The Impact of Weather Conditions on Mode Choice in Different Spatial Areas

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report

In this paper, the authors analyzed the impacts of weather conditions on mode choice, considering different spatial areas. The proposed procedure is applied to Germany. The analyzes are clearly described; the conclusions are based on sound results. Although the topic is not new, the developed approach and the discussion of results are very interesting. For these reasons, in my opinion, the paper can be published in the present form.

Author Response

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Author Response File: Author Response.pdf

Reviewer 2 Report

The article entitled The impact of weather conditions on mode choice in different spatial areas is an interesting and current article.  The methodology of data collection is well explained, and the conclusion of the article is adequately analytically structured.

A few formal notes:

·      Table 1 - summary values of percentages in some columns are greater than 100%. It's probably a rounding error, but that needs to be checked;

·        write a number for a mathematical expression for determines the choice probability (Piq);

·        in the tables in the appendix, explain the abbreviation AIC.

 I kindly ask the authors to consider these points:

 

·        In the description of the methodology, the authors state: The multinomial logit models were estimated with the multinom function of the R package Feed-Forward Neural Networks and Multinomial Log-Linear Models (version 7.3-14), better known as nnet. R version 4.0.3 was used on a Windows 10 64-bit platform. 

Please explain in more detail what is the role of the neural network in the chosen statistical classification model?

·        Table 5 illustrates the β coefficients of the different seasons of the year and of the weather variables. Explain β regression coefficients and relate it to the expression for Piq.

·        In Table 5 and in the tables in Appendix A1-A4, the values for which p < 0.05 are marked with an asterisk. Which statistical test was used to assess statistical significance and what were the criteria for selecting the test? In the methodology, explain it in a little more detail.

Author Response

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Author Response File: Author Response.pdf

Reviewer 3 Report

Authors solves interesting problems and I agree with their results. I have any methodological comments. On the other side would be appropriate:
-    Check the journal template because figures go beyond the edges
-    In the table ant text is not the same fonts (I can not detected in pdf but show me different)
-    I would consider not publishing the appendix chapter (the article would be shorter)
-    You have one formula and for my opinion it is necessary numbered It (page 8) 

Author Response

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Author Response File: Author Response.pdf

Reviewer 4 Report

The article deals with an interesting topic which is "The impact of weather conditions on mode choice in different spatial areas". In my opinion, it fits the theme of the journal of Future Transportation.

In general, I consider the subject of the work as valuable and interesting for the reader. However, please make a few corrections to make the article even better quality:

1. Literature should be properly reformatted to comply with the requirements of the MDPI publishing house.

2. In the first chapter, it is important to indicate a clear purpose of the research.

3. The literature review in the first chapter is definitely insufficient. The various forms of transport available in urban transport systems should be widely referred to and the factors and aspects influencing them should be demonstrated. As far as the weather is concerned, such studies were carried out for car-sharing, where it was indicated that atmospheric factors and weather forecasts increase the demand for car-sharing services in a city by approx. 10% compared to all rentals (on rainy days or when the weather conditions suddenly change to unfavorable, there is an increase in interest in car-sharing services) - Schmöller, S.; Weikl, S.; Müller, J.; Bogenberger, K. Empirical analysis of free-floating carsharing usage: The Munich and Berlin case. Transp. Res. Part C Emerg. Technol. 2015, 56, 34–51. In another of the works, it was indicated that for car-sharing operators or city authorities who want to implement or improve their car-sharing systems, it is recommended to pay attention to ensuring adequate (increased) availability of the fleet in bad weather conditions - Turoń, K. Car-Sharing Systems in Smart Cities: A Review of the Most Important Issues Related to the Functioning of the Systems in Light of the Scientific Research. Smart Cities 2023, 6, 796-808. https://doi.org/10.3390/smartcities6020038.

4.At the end of the first chapter, you should indicate the division of the article - what is in its individual sections.

5. Mathematical formulas should be numbered correctly.

6. Tables should be formatted in accordance with the publisher's requirements.

7. The summary should indicate the research limitations and whether the research goal has been achieved.

Good luck!

Author Response

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Author Response File: Author Response.pdf

Round 2

Reviewer 4 Report

The article has been corrected according to my comments. I am for its publication.