Active Travel Among University Students in Central Santiago, Chile: Urban, Social, and Behavioral Determinants of Walking and Cycling

Active travel, particularly walking and cycling, plays a vital role in promoting sustainable and healthy urban mobility in densely populated metropolitan areas. This study examines the urban, social, and behavioral factors associated with active travel among university students at a central campus in Santiago, Chile. A mixed-methods approach was employed, combining quantitative survey data with qualitative responses to explore perceived barriers, characteristics of the built environment, and socio-demographic links. The findings indicate that perceived insecurity and travel distance are the principal barriers associated with lower walking rates, while cycling is constrained by limited cycling infrastructure, traffic safety concerns, and perceptions of risk in the urban environment. Beyond these physical conditions, the results highlight the importance of social attributes, including Indigenous identity, personal values, and exposure to mobility role models, in shaping travel choices. The analysis further suggests that walking and cycling may function as complementary or competing forms of active mobility depending on urban conditions and infrastructure provision. The study underscores the need to improve safety, strengthen cycling networks, and enhance public spaces surrounding university campuses. By integrating urban and social dimensions of mobility, the findings contribute to a localized understanding of student active travel in a highly centralized South American capital, offering an empirical framework that may serve as a hypothesis for future comparative research across other Latin American urban centers.