of the record and if they so wish, to have this destroyed or to have their image

pixelated so that they cannot be identified.

Client rights to copies of the original data

It is generally accepted research practice that the client is entitled to be supplied, at

cost, with duplicate copies of the original survey information obtained from

respondents, provided that this has been anonymised.

Where this information is held in the form of audio or video recordings, rather than on

questionnaires, there is usually no problem if it supplied to the client in the form of

anonymised transcripts or anonymous audio recordings (although in both cases may be

needed to remove identifying comments or other clues from the material).

In the case of video recordings the danger of respondent identification is much greater,

and in this and other cases where the anonymity rule might be at risk the following

recommendations must be followed:

Safeguards on the Release of Recordings

1. Recordings must not be allowed out of the hands of the researcher or research or

organisation carrying out the study unless explicit permission has previously been

obtained from the respondents included in the recording.

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2. Where such permission is to be obtained, the researcher must ensure that

respondents are given as much relevant information as possible about the future

use of the recording.

In particular:

o To whom the recording is to be given

o To whom it is likely to be shown

o For what research purposes it is likely to be used

o In particularly sensitive cases, the possibility (where technically feasible) of

blurring or obscuring the identifying characteristics of respondents should

be considered when a video recording is to be released outside the research

organisation. In certain cases it may be sufficient to release the soundtrack

only.

o When a recording is released in conformity with these recommendations it

should be labelled with the appropriate restrictions on the purposes for

which it may be used. The researcher must also ensure that the recipient of

the recording is aware of the requirements of the Code and the need to abide

by these (the restrictions on the use of recordings should be made known at

the start of the project).

3. If any part of a recording is to be played but not handed over, by the researcher to

anyone other than authorised research personnel within his own organisation, the

researcher must ensure that no reference is made to the identity of any of the

respondents involved without their prior permission.

Bachelor of Arts in Information Systems Management Page vii

8.3 ESOMAR Guideline for Passive Data Collection and

Observation

Active data collection typically involves the asking and answering questions e.g.

telephone or on-line survey. Active data collection requires informed consent from the

respondent who voluntarily answers the questions.

Examples of Passive Data Collection

Developments in video technology have created new opportunities for observation

within the market research arena and this includes remote viewing from other

locations, including across borders, as well as a resurgence of interest in

‘ethnographic’ research which involves observing and filming people in natural

settings over an extended period of time.

There has also been an increasing use of CCTV (closed circuit television) in public

places. This can incorporate a variety of different scenarios including observing

behaviour in a shopping centre, which can be done openly (where no attempt is made

to conceal the fact that participants are being observed and consumers can expect that

their behaviour is both observed and recorded), or less openly (where the observers are

concealed and the observation is not disclosed).

For some time websites have been collecting browsing data and other passive

measures based on techniques such as cookies and web bugs. However, the latest

online research techniques now include the observation of online groups and bloggers,

often linked with growing marketing methods such as WOM (Word of Mouth) which

rely upon observing how people interact with one another in both the face to face and

virtual environments, also in areas such as mystery shopping and employee behaviour.

Behavioural data collected as an incidental bi-product of other activities are becoming

available and raising concerns:

• Smart cards and scanners are increasingly used to collect a wide range of consumer

or member behaviour;

• Mobile phones can track geographic location;

• Ticket booking systems can track destinations.

Bachelor of Arts in Information Systems Management Page viii

1 Ethics regarding Personal Data

Data protection legislation pertains to data held about an identifiable person - An

identifiable person is someone who can be identified directly from the data record if it

includes such things as name, address, telephone number or email address. Personally

identifiable data also includes data which makes indirect identification possible, in

particular by reference to an identification number or the person’s physical,

physiological, mental, economic, cultural or social characteristics and location. Where

passive data is collected that contains no personal identification of data subjects, there

is minimal risk of data protection breaches.

2. Informed consent

Before personally identifiable data can be processed, the data subject needs to give

informed consent. The respondent must know about the nature of the data being

collected, the reasons for processing it and what will be done with it.

