Comparative analysis of household car,motorcycle and bicycle ownership between Osaka metropolitan area,Japan and Kuala Lumpur,Malaysia

The interactions among different types of vehicle ownership including car, motorcycle and bicycle are examined by developing simultaneous vehicle ownership models in this study. Large scale person trip survey data for Osaka metropolitan area, Japan and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia are used for empirical analysis. The results suggest that population density at residential area significantly and negatively affects car ownership for both areas, and that the effects are larger for Osaka metropolitan area than for Kuala Lumpur. Also, bicycle ownership becomes higher at higher population density area for Osaka area, while higher at lower population density area for Kuala Lumpur, which represents the different usage patterns of bicycle between the two areas.

Time taken for residents to adopt a new public transport service: examining heterogeneity through duration modelling

When a new public transport service is introduced it would be valuable for public authorities, financing organisations and transport operators to know how long it will take for people to start to use the service and what factors influence this. This paper presents results from research analysing the time taken for residents living close to a new guided bus service to start to use (or adopt) the service. Data was obtained from a sample of residents on whether they used the new service and the number of weeks after the service was introduced before they first used it. Duration modelling has been used to analyse how the likelihood of starting to use the new service changes over time (after the introduction of the service) and to examine what factors influence this. It is found that residents who have not used the new service are increasingly unlikely to use it as time passes. Those residents gaining greater accessibility benefits from the new service are found to be quicker to use the service, although the size of this effect is modest compared to that of other between-resident differences. Allowance for the possibility that there existed a proportion of the sample that would never use the new service was tested using a split population model (SPD) model. The SPD model indicates that 36% of residents will never use the new service and is informative in differentiating factors that influence whether Route 20 is used and when it is used.

Estimating the robustness of questionnaire results: lessons from a mixed-mode survey of expectations for tele-working and road-based business travel

The robustness of questionnaire results to various forms of bias are explored in the context of a dual-mode (web and hardcopy) survey of employers’ anticipations of levels of employee commuting and business travel activity under a range of future ICT scenarios. The questionnaire incorporated several innovative features which, together with the dual-mode format, allowed an unusually wide range of analyses. For example: the robustness of respondents’ opinions was tested by examining the effect of incorporating alternative versions of a briefing text, one being very positive and one very negative, about the role of ICT; instrument bias was identified via detailed comparison of the results from the two versions of the questionnaire; and the impact of exogenous factors which are often ignored or taken as constant was assessed via special supplementary questions. Analysis showed that the robustness of opinions and expectations varied and was influenced by respondent characteristics, and that results from the two versions of the questionnaire differed significantly. It is concluded that opinions and expectations are less robust, and questionnaire results are more subject to bias and myopic interpretation, than is generally recognised and that web-based surveys seem particularly vulnerable to sampling bias. Methods are suggested for measuring robustness, for reducing bias and for validating and contextualising results. The use of contrasting briefing texts is recommended as a means of establishing the robustness of opinions and expectations while supplementary questions are recommended for validating and contextualising SP and SE exercises.

汶川地震震中区高速公路隧道超前地质预报方法

映汶高速公路公路位于四川汶川大地震震中,受地震强烈构造作用影响,隧址区岩体裂隙发育,松散破碎,存在构造富水,地震垮塌堆积体众多,地质条件极为复杂。文章根据本工程隧道的工程地质问题,通过对国内外隧道超前地质预报常用方法的分析,提出了针对本工程的隧道超前地质预报方案,并对地质预报的实施应用及效果进行了举例说明。     

驾驶人安全意识体验式训练装置研究

通过对目前常用驾驶人安全意识培训方法的对比,认为体验式培训为最适合的培训方法;进一步对我国2007-2010年间大型道路交通事故特征进行分析,得出驾乘人员不系安全带是引起人员伤亡一大原因。通过设计研发碰撞、翻转两个体验式训练装置,使驾乘人员在保证安全的前提下真切感受道路交通事故发生瞬间安全带对人体的保护作用,有效提高驾驶人的安全意识,减少道路交通事故的发生及人员的伤亡。     

不同驾驶操作行为对车辆燃油消耗量的影响分析

针对车辆驾驶员普遍存在盲目换挡、急加速等不良驾驶行为的现象,研究采用发动机台架试验和道路试验相结合的方法,对汽车起步、换挡时机的选择、加速、减速、车速控制等典型的驾驶操作行为展开研究,通过对不同驾驶操作行为燃油消耗的分析,规范了汽车驾驶操作行为。     

隧道内爆炸作用衬砌结构的动力响应和损伤机理研究

隧道内爆炸作用可能导致其衬砌结构的破坏和坍塌,造成车辆通行受阻和生命财产损失。为了研究隧道衬砌结构的抗爆性能,应用AUTODYN软件建立了隧道衬砌-岩石-土壤的三维数值模型,并考虑炸药-空气-结构的流固耦合相互作用,以及隧道内爆炸作用对衬砌结构的动力响应和损伤机理进行了数值模拟分析。结果表明:在不同炸药量作用下,超压峰值及冲量以爆心地面投影点为中心,向四周迅速衰减,表现出一定的规律性;离爆心最近的底板首先出现损伤,并向四周扩展,直墙角部由于受到底板竖向变形而引起的拉应力作用,较早地出现损伤,在直墙壁和拱顶产生纵向和环向的裂缝,这些裂缝把整体式隧道衬砌结构分割成大小不等的混凝土块体。     

Measuring quality of service in dial-a-ride operations: the case of a Canadian city

In many countries, dial-a-ride services are provided by public authorities to elderly and handicapped people who cannot use regular transit. Cost minimization is key to running these services, but one can observe a growing interest in quality measurement and improvement. A first step in improving quality is to define a quality measurement scale specific to dial-a-ride services. A second step is to incorporate quality measurements in mathematical models that serve as a basis for optimization algorithms. To this end, an extensive survey of dial-a-ride users was conducted in Longueuil, the largest suburb of Montreal, Canada. This paper describes the steps of the survey and presents its main conclusions: (1) 56 attributes were identified based on interviews, (2) the questionnaire developed has proved to be reliable and valid, (3) an exploratory factor analysis allowed us to determine 13 dimensions of quality in dial-a-ride services, (4) the most important criteria for users were identified, and (5) population segmenting variables by which subgroups of users can be categorized were also determined. Managerial implications of our results are also discussed.     

Bridge officers’ non-technical skills: a literature review

The present review examines the research literature on Non-Technical Skills (NTS) used by ships’ bridge officers in connection with navigation. The aim of the study was to (i) identify the cognitive and interpersonal skills which have been the focus of previous studies and (ii) explore how the content of these skills has been described. Databases searched included Academic Search Premier, PsycINFO, Science Direct, and Web of Science. Nineteen studies were included in the review. Five NTS were identified: situation awareness (SA), decision-making (DM), workload management (WM), communication, and leadership. In addition to discussing each skill, the review raises four overarching issues with the present literature for the bridge domain: (1) Have all the relevant skills been subject to exploration? (2) Have the skills identified been explored in detail? (3) There seems to be an uneven distribution of research between cognitive and interpersonal skills. (4) There is little research into understanding the skills as a complete taxonomy. Knowledge on how the skills are linked and interplay with one another is incomplete. Overall, further research on all these aspects of NTS in the maritime domain could increase scientific understanding and contribute to bridge operational practice and to the further development and evaluation of NTS training such as Bridge Resource Management (BRM).