The economics of parking provision for the morning commute

In this paper, we study the economics of parking provision for the morning commute, where all the parking lots are owned and operated by private operators. The parking capacity allocations, parking fees and access times are considered in a parking market. First we solve the parking market equilibrium without regulatory intervention, revealing four types of competitive equilibrium. Only one of the four types of equilibrium, however, is found to be stable and realistic, and under it each parking area is preferred by the commuters during certain time periods. Compared to the case without parking choice, provision of parking through a competitive market is able to reduce commuters’ travel cost and queuing delay, but it does not necessarily lead to the most desirable market outcome that minimizes social cost or commuter cost. This issue can be addressed through market regulations, such as price-ceiling, capacity-floor or capacity-ceiling, and a quantity tax/subsidy regulation. It is found that both price-ceiling and quantity tax/subsidy regulations can efficiently reduce both the system cost and commuter cost under certain conditions, and help ensure the stability of the parking market. Numerical examples are also provided to illustrate these findings and furthermore, how a price ceiling or a quantity tax/subsidy should be set in a parking market under realistic model parameters.     

Real-time parking information management to reduce search time,vehicle displacement and emissions

The time spent searching for free parking spaces can produce considerable environmental pollution. Information on parking availability can be a powerful instrument for reducing these search costs. This paper develops a demand assignment model to evaluate the benefits of manipulating information with the objective of reducing the time and distances involved in finding a parking-place; including the walking distances involved. Using the full search procedure it was found that improvements of some 10% in efficiency could be achieved, but only at high computational costs. A genetic algorithm was programmed that increases the possibility of finding the optimum information conditions that can be translated into lower emissions of toxic greenhouse gases.     

Expirable parking reservations for managing morning commute with parking space constraints

When total parking supply in an urban downtown area is insufficient, morning commuters would choose their departure times not only to trade off bottleneck congestion and schedule delays, but also to secure a parking space. Recent studies found that an appropriate combination of reserved and unreserved parking spaces can spread the departures of those morning commuters and hence reduce their total travel cost. To further mitigate both traffic congestion and social cost from competition for parking, this study considers a parking reservation scheme with expiration times, where commuters with a parking reservation have to arrive at parking spaces for the reservation before a predetermined expiration time. We first show that if all parking reservations have the same expiration time, it is socially preferable to set the reservations to be non-expirable, i.e., without expiration time. However, if differentiated expiration times are properly designed, the total travel cost can be further reduced as compared with the reservation scheme without expiration time, since the peak will be further smoothed out. We explore socially desirable equilibrium flow patterns under the parking reservation scheme with differentiated expiration times. Finally, efficiencies of the reservation schemes are examined.     

Decisions on truck parking place and time on expressways: an analysis using digital tachograph data

With the objective of deriving useful insights into measures against traffic congestion at service areas (SAs) and parking areas (PAs) on expressways and ensuring efficient use of SAs/PAs, this study investigated the decisions on where a truck is parked (i.e., choice of an SA or a PA), how long it is parked (i.e., parking time), and their influential factors. To this end, this study used the trajectory data of 1600 trucks recorded in 6-min intervals by in-vehicle digital tachographs on the Sanyo and Chugoku Expressways in Japan from October 2013 to March 2014. First, the aspect of repeated choice of each truck (i.e., habitual behavior) toward a specific SA/PA was clarified. Next, a multilevel discrete–continuous model (Type II Tobit model) was developed to reveal the factors affecting the above decisions. The modeling results confirmed the existence of habitual behavior and showed that trucks were more likely to be parked a longer time at an SA/PA when it is closer to the destination. It appears that truck drivers may adjust their time at the SA/PA close to the destination to comply with the arrival time, which is often predetermined by the owner of the transported goods. Furthermore, the availability of restaurants and shops, and the number of parking spaces available for trucks and trailers are important determinants of parking time, whereas the existence of a convenience store is important to the choice of the SA/PA. Parking experience has an extremely strong positive effect on the parking choice and use. Moreover, increasing the number of parking lots may induce its longer use.

     

A parking model hierarchy

The last decade has seen considerable developments in computer assisted design procedures which enable planners to investigate the impacts of changes in the transport system. These developments have become more available to analysts through the introduction of microcomputers and computer graphics. Unfortunately, the impacts of parking on the transport have not been incorporated explicitly in many of these models since their prime concern is the movement of traffic. Parking system design and policy analysis can, however, benefit greatly from these developments in computer technology and availability. The design of parking systems can be improved and the investigation of policy impacts can be trialed or refined prior to their introduction using microcomputer packages. This paper outlines some developments in these areas. More specifically, it outlines a hierarchy or microcomputer models and information systems that can investigate parking policy and study the level of service provided by parking systems.     

Mathematical relationships among parking characteristics and revising and reduction methods of parking field survey information

Several characteristics are defined to describe parking. The mathematical relationships between these characteristics are derived both in a general form and applied to specified parking duration distribution. The results of the analysis can be applied in planning and dimensioning of parking places. Methods of revising and generalizing field survey data collected by periodic check methods are discussed. A method for the reduction of number of observations in parking studies is presented. Three examples are given to illustrate the use of the mathematical methods.     

