The nature of travelers' unplanned destination decisions (Indiana)

The purpose of this dissertation was to explore the nature of travelers' unplanned destination stop decisions, which are made by travelers during a trip without having been planned before the trip. The objectives of the study were: (1) to establish a conceptual framework of travelers' unplanned destination stopping behavior; (2) to explore the extent and significance of unplanned stops within the context of pleasure travel; (3) to examine the influence of trip, traveler, and trip plan characteristics on the number of unplanned stops during a pleasure trip; and, (4) to establish a descriptive model of travelers' unplanned destination decisions.; Based on the literature on traveler's destination choice and individuals' unplanned behavior, this study recognizes that: (1) travelers' observed behavior includes unplanned outcomes as well as planned outcomes; (2) travelers' unplanned destination stops represent differences between a trip plan and actual behavioral outcomes; and (3) unplanned destination stops can be classified either into 'unplanned add' or into 'unplanned skip.'; Survey data obtained from the travelers to Northern Indiana area were used to empirically examine the nature of travelers' unplanned destination stop decisions. Research hypotheses regarding the nature of unplanned destination stops were tested including: (1) positive/negative relationships between trip plan characteristics and the number of unplanned stops; (2) the influence of trip/traveler characteristics on trip plan characteristics and the number of unplanned stops; and, (3) the influence of en route conditions on the probability of making an unplanned stop at each potential destination.; Study findings indicate that unplanned stops are important part of pleasure trips to Northern Indiana. The results also show that the specificity of a trip plan mediates the relationship between trip/traveler characteristics and the number of unplanned stops. En route situations that describe the environment of a decision regarding planned versus unplanned stops were important to understanding the decision outcomes. An empirical model of travelers' unplanned destination stops verified the salience of situational en route conditions as well as contextual trip characteristics in predicting the likelihood of an unplanned stop at each potential stop place.