Data subjects should not be misled, lied to or tricked. Participation is voluntary and

they can withdraw at any time. There may be instances in public places where

informed consent from individuals is impossible to achieve. In those cases public

notice should be given about the data collection – e.g. CCTV operation

3. Proper use of the data

The use of personal data is restricted to those things that the data subject has agreed to.

If it is collected for research purposes, it may not be used for other purposes.

4. Disclosure to third parties

Personally identifiable data can be passed on to a third party only with the permission

of the data subject and to achieve the purpose for which the data was collected. Data

collected for research purposes cannot be used for non-research purposes. Data which

has been anonymised, and so is no longer personal data can be passed on to third

parties and processed for other purposes.

Bachelor of Arts in Information Systems Management Page ix

5. Public place

Things that people are observed doing in a public place cannot be regarded as private

or inaccessible to a researcher. However, the definition of a public place is subject to

cultural variation and the researcher should take into account local circumstances and

customs.

6. Publication or broadcast

When somebody publishes or broadcasts their views or opinions, this information is in

the public domain. This is particularly important on the internet where people make

use of open chat rooms or forums to make their views known (even if it is with an

adjusted identity). There are many places on the internet which require users to join or

register or apply for membership, before being permitted to participate. The term

‘walled gardens’ describes well these semi-public forums. If the internet chat room or

forum is not a ‘walled garden’, i.e. anybody can be there and say what they like, then

this is the equivalent of publication or broadcasting. The views expressed and the

identity attached is in the public domain. Views expressed in internet areas that are

“walled gardens” should be treated as private and the researcher should announce his

presence and purpose and seek co-operation

7. Client observation of interviews or focus groups

Similar considerations arise where an interview or group discussion is to be observed

by a client or his representatives (including advertising agency staff, etc.), whether for

quality control purposes or to gain a better understanding of the findings of the

research. This is especially the case where the fact of being observed is not easily

apparent to respondents, for example where the observation is in a separate viewing

room via closed circuit television. The following recommendations deal with client

observation of interviews.

Wherever this happens the researcher must ensure that all such observers are

fully aware of the requirements of the ICC/ESOMAR International Code and

agree to abide by these.

The researcher must also try to ensure that such observers do not include

people who are likely to know, or have any direct dealings with, any of the

individual respondents being interviewed (for example client sales staff in the

case of a survey among business managers or doctors).

Bachelor of Arts in Information Systems Management Page x

Observers should be told that if they find they know any of the participants,

they must stop observing and notify the researcher.

Respondents must be told that the interview or discussion is being observed by

other persons. The identity of the client need not be revealed unless asked for

by the respondents.

8. Observation of human behaviour

When researchers set out to observe human behaviour not by interview but just by

watching, two general courses are open to them. They can be openly involved in the

activity they are observing – participant observers or they can remain aloof from the

activity – acting almost like voyeurs or covert observers. The ethical issues vary

depending on the approach taken.

9. Participant Observation

Participant observation is a well-established social science technique and has been

used in investigations of human interactions. The Ethical Standards of the American

Psychological Association1 provides excellent guidance particularly on the very

critical component of “informed consent”, guidance which ESOMAR endorses.

Here are some of the features of informed consent as described in the Standards:

• Prior to conducting research, researchers enter into a documented agreement with

participants that clarifies the nature of the research and the responsibilities of each

party.

• When obtaining this informed consent, researchers use language that is reasonably

understandable to the participants.

• Informed consent is obtained before recording the subjects in any way.

• Researchers explain significant factors that may be expected to influence the

person’s willingness to participate (such as risks, discomfort, adverse effects, or

limitations on confidentiality) and other aspects about which the person may inquire.

• Researchers tell participants that they can withdraw from the research at any time as

well as explain the foreseeable consequences of declining to participate or

withdrawing.

Bachelor of Arts in Information Systems Management Page xi

• For persons who are legally incapable of giving informed consent, researchers

nevertheless provide an appropriate explanation, obtain the person’s consent, and

obtain appropriate permission from a legally authorised person, if such substitute

consent is permitted by law.