Flexible parking requirements for office developments: New support for public parking and ridesharing

The author examines new, flexible parking requirements in several U.S. cities and Canada. Flexible requirements provide relaxations in zoning code specifications for off-street parking in return for developer commitments to ridesharing measures, support of transit or in-lieu fees for public parking. Issues examined include whether developers take advantage of flexible requirements, whether agreements with developers lead to agreed-upon action, and whether actions lead to desired results. Based on experiences of several cities, implications and cautions are drawn for local planners. The first caution relates to cities using flexible requirements to collect in-lieu fees in support of public parking. Where cities delay providing parking, inflation may make it difficult to provide the desired parking supply. Or, developers may not choose to pay the fee, such as in the case where cities grant relaxations for other measures more attractive than paying the fees.Other implications relate to flexible requirements in support of ridesharing or transit. Developers will not necessarily take advantage of relaxations tied to support of these modes. Generally, developers will take the least-cost ways to gain relaxations. They may choose to provide the parking where transit or ridesharing measures are too costly or complex. Or, they may take relaxations easier to obtain than those for ridesharing and transit. Finally, even where developers do agree to ridesharing measures, the measures may not be effective. On the other hand, developer-sponsored actions have proven effective in some cities where tight or expensive parking prevails, or where neighborhood residents have organized against office commuters parking on neighborhood streets, or where other economic or community variables favor ridesharing and transit.     

Sizing parking facilities at airports

Established rules-of-thumb and industry guidelines for estimating the supply of parking at airports are based on uncertain quantities such as design year enplanements and number of airport employees, and are independent of cost. In the presence of continued uncertainty and increasing competition for limited space in and around airports, it is important that facilities are sized in relation to cost of providing and using them. A probabilistic model based on the classical “newsboy” problem is proposed to determine the optimal supply of parking in relation to expected total cost while treating demand as a random quantity. Empirical data are used to demonstrate the application of the proposed model for decision making. In addition to construction and maintenance costs, and user costs, decisions are shown to be sensitive to the level of uncertainty of design year enplanements.     

The economics of bus deregulation in Britain

This paper reviews some of the arguments which have been put forward on the economics of bus deregulation, particularly the paper by Gwilliam and others. It argues that the experience of road haulage licensing is relevant. The evidence there suggests that liberalization has not had the adverse effects that many predicted and that in most respects one could expect bus deregulation to have no less favourable consequences. The main difference between buses and road haulage is over how far bus drivers might revert to the old practices of the 1920s of chasing, tailing, etc. which were said at the time to be a major cause of consumer dissatisfaction. The paper reviews the economics of some of these practices and suggests which might be discounted and which need further attention.     

从治理违法停车探索新型交通管理模式

目前,许多城市存在违法停车现象,行政机关对此交通管理问题的治理方法主要是罚款。然而这种行政管理手段在实践中存在诸多弊端。为此,有必要探索将行政指导、行政奖励等柔性行政管理方式运用到交通管理活动中,以创建不同的行政行为相结合的新型交通管理模式,提高交通行政管理效率、方便行政相对人,改善行政机关与公众之间的关系。     

Relocating shared automated vehicles under parking constraints: assessing the impact of different strategies for on-street parking

Transportation - With shared mobility services becoming increasingly popular and vehicle automation technology advancing fast, there is an increasing interest in analysing the impacts of...     

Choice of parking: Stated preference approach

Over recent years, parking policy has become a key element of transport policy in many countries. Parking policy measures can affect many different dimensions of travel behaviour but are likely to be most significant in terms of travellers' choice of parking type and location. This dimension of travel choice has, to date, received comparatively little attention, yet is of vital importance if we are to properly understand and predict the effects of parking policy measures.This paper presents two studies addressing this issue carried out in the United Kingdom and Germany. Both studies used a stated preference approach in order to collect disaggregate data on travellers responses to changes in parking attributes and used these data to build simple logit models of parking type choice. The studies were designed in order to allow comparable choice models to be estimated from the two datasets. The results obtained strongly indicate the need to separately identify the costs associated with different components of the parking activity (e.g., general in-vehicle time, parking search time, egress time) and also point to the existence of significant differences in the relative valuation of these components across different journey purposes. Where possible, the results of the choice modelling exercises are also compared with existing revealed and stated preference results and are found to be generally in line with prior expectations.     

A review of parking lot design models

The efficient design of parking lots is an important element in the development of the transport infrastructure. The design process often adopted is based on broad measures of parking demand, design manuals outlining the minimum size of the components and the experience of the designer. This process may not result in the best design. It is of particular concern that this process does not provide any quantitative information on the ‘level of service’ resulting from the choice of a parking layout. Models of parking systems provide this assistance. Existing models provide information on the utilization of the parking system, its capacity, the best distribution of parking space use and the delay experienced by parkers. Recent improvements in these models have been aided by rapid developments in computer and graphics technology. This paper reviews developments in models of parking lots.     

