Immobility in Rio de Janeiro, beyond poverty

In the Rio de Janeiro Metropolitan Area, almost half of inhabitants made no trips at all during the day, according to the 2002/2003 Household Travel Survey. This value is similar to that measured in another Brazilian city, Sao Paulo. The results show that, all other things equal, income has only a slight effect on the probability of being immobile. On the other hand, other factors connected with poverty, such as employment status, have a very strong effect. Inactive or unemployed workers and homemakers are the groups with the greatest number of immobile individuals. Figures are much higher in the poorer northern areas of the city than in the richer south. This strong geographic dimension of immobility is due to demographic structure effects, rather than neighborhood effects. Finally, questions surrounding the way trips are measured may also help explain high levels of observed immobility, as walking trips of less than 300 m were not included in the survey. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.