Peak period tolls: Precepts and prospects

This article presents the economic rationale for road pricing and provides some scale on the magnitude of peak period tolls that might be justified. It discusses the impacts of such tolls on congestion, air quality and economic development and suggests a long term strategy towards areawide implementation of peak period pricing. It discusses current trends which are increasing the likelihood for implementation of congestion pricing and toll roads in the future. In particular, it discusses some aspects of the 1991 Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA) which will eliminate some of the current restraints on congestion pricing and toll highways.Abbreviations ETC Electronic toll collection - FHWA Federal Highway Administration - HOV High occupancy vehicle - ISTEA Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act - LOS Level of service - TCM Transportation control measure - V/C Volume-to-capacity ratio - VMT Vehicle mile(s) of travel - vphpl Vehicles per hour per lane     

Toward regional transportation governance: a case study of Greater Vancouver

This paper discusses the evolving institutional structure and governance of transportation planning, policy development and transit delivery within one major North American city-region, the Greater Vancouver area. Various methods of transportation governance are explored from complete independence to full regional integration. The move away from a direct provincial role in transportation management to a greater regional transit authority is discussed and critiqued. This revised version was published online in June 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Linking land use and transportation in a rapidly urbanizing context: A study in Delhi,India

Cities in developing countries like India are facing some of the same concerns that North American cities are: congestion and urban growth. However, there is a sense of urgency in cities like Delhi, India in that this growth is far more rapid as both urbanization and motorization are ongoing processes that have not yet peaked. In this paper, we examine land use change and its relationship with transportation infrastructure and other planning related variables in a spatial context. We estimate land use change models at two different scales from separate data. Cellular automation and Markov models were used to understand change at the regional scale and discrete choice models to predict change at the local level. The results suggest that land use in the Delhi metropolitan area is rapidly intensifying while losing variety. These changes are affected by industrial, commercial and infrastructure location and planners and policy-makers need to better understand the implications of location decisions. We also examine these results in the context of a policy framework for data-based planning that links land use and transportation models for Delhi.     

Regulating traffic by controlling land use The Southern California experience

In Los Angeles emphasis in transportation planning has recently shifted from facility construction to transportation system management and the control of land use with the goal of slowing the growth in traffic congestion. This paper critically examines several recent transportation growth management strategies in Los Angeles, and concludes that though they were well intentioned, they might not lead to the intended consequences.     

Why Cost Benefit Analysis is perceived as a problematic tool for assessment of transport plans: A process perspective

Academic discussions on Cost Benefit Analysis (CBA) as an appraisal instrument for integrated land use and transportation plans tend to focus on its technical aspects. However, many issues of CBA also arise from process related matters, especially when assessing integrated plans. Using an inductive research design, we explored how these process related issues play out in Dutch planning practices. In two applied research techniques, focus group sessions and open in depth interviews, we focused on process related issues as perceived by CBA participants ranging from plan makers to CBA testers. This article presents the different perceptions of issues in CBA processes. Through these collected perspectives, we found that these issues are multi-layered and present a number of fundamental dilemmas. After relating our empirical data to theory, we conclude that the biggest challenge lies in decreasing the level of mistrust and communication deficits revealed between plan owners and CBA calculators and their respective frames of thinking when assessing complex integrated land use and transportation plans.     

Modelling and simulation of transportation system effectiveness to reduce traffic congestion: a system dynamics framework

ABSTRACT

This paper is designed to evaluate and improve the effectiveness of transportation systems and reduce traffic congestion through the use of simulation models and scenario development. A system dynamics framework is used to test and evaluate the alternatives of future strategies for the city of Surabaya, Indonesia. Some factors affecting the effectiveness of transport systems include operational effectiveness and service effectiveness, as well as uncertainty. To improve the effectiveness of transportation systems, several strategies can be implemented, such as subsidizing public transportation, increasing the cost of private vehicle parking fees, raising taxes on private vehicles, and reducing delays in public transportation through scenario development. Scenario results show that, by pursuing these strategies, effectiveness could be improved by 80% as the impact of the increase in operational and service effectiveness, helping to mitigate traffic congestion. Congestion could be reduced to 70% (on average) due to the decrease in daily traffic.     

