Abstract Urban mobility decisions have become increasingly complex as transportation options expand beyond traditional modes to include ride-hailing services and on-demand shuttles. This paper investigates how consumers make these mobility choices and examines the intention-behavior relationship in real-world contexts. Three studies identified key decision-making factors and connected them to established mobility research. The main study developed a mobile application offering an access-based shuttle service, capturing 39,000 orders from 950 users over six months in Shanghai. By analyzing both stated intentions and actual behavior, the study examined travel mode choices in everyday mobility contexts. Findings reveal that consumer decisions rely primarily on three core dimensions—punctuality, predictability, and convenience—rather than the diverse factors emphasized in previous research. Intentions closely mirror actual behavior in routine mobility services. Consumers simplify decision-making by focusing on fundamental service characteristics, with additional bundled features playing minimal roles in their choices.
Kuppelwieser et al. (Thu,) studied this question.