ESTA: Educating Adolescents in Sustainable Travel Urban Behavior through Mobile Applications Using Motivational Features ^†

This paper proposes the use of motivational features in mobile applications to support adolescents’ education in sustainable travel urban behavior, so that they become more mindful of their environmental impact. To this effect, existing persuasive strategies are adopted, implemented, and integrated into six simulated screens of a prospective mobile application named ESTA, designed for this purpose through a user-centered design process. These screens are then assessed by secondary education pupils, the outcome of which is analyzed and presented in detail. The analysis takes into consideration the possibility for the daily use of ESTA in order for the adolescents to foster an eco-friendly and healthy transit attitude and make more sustainable mobility choices that will follow them throughout their life. The potential effectiveness of ESTA is demonstrated via two use cases: the “Daily Commuting” case is addressed towards adolescents who want to move within their area of residence or neighborhood following their daily routine and activities, while the “Weekend Entertainment” is addressed towards adolescents who want to move using the available public transport modes, encouraging them to adopt greener weekend travel habits.