• Researchers inform participants of their anticipated sharing or further use of

personally identifiable research data and of the possibility of unanticipated future uses.

• Researchers provide a prompt opportunity for participants to obtain appropriate

information about the nature, results, and conclusions of the research, and they attempt

to correct any misconception that participants may have.

The APA Standard also advises on reporting:

“In reports or presentations of their research, researchers do not disclose confidential

or personally identifiable information concerning their subjects unless the person has

given written permission (or unless there is some other ethical or legal authorisation

to do so). “Ordinarily,” the Standards add, “in such scientific and professional

presentations, psychologists disguise confidential information concerning such

persons or organizations so that they are not individually identifiable to others and so

that discussions do not cause harm to subjects who might identify themselves.”

10. Participation in Internet activity

If people express their views in public internet areas, where they would expect

anybody who was interested could see and read and transmit their ideas, then this is in

the public domain. ‘Walled gardens’ need more careful handling.

The researcher joining a restricted group intent on research, should announce his

presence and objectives and seek the permission either of the area moderator, if there

is one, or the members of the group.

Internet areas which are set up specifically for respondents to visit in order to

participate in research – i.e. created for the researcher for the purpose of research,

should be subject to all the requirements of informed consent and confidentiality,

required of other direct research approaches.

Bachelor of Arts in Information Systems Management Page xii

10. Undisclosed observation

There is wide cultural variability in levels of covert or undisclosed observation that are

tolerable within different countries. For instance in the UK speed cameras are

ubiquitous, while in the USA there was huge public outcry against installing them as

they were seen as violating privacy. Attitudes towards privacy differ between cultures.

Observation in public places, whether disclosed or undisclosed, is legitimate. Where

possible and always when required by legislation, researchers using undisclosed

observation techniques in public places (such as shops, restaurants etc.) should provide

notification to the public.

11. Public places

If videoing people in public places, the researcher should display clear warning signs.

If observation is taking place in an environment, research ethics may be addressed by

placing a notification at the entrance to the store or restaurant stating that observations

for research purposes are taking place. People who elect not to participate have the

right not to enter. In circumstances where it is not reasonable to expect an individual

not to enter, in a hospital for example, people should be given the right to have their

data anonymised by obscuring identifiable features, or deleted if this is feasible

without affecting the results of the research.

Contact information should be displayed with some prominence in a sufficiently large

and readable typeface.

Bachelor of Arts in Information Systems Management Page xiii

8.4 In-depth Interview Ethics Statement/Explanatory Note

Before this In-depth Interview discussion commences, I would like to read an ethics

statement and explanatory note:

Firstly, I would like to thank you for participating in this research which is being

undertaken as part of the Institute of Technology, Tralee Undergraduate Research

Project Module. The main aim of the module is to provide undergraduate students

with practical experience of conducting marketing research projects. This project is

worth 100% of our second semester Marketing Research Project grade. All students

conducting research as part of this programme must adhere to Irish legislation and the

ICC/ESOMAR Code of Ethics when conducting Marketing Research.

The In-depth Interview you have agreed to participate today is solely for the purpose

of Active Travel Towns Initiative Project. Information from the In-depth Interviews

undertaken will be collated and presented in a research report which will only be made

available to the client commissioning the research and to the Research Supervisor

(Martha Farrell) who will grade our project.

I would like to remind you that your cooperation in this marketing research project is

entirely voluntary at all stages.

Also, your anonymity will be strictly preserved. We do not require your name for the

purpose of this research. If you do offer your name, you can rest assured that your

comments will never be associated with your name. The only people who will be able

to attribute your comments to you are the research group members (Xhemile Nabolli,

Michala Njesse, Fiona Dunne) who will interview you and have undertaken to keep

this information strictly private and confidential.

Furthermore, I would like to assure you that the information provided by you will not

be used for any non-research purpose and that the recipient of the information has

agreed to conform to the requirements of this Code.