The role of volume-delay functions in forecasting and evaluating congestion charging schemes: the Stockholm case

This paper uses observations from before and during the Stockkholm congestion charging trial in order to validate and improve a transportation model for Stockholm. The model overestimates the impact of the charges on traffic volumes while at the same time it substantially underestimates the impact on travel times. These forecast errors lead to considerable underestimation of economic benefits which are dominated by travel time savings. The source of error lies in the static assignment that is used in the model. Making the volume-delay functions (VDFs) steeper only marginally improves the quality of forecast but strongly impacts the result of benefit calculations. We therefore conclude that the dynamic assignment is crucial for an informed decision on introducing measures aimed at relieving congestion. However, in the absence of such a calibrated dynamic model for a city, we recommend that at least a sensitivity analysis with respect to the slope of VDFs is performed.     

Optimal toll locations and toll levels in congestion pricing schemes: a case study of Stockholm

As congestion pricing has moved from theoretical ideas in the literature to real-world implementation, the need for decision support when designing pricing schemes has become evident. This paper deals with the problem of finding optimal toll levels and locations in a road traffic network and presents a case study of Stockholm. The optimisation problem of finding optimal toll levels, given a predetermined cordon, and the problem of finding both optimal toll locations and levels are presented, and previously developed heuristics are used for solving these problems. For the Stockholm case study, the possible welfare gains of optimising toll levels in the current cordon and optimising both toll locations and their corresponding toll levels are evaluated. It is shown that by tuning the toll levels in the current congestion pricing cordon used in Stockholm, the welfare gain can be increased significantly, and furthermore improved by allowing a toll on a major bypass highway. It is also shown that, by optimising both toll locations and levels, a congestion pricing scheme with welfare gain close to what can be achieved by marginal social cost pricing can be designed with tolls being located on only a quarter of the tollable links.     

Transportation impacts of center-based telecommuting: Interim findings from the Neighborhood Telecenters Project

The transportation impacts of center-based telecommuting for 24 participants (representing 69 person-days of travel and 295 trips) in the California Neighborhood Telecenters Project are analyzed. Comparing non-telecommuting (NTC) day to telecommuting (TC) day travel shows that person-trips did not change significantly, whereas vehicle-trips increased significantly (by about one trip) on TC days. Both PMT and VMT decline significantly on TC days: by an average of 68 miles (74%) and 38 miles (65%), respectively. When these savings are weighted by the frequency of telecommuting, overall reductions in PMT and VMT come to 19% and 17%, respectively, of total weekday travel. Commute trips increase slightly (by 0.5 trips) but significantly, mainly due to lunch-time trips made home from the telecenter. Total non-commute travel does not increase, but there is a significant shift from other modes to driving alone on TC days. Commute mode split on NTC days is not affected by telecommuting. Travel on TC days tends to be compressed into fewer hours. Higher numbers of return home, eat meal, shopping, and social/recreational trips are made on TC days, in exchange for a reduction (to zero) in the number of change mode trips.     

The role of light duty vehicles in future air pollution: a case study of Sacramento

Abstract

On-road light-duty vehicles (LDVs) play an important role in contributing to urban air pollution. Although vehicles are getting cleaner, regional growth in vehicle population and vehicle miles traveled would somewhat offset California's efforts in transportation pollution reduction. To better understand the role of LDVs in future air pollution, we conduct a case study for Sacramento, California, and investigate future trends in urban air pollution attributable to the light-duty fleet. Results indicate that ambient concentrations of CO, NO _x , and total organic gases (TOGs) caused by future light-duty fleets would dramatically decrease over coming years. The resulting concentrations in 2030 might be as low as approximately 20% of the 2005 concentrations. These reflect the improvements in vehicle/fuel technologies and standards in California. However, the future particulate matter (PM₁₀) pollution could be slightly worse than that caused by the 2005 fleet. This is a result of the growing fleet-average emission factors of particulates from 2005 to 2030. For purposes of future particulate control, more attention needs to be paid to LDVs, besides heavy-duty vehicles.     

The congestion multiplier: Variations in motorists’ valuations of travel time with traffic conditions

The value of travel time savings in part depends upon the disutility of the travel time that is saved and partly on the use to which the time saved is put. It has long been recognised that the disutility of the time spent travelling also depends upon a wide range of factors such as the journey length or the effort, comfort and safety associated with travelling.Hence we might expect the value of motorists’ travel time to vary with the traffic conditions as represented by the degree of congestion, in part to reflect the more difficult driving environment when there are more vehicles, but also a higher sense of frustration, similar to that associated with waiting time and contributing to its premium valuation.In this context, and despite the predominance of car travel in developed countries, the empirical evidence specifically relating to car values of travel time tends to fail to distinguish between different types of time according to the degree of congestion. Thus we are often left unclear as to precisely what type of time has been valued. Moreover, when a distinction is made, it tends to be into a simple dichotomy of congested and uncongested traffic.This paper provides new evidence on the variation in the valuation of motorists’ travel time savings across a finer gradation of types of time than has been hitherto attempted. This is obtained from the same Stated Choice exercise conducted in the United Kingdom and the United States. The paper also provides an extensive account of previous research into how congestion impacts on motorists’ values of time.     

