Impact of Climate Change on Transportation Infrastructure: Comparing Perception Differences between the US Public and the Department of Transportation (DOT) Professionals

With over 1.1 billion trips made daily for work, education, or leisure, transportation systems are vital to the functioning of cities in the United States. However, these systems are highly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. The current study investigated perception differences about climate change between transportation professionals (N = 22) and the general public (N = 2034). The study revealed that (i) transportation professionals find climate change important, worrisome and harmful to themselves and future generations; (ii) knowledge of climate change and its consequences on transportation systems is limited on average among the general public; (iii) the public holds higher levels of misperceptions about climate change; (iv) the general public is more willing to embrace the suggestions of family and friends than climate scientists regarding the issue; (v) the general public holds a higher perception of behavioral control and confidence in their ability to carry out mitigative actions; and (vi) the public has lower information-seeking intentions about climate change. Based on the study findings, areas where perceptions differ may be considered during policy formulation and implementation processes to encourage pro-environmental behavioral changes that will reduce anthropogenic carbon emissions and enhance the functionality of transportation infrastructure.