Perceptions of public transportation passengers in Athens pertaining to the effects of the 2004 Olympic Games: A path analysis approach

Understanding how host residents formulate their perceptions towards the Olympic Games in their city is critical for the Olympic movement and the host city. Recent research has stressed the need for local support in areas where tourists visit and cities that host mega-events. Many Olympiads are known for creating new public transportation systems, infrastructure, economic gains, and increasing national pride. The need to understand how public transit users perceive these new transportation systems, economic gains, and national pride is becoming an important issue for Olympism. The purpose of this study was to examine perceptions of Athenian public transportation passengers regarding the effects of the 2004 Olympic Games three years after the event. By studying the perceptions public transit users have of the Games several years after the event, the strengths and weaknesses of the Games could be better analyzed.; Social exchange theory was the framework for this study to analyze the exchanges transit passengers entered into with the hosting of the 2004 Olympiad. Path analysis was used to find the relationships of the support for the 2004 Athens Games with the following three values: Economic gain, gains in public transportation, and national pride. These three values were found to influence perceptions of the perceived Olympic strengths and weaknesses associated with the Games.; The majority of respondents indicated that they still support the 2004 Games and they support hosting the Olympic Games again in the next 20 years. Future, similar mega-events in Greece was also positively perceived; however, the possibility of hosting the Olympic Games every four years in Athens was perceived negatively.; Athenian transit users, who had a high satisfaction level of the Athens tram, Athens subway, and Athens suburban railway, maintain support for the Athens Games. Transit passengers with high national pride also maintain support for the 2004 Games. Most public transportation users did not perceive themselves as having a dependency economically on tourism. As a result, economic gains did not influence support for the Olympic Games in any significant relationship. This research decomposed the relationships found in the path analysis model and found that the perceptions of economic gain, the satisfaction level of the public transportation system built for the 2004 Olympics, and the level of national pride, all interconnected in the forming of perceptions of the impacts of the Summer Olympic Games and affected continued support for the 2004 Olympics in Athens.