Also, I would like to remind you that we would prefer to use recording equipment to

record this In-depth Interview. This is solely for the purpose of our convenience in

collecting all of your valuable comments. Should we simply take notes, we may miss

some valuable information.

Bachelor of Arts in Information Systems Management Page xiv

Rest assured that no person, except the research group members (Xhemile Nabolli,

Michala Njesse, Fiona Dunne) will ever have access to these tapes and that they will

be disposed of in accordance with the ESOMAR code.

Introduction and Explanation Section

So just quickly to explain what is involved in an In-depth Interview:

I’d firstly like to introduce myself - Xhemile Nabolli (Show ID Cards). Simply put: a

In-depth Interview is an unstructured one-to-one discussion on a nominated topic.

With regard to this particular discussion today, I am just going to ask you a few

questions about your attitudes towards sustainable transport.

In an In-depth Interview there are No correct or incorrect answers – only your

opinions, feelings and perception about the issues that we will discuss matter to us.

Do you have any questions?

The following is an introduction what the today’s interview is about.

Kerry County Council has recently developed a sustainable transport strategy for the

town of Tralee, called Active Travel Town. They wish to encourage employees of

Kerry Technology Park to use a more sustainable form of transport on a daily basis. A

step in the development process for the action plan is to undertake a survey of

employees on their commuting habits. Before this survey takes place we would be

obliged if you could partake in an in-depth interview with the research team in order

that they can conduct a thorough research on the employees.

Bachelor of Arts in Information Systems Management Page xv

8.5 Introduction Letter

Help get Tralee active and make it a great place to work and live

Dear Sir/Madam

Kerry County Council has recently developed a sustainable transport strategy for the

town of Tralee called Tralee Active Travel. As part of this initiative they wish to

encourage people to use a more sustainable form of transport on a daily basis. A step

in the development process for the action plan is to undertake a survey of employees

in Kerry Technology Park on their commuting habits. The aim of the ATT is to create

a modal shift in travel patterns in Tralee town; a move away from a dependency on the

car towards sustainable modes of transport, i.e. walking, cycling, public transport or

car sharing. This initiative will help make Tralee an attractive place to work and live

and could attract the sort of talent that employers of Kerry Technology Park would

wish to recruit.

This survey is being carried out by four students of IT Tralee as part of their 3rd

year

Marketing Research Module under the supervision of Martha Farrell, Marketing

Lecturer at IT Tralee. On behalf of the Active Travel Town Initiative, the students

wish to present a true and accurate picture of the behaviour patterns of all employees

working in the Kerry Technology Park.

We would appreciate your company taking part in this survey and assure you that all

information collected will remain anonymous and confidential. The research team

will present their findings to Kerry County Council for research purposes only.

We propose to conduct the research through a short online survey that will take no

more than 5 minutes to complete and can be emailed to all employees from a

representative within your company so as to ensure security.

If you are in agreement for your company to take part in this survey please contact us

on 086 4100079 (Fiona Dunne), alternatively we will contact each company to

encourage their participation in making Tralee a great place to work and live.

Thank you for your time and we look forward to hearing from you.

