Sustainable Tourism in Public Marketplaces: Resident Perceptions of Transportation Issues in a Latent Class Analysis

Public markets represent urban places capable of contributing to local economies but also spaces in which tourism sustainability can be compromised by visitor flows. This study explored heterogeneity in resident perceptions of tourism sustainability at the Mercato di Luino, a historic market in Northern Italy, with particular attention to the role of transportation-related issues. Using a sample of 742 residents and market users, we applied latent class analysis to identify distinct groups based on their perceptions of the socio-cultural, economic, and environmental dimensions of the shopping space sustainability. A distinctive feature of the study is the comparison of models in the absence and presence of transportation-related characteristics. Besides finding that residents can be classified into three latent classes segmented in terms of sustainability perceptions, the inclusion of transport-based predictors has strikingly altered class membership probabilities. The results showed that mobility issues experienced in market days can play a crucial role in shaping resident attitudes toward tourism sustainability in public open-air marketplaces, with implications for urban and tourism planning.