Transport disadvantage and care work: An exploratory study of gendered mobility patterns and acceptability of sustainable transport alternatives in rural and peri-urban Austria

Women face specific mobility constraints due to structural inequality, gender roles, and the resulting unequal distribution of care responsibilities, yet their travel patterns remain understudied, particularly in rural and peri‑urban contexts. This exploratory study examines gendered differences in care-related mobility among 268 residents in two Austrian municipalities. Using app-based travel survey and diary data (n = 1302 trips), we analyzed care trip frequency, care trips' mode choice, and the acceptability of modal alternatives based on realistic substitutes that participants either accepted or rejected for their stated trips. In addition to collecting travel behavior, the app-based travel diary functioned as an awareness-raising tool by presenting respondents with feasible alternative modes alongside CO2 emissions and cost comparisons for recorded trips. For care trip frequency, the results reveal significant gender disparities: Women make more care trips than men (p = .009, V = .32). The presence of children strongly predicts care trip frequency (ρ = .612, p < .001), with parents of children under 12 reporting near-daily care mobility. In terms of transport mode, the distribution differs significantly by gender (p = .022, V = .17), with women predominantly using cars and walking. At the same time, men show higher cycling and PT use for care trips. The analysis of proposed alternative transport modes for escort trips reveals medium acceptability with no significant differences by gender, trip purpose, or transport mode, indicating structural rather than individual barriers. The dominant reasons were incompatibility with traveling alongside children and insufficient comfort. These findings highlight that perceived care‑related constraints are central determinants of alternative‑mode uptake and underscore the need for policy interventions addressing both care infrastructure and sustainable modal alternatives adapted to complex care-related travel patterns.