Best Regards

Fiona Dunne

Michala Njesse

Xhemile Nabolli

Bachelor of Arts in Information Systems Management Page xvi

9.0 INDEX

Bachelor of Arts in Information Systems Management Page xvii

9.1 Table of Figures

FIGURE 1: THE MARKETING RESEARCH PROCESS (DOMEGAN & FLEMING, 1999, P. 20) -- 9

FIGURE 2: PROBLEM DEFINITION STAGES (DOMEGAN & FLEMING, 1999, P. 21) --------- 10

FIGURE 3: POPULATION OF SMARTER TRAVEL TOWN --------------------------------------- 25

FIGURE 4: PERCENTAGE OF POPULATION WHO TRAVEL BY CAR (WWW.CSO.IE, 2012) -- 25

FIGURE 5: AVERAGE JOURNEY TIME IN MINUTES (WWW.CSO.IE, 2012) ------------------- 26

FIGURE 6: PERCENTAGE OF WORKERS WITH A COMMUTING TIME IN EXCESS OF 30

MINUTES (WWW.CSO.IE, 2012) ----------------------------------------------------------- 26

FIGURE 7 DUNGARVAN’S BEHAVIOURAL CHANGE MODEL (WWW.GODUNGARVAN.IE,

2010) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 30

FIGURE 8: HOW DO YOU USUALLY TRAVEL TO CAMPUS? PICK ONE BOX ONLY, FOR THE

LONGEST PART, BY DISTANCE, OF YOUR USUAL JOURNEY TO CAMPUS. IF YOU ARE

BASED IN MORE THAN ONE LOCATION, PLEASE REFER TO THE ONE YOU ARE IN MOST

OFTEN. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 35

FIGURE 9: THE MAIN REASONS THE STAFF CHOOSE THEIR MODE CHOICE IS (EACH

RESPONDENT COULD IDENTIFY UP TO 3 REASONS) (TOTAL RESPONDENTS = 107): 35

FIGURE 10: IF A BIKE SCHEME (SIMILAR TO DUBLIN BIKE SCHEME) EXISTED AT ITT,

WOULD YOU BE INTERESTED IN USING SAME FOR TRAVELLING BETWEEN NORTH /

SOUTH CAMPUSES? ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 36

FIGURE 11: HOW FAR, IN KILOMETRES, DO YOU TRAVEL TO CAMPUS? -------------------- 37

FIGURE 12: PROFILE OF RESPONDENTS ------------------------------------------------------- 37

FIGURE 13: AGE RANGE OF RESPONDENTS ---------------------------------------------------- 38

FIGURE 14: HOW DO YOU USUALLY TRAVEL TO CAMPUS? PICK ONE BOX ONLY, FOR THE

LONGEST PART, BY DISTANCE, OF YOUR USUAL JOURNEY TO CAMPUS. IF YOU ARE


OFTEN. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 39

Bachelor of Arts in Information Systems Management Page xviii

FIGURE 15: THE MAIN REASONS THE STUDENTS CHOOSE THEIR MODE CHOICE IS (EACH

RESPONDENT COULD IDENTIFY UP TO 3 REASONS) (TOTAL RESPONDENTS = 293). - 39

FIGURE 16: HOW MUCH DO YOU SPEND ON TRAVEL TO AND FROM CAMPUS MONTHLY

(INCLUDE FUEL, TAX, INSURANCE, PUBLIC TRANSPORT COSTS, BICYCLE EQUIPMENT,

ETC.)? --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 40

FIGURE 17: HOW FAR, IN KILOMETRES, DO YOU TRAVEL TO CAMPUS? -------------------- 42

FIGURE 18: PROFILE OF RESPONDENTS. ------------------------------------------------------- 42

FIGURE 19: AGE RANGE OF RESPONDENTS ---------------------------------------------------- 43

FIGURE 20: HOW DO YOU USUALLY TRAVEL TO WORK? TICK ONE BOX ONLY, FOR THE

MAIN MODE OF TRANSPORT USED FOR YOUR USUAL JOURNEY TO WORK. IF YOU ARE


OFTEN. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 56

FIGURE 21: OTHER THAN THE DRIVER, HOW MANY PEOPLE NORMALLY TRAVEL IN YOUR

CAR? ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 57

FIGURE 22: DO YOU NEED YOUR CAR FOR PICK-UPS OR DROP OFFS (FOR EXAMPLE THE

SCHOOL RUN, CRÈCHE ETC.) ON YOUR COMMUTE TO WORK? ------------------------- 57

FIGURE 23: DO YOU NEED A CAR FOR DOING YOUR JOB THROUGH THE DAY? ------------ 58

FIGURE 24: WOULD ANY OF THE FOLLOWING ENCOURAGE YOU TO CHOOSE AN

ALTERNATIVE TO THE CAR ON YOUR COMMUTE? -------------------------------------- 59

FIGURE 25: WOULD YOU BE OPEN TO CONSIDERING CARPOOLING TO REDUCE COSTS? - 60

FIGURE 26: WHAT ARE THE MAIN BARRIERS FOR YOU TO SWITCH FROM YOUR CURRENT

TRANSPORT MODEL TO A SUSTAINABLE MODE? TICK ALL THAT APPLY. ----------- 61

FIGURE 27: PLEASE SELECT THE MAIN REASON FOR CHOOSING THE MODE OF TRANSPORT

THAT YOU USE MOST OFTEN. ------------------------------------------------------------- 62

FIGURE 28: WHICH OF THE FOLLOWING MODES OF TRAVEL WOULD YOU CONSIDER USING

FOR YOUR JOURNEY TO/FROM WORK, IF THEY WERE AVAILABLE? ------------------ 63

Bachelor of Arts in Information Systems Management Page xix

FIGURE 29: HOW FAR DO YOU TRAVEL TO WORK? ------------------------------------------- 64

FIGURE 30: HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE YOU TO GET TO WORK? ----------------------------- 64

