Purdue University Experts Find How Colorful Sidewalks Move Tourists

A team of Purdue University researchers in the White Lodging-J.W. Marriott, Jr. School of Hospitality and Tourism Management and College of Engineering investigated whether Americans were willing to put on their walking shoes to take in the sights and sounds at an urban tourist destination.

In the study, led by HTM PhD student Jun Chen and professor Xinran Lehto, the researchers surveyed almost 2,000 U.S. adults to understand if colorful sidewalks, images of people moving and even just the image of walking shoes would entice vacationers to skip Uber and hoof it themselves. Mark Lehto, Purdue professor of industrial engineering, also participated in the project.

The research, published in the April 2023 Tourism Management journal, found those polled would be more apt to walk around the city if the paths leading them to a museum or historic site were clearly marked and decorated. The images of people walking or merely of sneakers were encouraging as well, whether they were posted near the paths or in hotels, the project also found.