Sexual orientation could be linked to choice of transport to work, study finds

COULD how you get to work really give your colleagues a clue about who you're in a relationship with? So suggest the surprising findings of a new study from researchers in the UK, who identified a link between sexual orientation and the choice of mode of transport to work.

Public transport appears to be more favoured by homosexual couples, apparently for reasons relating to health and the environment.

It may seem surprising to associate a person's sexual orientation with their commuting behaviour, but researchers at the UK's University of Exeter have looked into the subject.

They used data from the American Community Survey (ACS) on no less than three million working-age households and analysed demographic, economic, social, work and housing information.

According to the findings of the study, published in the journal Plos One, the researchers appear to have found that people living with same-sex partners were more likely to use public transportation, and less likely to drive to work, than people sharing their lives with partners of a different sex.

In detail, the biggest difference was observed among men. Gay and bisexual men in same-sex relationships were 7% more likely to take public transport (compared to 3% for women), and 13% less likely to drive to work.

Men in same-sex relationships were on average 69% more likely to walk or bike to work.

Environmental concerns

So why should gay, lesbian and bisexual people be more likely to use public transport? The idea that sexual orientation could have any influence on this subject may seem surprising.

However, the researchers believe that these couples could place more importance on the environment than others. This is based on studying their responses to questions about pollution, alternative energy sources, and even concerns about governments not investing enough in the environment.

The study reveals that the environmental preferences of gay, lesbian and bisexual respondents were around 10% stronger than those of heterosexual individuals. This may explain their choice of public transport over journeys by car.

Gender norms may also have a role to play in influencing people's preferred modes of transport to work.

"This could help policymakers and health practitioners to address transportation to work in a more diverse and less traditional family-oriented manner," the researchers state. –ETX Daily Up, February 17, 2022