Table 1.
Comparison of our improved measurement of physical activity in trips to existing measurement approaches
| Methodology | Added information | Applications |
|---|---|---|
| Global and retrospective questionnaire assessment of transport activity (trips, modes) | - Studies of residential characteristics and qualitative outcomes on mode choice | |
| + GPS data collection & algorithm processinga |
- Objective and accurate data on trips and places visited (timestamped start and end times of segments, itineraries) instead of self-reported data - Unreliable data on transport modes |
- Environmental exposures in daily path areas - Route choice analysis - Analyses focusing on aggregated groups of modes (e.g., motorized transport) and indicators of transport activity aggregated at the participant level (rather than trip-level information) |
| + accelerometry & algorithm processinga | - Objective information on physical activity in trips | - Participant-level analyses of environmental exposures, transport mode profiles, and physical activity (one observation per participant) |
| + GPS-based mobility surveyb |
- Improved accuracy through the confirmation of places visited, trips made, and modes used - Added information on activities at places, social contacts, mood in trips, etc. |
- Analyses of environments, transport modes, and physical activity disaggregated at the trip level, with reliable mode information - Individual-level or trip-level analyses of determinants of visiting particular places (a sport facility, a fast-food restaurant, etc.) corrected from the selective daily mobility bias - Analyses involving additional determinants, confounders, or outcomes collected at the trip level |
| + spatial/temporal segmentation of trips into trip stages (algorithms + survey)c | - Validated information on timestamps and locations for transitions between unimodal trip stages and transfer stages between modes |
- Refined analyses of transport mode used accounting for durations spent in the different modes - Analyses of sensor-measured physical activity and personal environmental exposures (noise, air pollutants) by transport modes and during transfer stages between modes - Calculation of exposures to geographic environments by transport modes using geographic information systems |
| + manual edition of GPS itineraries (deletion and completion)c | - Accurate itineraries associated with each trip stage without artefacts |
- Analyses of distances covered with each transport mode - Refined calculation of exposures to geographic environments using geographic information systems |