Empirical evidence on cruising for parking

The literature on car cruising is dominated by theory. We examine cruising for parking using a nation-wide random sample of car trips. We exclude employer-provided and residential parking. We focus on the Netherlands, where levels of on-street and off-street parking prices are locally the same. We demonstrate then that due to this price setting the average cruising time in the Netherlands is only 36 s per car trip. Furthermore, we show that cruising is not random. It is more common in (large) cities that receive more car trips, particularly for shopping and leisure activities. Cruising time increases with travel duration as well as with parking duration. Cruising has a distinctive pattern over the day with a peak in the morning, so the order of arrival is essential to parking. Because cruising has a spatial and time component, policies may be considered that reduce cruising time through flexible pricing of parking or improved information about vacant parking spaces.     

Determinants of bicycle commuting in the Washington,DC region: The role of bicycle parking,cyclist showers,and free car parking at work

This article examines the role of bicycle parking, cyclist showers, free car parking and transit benefits as determinants of cycling to work. The analysis is based on commute data of workers in the Washington, DC area. Results of rare events logistic regressions indicate that bicycle parking and cyclist showers are related to higher levels of bicycle commuting—even when controlling for other explanatory variables. The odds for cycling to work are greater for employees with access to both cyclist showers and bike parking at work compared to those with just bike parking, but no showers at work. Free car parking at work is associated with 70% smaller odds for bike commuting. Employer provided transit commuter benefits appear to be unrelated to bike commuting. Regression coefficients for control variables have expected signs, but not all are statistically significant.     

Modelling demand in restricted parking zones

Multiple linear regression (MLR) and geographically weighted regression (GWR) models are used for estimating parking demand in areas with paid short stay parking systems. These models have been applied to the city of Santander (Cantabria, Spain) to check their goodness of fit and their predictive ability. The results show the main advantages and disadvantages of using GWR models. The technique proved to be useful in this case study because it offered a better fit and made better predictions in a scenario showing a certain degree of spatial heterogeneity unexplained by any of the variables introduced into the global model. However, the GWR model also presented situations of local correlation although this was considered moderate given the results provided by the variance inflation factors and the local condition indexes.     

公交车里的经济学

两类乘客与始发站的座位配置 是不是"经济人"假设失效了呢?其实不然,此举恰恰是这一类乘客理性算计的结果 由于每天上班要乘坐此车,作为教经济学的老师,我在乘车之余,发现了一个很有意思的现象:在座位足够的情况下,一类乘客(即所谓的老、弱、病、残、孕等)上车就坐在靠前面的位子,而另一类乘客(即不在上述五种情形之内的人)上车往往坐在靠后面的位子,很多人甚至一上车就径直向最后一排走.     

Estimation of parking accumulation profiles from survey data

Parking accumulation profiles at car parks are time-dependent quantities that require data from lengthy observation surveys. However, it is found that car parks can be clustered into groups based on the similarity in the shape of their accumulation profiles. This procedure increases the efficiency of the survey data collected for this purpose. This paper describes a method developed to estimate aggregate parking accumulation profiles at different districts in a city. The planning of the survey conducted in Hong Kong in the year 2000 and the results of the data analysis are also described.     

Effect of parking information on travelers' knowledge and behavior

In many urban centers the demand for parking increases sharply before Christmas mainly due to shopping activity — causing parking congestion. One way to ameliorate such congestion is by disseminating parking information. Informed drivers may divert to relatively under-utilized parking facilities relieving the pressure on congested facilities. The City of Nottingham in England tested a real-time parking information system designed to alleviate congestion in the City Center parking facilities. Real-time information was disseminated through the radio, while historical information regarding parking locations was disseminated through newspaper advertisements and leaflets. The objective of this study is to assess impacts of the parking information system on travelers' knowledge and decisions.Survey research was used to understand traveler response. Respondents' levels of knowledge regarding car parks were analyzed by developing Poisson regression models. Drivers were more likely to have greater knowledge of city center car parks if they used several information sources (radio broadcasts, newspaper advertisements or leaflets and word-of-mouth), were active seekers of parking information, and searched for parking rather than going directly to a parking facility. In addition, the study of behavior showed that drivers were more inclined to use the relatively under-utilized Park-and-Ride facilities instead of the city center car parks if they received parking information from Newspaper advertisements/leaflets. Overall, the parking information service in Nottingham was effective; it seems reasonable to establish such information dissemination and monitoring systems at parking facilities in other urban areas. Furthermore, to support informed travel and activity participation decisions, parking information should be integrated with traffic and transit information.     

Passenger conveyor economics

Operating and capital costs for a high speed conveyor are estimated from cost data for low speed conveyors and from estimates for high speed designs. Unit costs are developed with reference to theoretical and practical conveyor capacities, and to the effect of traffic peaking on average utilization. User benefits are modelled as the change in consumers surplus arising from the introduction of a conveyor on a linear street as an alternative to walking. Cost and benefits vary widely depending on system design and location and on characteristics of travellers. Benefit measurements should reflect the effects on travel demand of a proposed installation, changes in value of time with changes in mode, and the effects of benefit “dilution” associated with limitations on access to the conveyor.