The Importance Of Crowding

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Cox et al. in 2006 (Cox, 2006) concluded that the perception of crowding in passenger rail is created from an “interplay of cognitive, social and environmental factors, whereas density refers to objective physical characteristics of the situation.” Similarly, there is enough literature available that establishes the fact that crowding is not just dependent on physical density but also on various physical antecedents, interpersonal factors, individual characteristics and modifiers (Sundstorm, 1978). Culture also plays a role in the perception or tolerance of crowding. Evans et al. (2000) found that residential crowding has a negative effect in terms of psychological distress across different cultures; Mexican Americans and Vietnamese Americans perceive their homes as less crowded (based on a given number of people per room) relative to African Americans or Anglo American individuals (Zheng Li, 2013).
In 2006, Cox et al. developed a theoretical model that depicts the relationship between overcrowding and its impact on health. The figure below shows that model.

Figure 5- Relationship between overcrowding and health (Source: (Cox, 2006)(Zheng Li, 2013) )

“In Australia, researchers Hirsch and Thompson (2011) identified eight factors that may influence the perception of rail crowding: (1) expectations based on previous travel experiences. (2) Environment, which includes weather (for example, perceived crowding would be overweighted in rainy conditions), and carriage, such as the quality of the air conditioning system, air flow within the carriage, the presence and design of handholds for standing passengers, the seating layout and arrangement, the cleanliness of the carriage. (3) Communication—poor quality of information provided...

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...t stress and feelings of exhaustion; and
(3) Evaluations of the psychosocial aspects of the crowded situation and of its ambient environment as well as passenger density do not directly predict stress and feelings of exhaustion (Zheng Li, 2013).
Capturing subjective perceptions of crowding regularly may prove to be a cumbersome and a costly exercise. Thus, it can be used as a mean to identify the gaps between the objective standards and subjective public perceptions. Further, it can be used to identify the cost of crowding by using the willingness to pay estimate of users for a less congested, more comfortable public transport system. The economic method used to calculate and value crowding is known as contingent valuation method, which has its roots in environmental economics and valuation of non-market goods. It is discussed in detail in the following section.

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