User Acceptance and Willingness to Pay for Connected Vehicle Technologies: Adaptive Choice-Based Conjoint Analysis

Abstract

The preferences of drivers and their willingness to pay (WTP) for connected vehicle (CV) technologies were estimated with the use of adaptive choice-based conjoint (ACBC) analysis, the newest such method available. More than 500 usable surveys were collected through an online survey. Respondents were asked to choose from variously priced CV technology bundles (e.g., collision prevention, roadway information system). The study found that the acceptance level of the CV technologies was high, given that an absolute majority of survey respondents had the highest preferences for the most comprehensive technology bundle in each attribute. However, a comparison of the average importance of each attribute, including bundle prices, implied that price would be an important constraint and would influence CV deployment rates. At the attribute level, collision prevention technology received the highest importance score (i.e., the safety benefits most appealed to drivers). The ACBC analysis seemed to mimic well the trade-offs that people would consider in their actual purchasing decisions. The difference between WTP and self-explicated prices obtained before preferences were estimated was statistically significant (i.e., participants chose bundles after they considered product attributes and prices). This finding also affirmed that the ACBC analysis was a more appropriate method than the direct questioning methods used in past studies. Finally, certain socioeconomic characteristics were positively related to WTP. Those respondents that were knowledgeable about CV technologies and showed more innovativeness had higher WTP as well.