In Qatar, majority of the citizens rely on private automobiles compared to public transport. For this reason, it is imperative to consider public views on sustainability issues within the transport sector. This study examines some behavioral change triggers as Qatar moves towards a sustainable public transport system. The dominant view is that using public transport is more sustainable; therefore, the objective of the study was two‐fold: to assess public travel behaviors and attitudes with respect to the use of public transportation and to formulate strategies designed to encourage commuters to use sustainable public transport. For this purpose, the study employed a descriptive, correlational research design in the collection and analysis of pertinent data. Primary data was obtained using survey research. Electronic surveys created by Survey Monkey were sent to prospective respondents online with a total sample size of 435. The framework of the questionnaire was: the respondents’ demographic profile, their overall knowledge about automobiles’ impact on the environment, their opinion concerning metro acceptance and initiation about the possible use of a sustainable transport system to the public, their knowledge on the metro project challenges, and their willingness to use the metro. Results indicated that the majority of respondents resisted using public transport, as most of them owned automobiles. Only 24% of respondents said that they would consider using public transport for environmental conservation purposes. The four major setbacks to using the metro system were: the need to wait for the metro to operate (21.4%), lifestyle and culture (16.9%) – respondents used to drive their own cars, climate concerns (16.9%), and the location of metro stations (17.5%). The study concluded that much of the resistance to using the public transport system arises from individual’s high dependency on automobiles. Many of the solutions to this high dependency were linked to land use and urban planning strategies.