FIGURE 31: DO YOU OWN/OR HAVE ACCESS TO ANY OF THE FOLLOWING MODES OF

TRAVEL ON A DAILY BASIS? -------------------------------------------------------------- 65

FIGURE 32: DOES THE WEATHER AFFECT WHICH MODE OF TRANSPORT YOU USE TO

TRAVEL TO WORK? ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 66

FIGURE 33: DO YOU LIVE WITHIN 400 METRES (APPROX. 6 MINUTES’ WALK) OF A DIRECT

BUS TO YOUR WORK PLACE? -------------------------------------------------------------- 66

FIGURE 34: DO YOU LIVE WITHIN 800M (APPROX... 12 MINUTES’ WALK) OF A TRAIN/RAIL

CONNECTION TO TRALEE TOWN? -------------------------------------------------------- 67

FIGURE 35: ARE YOU AWARE THAT PUBLIC TRANSPORT USERS CAN PURCHASE A TAX

SAVER COMMUTER TICKET THROUGH YOUR EMPLOYER? THIS CAN SAVE YOU

APPROXIMATELY 50% OF THE PRICE OF THE TICKET. --------------------------------- 68

FIGURE 36: ARE YOU AWARE THAT TAX SAVER TICKETS FOR PUBLIC TRANSPORT ARE

AVAILABLE IN BOTH MONTHLY AND ANNUAL OPTIONS? ------------------------------ 68

FIGURE 37: WOULD YOU BE INTERESTED IN PURCHASING A DISCOUNTED, TAX-FREE

BICYCLE THROUGH YOUR EMPLOYEE CYCLE TO WORK SCHEME? ------------------ 69

FIGURE 38: WHICH OF THE FOLLOWING INITIATIVES/FACILITY UPGRADES WOULD

ENCOURAGE YOU TO HAVE AN ACTIVE COMMUTE (WALKING OR CYCLING) TO

WORK? TICK ALL THAT APPLY. ---------------------------------------------------------- 70

FIGURE 39: WOULD YOU BE INTERESTED IN ANY OF THE FOLLOWING INITIATIVES TO

PROMOTE WALKING OR CYCLING? ------------------------------------------------------- 71

FIGURE 40: IF A BIKE SCHEME (SIMILAR TO DUBLIN BIKE SCHEME) EXISTED IN THE

TECHNOLOGY PARK, WOULD YOU BE INTERESTED IN USING SAME FOR TRAVELLING

BETWEEN THE PARK AND TOWN? -------------------------------------------------------- 72

Bachelor of Arts in Information Systems Management Page xx

FIGURE 41: WHAT WOULD BE YOUR OPINION IF A BIKE SCHEME WAS PUT IN PLACE

TO/FROM KERRY TECHNOLOGY PARK AND TOWN CENTRE? ------------------------- 72

FIGURE 42: HOW DO YOU USUALLY TRAVEL WHEN ON BUSINESS? PLEASE CHOOSE THE

MODE YOU TAKE MOST OFTEN. ----------------------------------------------------------- 73

FIGURE 43: DO YOU USE VIDEO OR TELE CONFERENCING FOR BUSINESS PURPOSES? ---- 74

FIGURE 44: WOULD YOU BE WILLING TO WALK, CYCLE, AND TAKE PUBLIC TRANSPORT

OR CAR SHARE FOR BUSINESS WHERE SUITABLE? -------------------------------------- 74

FIGURE 45: ARE YOU INTERESTED IN CAR-SHARING? THIS COULD BE EITHER A LIFT-

SEEKER IN SOMEONE ELSE’S CAR OR OFFERING A LIFT IN YOUR CAR OR A

COMBINATION OF BOTH. ------------------------------------------------------------------ 75

FIGURE 46: ARE YOU AWARE OF THE TRALEE ACTIVE TRAVEL INITIATIVE? THIS

