Abstract
A growing body of research has established that commuting experience shapes subjective wellbeing, yet virtually all evidence comes from Western European and North American contexts. This study addresses the geographic gap by examining the antecedents of commuting satisfaction and its relationship with subjective wellbeing in Almaty, Kazakhstan, a post-Soviet Central Asian megacity of more than 2.3 million people whose public transport system is undergoing significant modernization. An online survey was administered to 225 staff and students at a private university in central Almaty between November and December 2025. Commuting satisfaction was measured using the Commuting Satisfaction Scale (CSS) and subjective wellbeing using the WHO-5 Well-Being Index. Data was analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). Results indicate that perceived accessibility ( β = 0.391, p < 0.001) and policy trust ( β = 0.165, p = 0.017) are significant positive predictors of commuting satisfaction, while policy awareness is not. Commuting satisfaction strongly predicts subjective wellbeing ( β = 0.454, p < 0.001), supporting the spillover hypothesis in a non-Western urban context. A notable car paradox emerged: car users reported higher commuting satisfaction but lower overall wellbeing than public transport users. Travel time affects wellbeing exclusively through commuting satisfaction, suggesting full mediation. The findings highlight perceived accessibility and institutional trust as primary levers for enhancing commuter wellbeing in rapidly developing cities and contribute to the cross-cultural validation of the CSS.