Effects of perceived safety,involvement and perceived service quality on loyalty intention among ride-sourcing passengers

Transportation - Ride-sourcing services are increasingly popular since they were first introduced in the last decade. Particularly in developing countries where public transport systems have...     

Does transport help people to gain employment? A systematic review and meta-analysis of the empirical evidence

ABSTRACT

The role of transport in providing access to employment has received considerable attention. Since transport policies may be motivated by assumed effects on employment probability outcomes, it is important to establish the nature of the relationship between transport and employment outcomes. While the majority of the empirical evidence suggests a positive association, it is not conclusive or consistent and often shows mixed results. To address this confusion, our study has systematically reviewed this evidence base and synthesised it through meta-analysis. We first identified 93 studies that quantitatively assessed the impact of transport on employment outcomes. By systematically merging the empirical evidence, this study establishes a positive association between transport and employment outcomes, with varying effects for four identified categories of transport measures (or combinations thereof): car ownership, public transport access, commute times, and job accessibility levels. This positive association persists in studies that control for endogeneity between transport and employment, but a larger evidence base is needed to establish a more robust relationship, in particular for cities and smaller (rural) areas outside the US-context and with regard to public transport. We then selected 20 methodologically comparable studies for inclusion in the meta-analysis. Our meta-regression models clearly demonstrate that car ownership significantly increases individual employment probabilities, in particular among welfare recipients. Young drivers benefit from access to household cars when these are not in use by their parents, and they are more sensitive to the time and cost implications of longer commutes. While our systematic review suggests that better access to public transport and higher levels of job accessibility increases employment probabilities, meta-regression analysis requires more consistent transport measures. The findings in this study are important for policymakers in that they imply that job seekers may benefit from public policies targeted at improving their access to public transport, in particular for people without access to cars and in areas with fewer job opportunities.     

Circumventing the weight-versus-footprint tradeoffs in vehicle fuel economy regulation

China, Japan, and the European Union use weight-based fuel economy standards, whereas the US Department of Transportation favors footprint-based standards. In this paper we offer a way of reconciling these approaches. Weight-based standards tend to focus regulatory incentives on technology rather than downsizing, but they provide no incentive for weight reduction. Footprint-based standards, by contrast, motivate vehicle manufacturers to reduce weight without reducing footprint, but only to the extent that they are also motivated to increase footprint without increasing weight. Neither approach discriminates between beneficial and detrimental weight-changing strategies. However, the tradeoffs between weight and footprint can be circumvented by employing a weight-based standard, which does not create weight-changing incentives, in combination with complementary regulatory measures that would be focused specifically and exclusively on motivating beneficial weight reduction strategies.     

State ocean policy initiatives in Florida

Abstract

A territorial sea comprising 6.7 million acres of offshore lands extending three geographic miles into the Atlantic Ocean three marine leagues (nine geographic miles) into the Gulf of Mexico makes Florida the second largest “oceanowning”; state in the contiguous United States. Florida's history, climate, economic development, and worldwide reputation have evolved from the state's relationship with the sea. The state is now becoming aware that aggressive management of its ocean resources is necessary to preserve the future of that relationship. The purpose of this article is to present some of Florida's recent legal and policy initiatives that have been directed toward better understanding and management of ocean resources and uses.     

Latent structure in road systems

The application of Q-analysis to road transport systems is introduced in this paper, but no prior knowledge of the methodology is assumed. It is argued that the route-link relation of transport systems has a connectivity structure overlooked by conventional transportation theory, and that this structure constrains traffic flow. This is illustrated at the micro-level by a complicated road intersection, and at the macro-level with a simple analysis of a town. The representation of road systems is discussed in this context, and it leads to a new result called the Link Face Theorem. It is suggested that the conventional theory can be usefully extended by studying the latent structure of road systems which is presently overlooked.     

Fine Mapping of a Deafness Mutation hml on Mouse Chromosome 10

Objective To map a mouse deafness gene.identify the underlying mutation and develop a mouse model for human deafncss.Methods Genetic lindage cross and genome scan wer used to map a novel mutation named hypoplasia of the membranous labyrinth (hml),which causes hearing loss in mutant mice.Results ① hml was mapped on mouse Chr 10 (～43 cM from the centromere) suggests that the homologous human gene is on 12q22--q24, which was defined on the basis of known mouse-human homologies (OMIM,2004). ② This study has generated 25 polymorphic microsateUite markers, placed 3 known human genes in the correct order in a high-resolution mouse map and narrowed the hml candidate gene region to a 500 kb area.     

Computational and experimental investigation of the unsteady flow structures around automotive outside rear-view mirrors

The unsteady flow field around two automotive outside rear-view mirrors is investigated. This study includes comprehensive experimental and computational approaches in order to characterize the complex flow structures in the wake of the mirrors. The experiments were carried out in a wind tunnel which included the measurements of the instantaneous and averaged velocity fields as well as mean and unsteady surface pressure distributions. The simulations were performed using Large Eddy Simulation (LES). The LES approach (particularly with the dynamic subgrid viscosity model) provided good agreements with the experiments for the velocity and the surface pressure distributions. The experimental and the computational results of this study will be used as a benchmark to validate the current and the future CFD development and the subsequent aero-acoustic computations.     

The case for space: the measurement of capacity utilisation,its relationship with reactionary delay and the calculation of the capacity charge for the British rail network

In Britain, capacity charges are levied on train operators to cover the costs imposed by increased reactionary delays – i.e. the delay that an already late train causes to a following train. These charges are based on the link between capacity utilisation and the level of reactionary delay. An established method for measuring capacity utilisation was adopted called The Capacity Utilisation Index (CUI). In this paper, we propose an alternative methodology based on the theory that the level of reactionary delay will be determined by the minimum gaps that exist between trains. We test this measure with a new data-set for the East Coast Main Line and show that it performs better than CUI. Finally, we comment on the implications of this finding for charging and for the construction of timetables.     

Model-based control system design in a urea-SCR aftertreatment system based on NH3 sensor feedback

This paper presents preliminary control system simulation results in a urea-selective catalytic reduction (SCR) aftertreatment system based on NH₃ sensor feedback. A four-state control-oriented lumped parameter model is used to analyze the controllability and observability properties of the urea-SCR plant. A model-based estimator is designed via simulation and a control system is developed with design based on a sliding mode control framework. The control system based on NH₃ sensor feedback is analyzed via simulation by comparing it to a control system developed based on NO_x sensor feedback. Simulation results show that the NH₃ sensor-based strategy performs very similarly in comparison to a NO_x sensor-based strategy. The control system performance metrics for NO_x index, urea index, urea usage, and NH₃ slip suggest that the NO_x sensor can be a potential alternative to a NO_x sensor for urea-SCR control applications.     

Organization of urban mass transport in developing countries

The supply of mass transport has not kept pace with the demand in cities in developing countries due to rapid urbanization and severe resource constraints. Developing countries would benefit from a study of the experience in developed countries regarding organization of mass transport and may adopt a few of the successful techniques. Examples include: unified transport authority; intermodal transfer facilities; subsidy to public transport; light rail transit; and redevelopment of the area around main rail terminals. Developing countries would be able to implement most of these techniques. The possible contribution of developed countries to developing countries lies mainly in the area of rolling stock and advanced signalling for rail based urban transport and in training highly skilled manpower for operation and management.