INITIATIVE AS MENTIONED ABOVE WILL ENCOURAGE PEOPLE TO USE A MORE

SUSTAINABLE FORM OF TRANSPORT. KCC WILL DEVELOP A CYCLE PATH FROM

FORGE CROSS NEAR THE IT TRALEE CAMPUS/ KERRY TECHNOLOGY PARK TO

BLENNERVILLE, MAKING IT EASIER FOR STUDENTS AND EMPLOYEES OF THE

TECHNOLOGY PARK TO COMMUTE TO THE NORTH CAMPUS. ------------------------- 76

FIGURE 47: IF YES, DO YOU THINK IT IS A WORTHWHILE INITIATIVE FOR TRALEE TOWN?

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 76

FIGURE 48: WHERE DO YOU LOOK FOR INFORMATION ON LOCAL EVENTS AND

INITIATIVES? -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 77

FIGURE 49: HAVE YOU EVER VISITED KERRY COUNTY COUNCIL’S WEBSITE? ----------- 78

FIGURE 50: PLEASE INDICATE YOUR AGE GROUP.-------------------------------------------- 78

FIGURE 51: PLEASE SELECT YOUR GENDER. -------------------------------------------------- 79

FIGURE 52: OBSERVATION ON TRANSPORT MODES OF KERRY TECHNOLOGY PARK

EMPLOYEES. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 80

Bachelor of Arts in Information Systems Management Page xxi

9.2 Table of Tables

TABLE 1: BUSINESSES LOCATED AT KERRY TECHNOLOGY PARK .................................... 5

TABLE 2: BUSINESSES POSITIONED AT TOM CREAN CENTER ........................................... 5

TABLE 3: EXPLORATORY AND DESCRIPTIVE RESEARCH ACTIONS .................................. 14

TABLE 4: OBSERVATION RESEARCH ON TRANSPORT MODES USED BY KERRY

TECHNOLOGY PARK EMPLOYEES ........................................................................... 21

TABLE 5: LIST OF SECONDARY RESEARCH RESOURCES ................................................. 23

TABLE 6 GODUNGARVAN BARRIERS AND PRINCIPLES TO MODAL SHIFT

(WWW.GODUNGARVAN.IE, 2010) .......................................................................... 28

TABLE 7 :SLIGO ACTIVE TRAVEL TOWN PROMOTIONS (SLIGO LOCAL AUTHORITIES,

2012) ..................................................................................................................... 32

TABLE 8: DUNGRAVAN SMARTER TRAVEL PROGRAM PROMOTIONS

(WWW.GODUNGARVAN.IE, 2010) .......................................................................... 32

TABLE 9: WESTPORT SMARTER TRAVEL PROGRAM PROMOTIONS ................................. 33

TABLE 10: OBSERVATION ON TRANSPORT MODES OF KERRY TECHNOLOGY PARK

EMPLOYEES. ........................................................................................................... 80

TABLE 11: OBJECTIVES TO CONCLUDE. .......................................................................... 82

Bachelor of Arts in Information Systems Management Page xxii

10.0 REFERENCES

Bachelor of Arts in Information Systems Management Page xxiii

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