What does a one-month free bus ticket do to habitual drivers? An experimental analysis of habit and attitude change

The aim of this study was to investigate whether a temporary structural change would induce a lasting increase in drivers' public transport use. An experiment targeting 43 drivers was carried out, in which a one-month free bus ticket was given to 23 drivers in an experimental group but not to 20 drivers in a control group. Attitudes toward, habits of, and frequency of using automobile and bus were measured immediately before, immediately after, and one month after the one-month long intervention. The results showed that attitudes toward bus were more positive and that the frequency of bus use increased, whereas the habits of using automobile decreased from before the intervention, even one month after the intervention period. Furthermore, the increase in habitual bus use had the largest effect on the increase in the frequency of bus use. The results suggest that a temporary structural change, such as offering auto drivers a temporary free bus ticket, may be an important travel demand management tool for converting automotive travel demand to public-transport travel demand.     

Evaluating the benefits of a combined route guidance and road pricing system in a traffic network with recurrent congestion

When drivers do not have complete information on road travel time and thus choose their routes in a stochastic manner or based on their previous experience, separate implementations of either route guidance or road pricing cannot drive a stochastic network flow pattern towards a system optimum in a Wardropian sense. It is thus of interest to consider a combined route guidance and road pricing system. A road guidance system could reduce drivers' uncertainty of travel time through provision of traffic information. A driver who is equipped with a guidance system could be assumed to receive complete information, and hence be able to find the minimum travel time routes in a user-optimal manner, while marginal-cost road pricing could drive a user-optimal flow pattern toward a system optimum. Therefore, a joint implementation of route guidance and road pricing in a network with recurrent congestion could drive a stochastic network flow pattern towards a system optimum, and thus achieve a higher reduction in system travel time. In this paper the interaction between route guidance and road pricing is modeled and the potential benefit of their joint implementation is evaluated based on a mixed equilibrium traffic assignment model. The private and system benefits under marginal-cost pricing and varied levels of market penetration of the information systems are investigated with a small and a large example. It is concluded that the two technologies complement each other and that their joint implementation can reduce travel time more efficiently in a network with recurrent congestion.     

The Influences of the Built Environment and Residential Self-Selection on Pedestrian Behavior: Evidence from Austin, TX

Pedestrian travel offers a wide range of benefits to both individuals and society. Planners and public health officials alike have been promoting policies that improve the quality of the built environment for pedestrians: mixed land uses, interconnected street networks, sidewalks and other facilities. Whether such policies will prove effective remains open to debate. Two issues in particular need further attention. First, the impact of the built environment on pedestrian behavior may depend on the purpose of the trip, whether for utilitarian or recreational purposes. Second, the connection between the built environment and pedestrian behavior may be more a matter of residential location choice than of travel choice. This study aims to provide new evidence on both questions. Using 1368 respondents to a 1995 survey conducted in six neighborhoods in Austin, TX, two separate negative binomial models were estimated for the frequencies of strolling trips and pedestrian shopping trips within neighborhoods. We found that although residential self-selection impacts both types of trips, it is the most important factor explaining walking to a destination (i.e. for shopping). After accounting for self-selection, neighborhood characteristics (especially perceptions of these characteristics) impact strolling frequency, while characteristics of local commercial areas are important in facilitating shopping trips.     

共享单车停放需求影响因素分析和预测研究

为了解决城市共享单车的乱停乱放问题,本文基于北京市的共享单车出行大数据,提出了共享单车停放需求预测的多项Logit模型。首先分析了单车停放需求的影响因素,然后选取了时间、空间及天气方面的12个因素为自变量,通过Wald检验分析了这些因素与停放需求的相关性和显著性,基于多项Logit模型建立了共享单车的停放需求预测模型。结果表明:工作日、时段、商业区、所临道路类型、临近轨交站、高温、下雨、以及风力等级与共享单车停放需求显著相关;构建的预测模型总体预测准确率为77.5%,其中对出现频率最高的低停放需求预测准确率高达86.49%。     

The simple,efficient, elegant,and effective model (SE3M) of land use and transportation

Integrated land use/transportation forecasting models add significant policy and infrastructure alternatives analysis capabilities to the urban planning process. Historically, the financial, time, and staff requirements to develop one of these models has put them beyond the reach of most small- to medium-sized urban areas. The purpose of this paper is to present the large zone economic submodel of SE³M, an integrated model – founded upon economic base theory and bid-rent theory – that is reasonably accurate, yet simpler in form, function, and implementation than competing models. The US territory of Guam is used as the case study/proof of concept implementation for this model framework. The submodel presented here was validated against a horizon year with known data for zonal level population and employment totals together with control totals for the island as a whole. The model was able – across two base years and one validation, horizon year – to locate all jobs and a high percentage of the population on each zone on the island.     

The concept and impact analysis of a flexible mobility on demand system

This paper introduces an innovative transportation concept called Flexible Mobility on Demand (FMOD), which provides personalized services to passengers. FMOD is a demand responsive system in which a list of travel options is provided in real-time to each passenger request. The system provides passengers with flexibility to choose from a menu that is optimized in an assortment optimization framework. For operators, there is flexibility in terms of vehicle allocation to different service types: taxi, shared-taxi and mini-bus. The allocation of the available fleet to these three services is carried out dynamically so that vehicles can change roles during the day. The FMOD system is built based on a choice model and consumer surplus is taken into account in order to improve passenger satisfaction. Furthermore, profits of the operators are expected to increase since the system adapts to changing demand patterns. In this paper, we introduce the concept of FMOD and present preliminary simulation results. It is shown that the dynamic allocation of the vehicles to different services provides significant benefits over static allocation. Furthermore, it is observed that the trade-off between consumer surplus and operator’s profit is critical. The optimization model is adapted in order to take into account this trade-off by controlling the level of passenger satisfaction. It is shown that with such control mechanisms FMOD provides improved results in terms of both profit and consumer surplus.     

Use characteristics and demographics of rural transit riders: a case study in Tennessee

Intercity bus (ICB), deviated fixed route transit (DFRT) and demand responsive transit (DRT) are three major modes of rural public transportation. This paper focuses on the characteristics and motivations of DFRT and DRT riders, compared to non-riders, in Tennessee. A rural DFRT rider survey, a rural DRT rider survey and a rural (non-rider) resident survey were performed. It is found that DFRT and DRT riders have similar demographics to ICB riders. The most common trip purpose for DFRT and DRT passengers is medical care, which is different from ICB trips. Ninety percent of the riders have difficulty finding alternative transportation modes, suggesting they are captive riders, not choice riders. Regression results indicate that people choosing transit modes tend to have lower personal and household income, own fewer cars, to not be homeowners, and be of non-white race. Rural residents who receive more education are more likely to be open-minded to use rural transit.     

The impact of land-use mix on residents' travel energy consumption: New evidence from Beijing

Policies that encourage mixed land use are widely believed to make transport more energy efficient. However, few studies have directly examined the impacts of land-use heterogeneity on travel energy consumption at the individual level. Moreover, the definition and measures of land-use heterogeneity are debated. This paper aims to fill these gaps using the large city of Beijing, China, as a case study. Three types of land use are examined in terms of their effects on individual residents’ travel energy consumption. The results suggest that high land-use diversity and a good jobs-housing balance significantly reduces commuting travel. Interestingly, highly heterogeneous retail and housing areas may have high travel energy use, as residents are more likely to go shopping. There are obvious spatial variations in these effects. Residents of suburban ‘newtowns’, where the jobs-housing balance is particularly good, consume less travel energy. The results suggest that decreased use of conventional planning patterns, such as the socialist danwei system, and increasing urban sprawl, bring new challenges to achieving transport efficiency. Mixed land-use policies can be an effective solution to these challenges.     

Optimization of traffic demand management policy in China: towards a sustainable mode split

The rapid increase in private car use in large metropolitan areas has led to irrational travel mode splits and severe traffic problems. Traffic demand management (TDM) is an effective policy to achieve a more sustainable development of traffic systems. This study analyzes the relationships between TDM policy, mode split, and travel mode choice using Stackelberg game theory. Then, using 0–1 programming, it establishes a combination of TDM policy instruments that can achieve a more sustainable mode split in a city and provides a case study in China. The method presented in this research has strong theoretical implications for TDM policymakers.