Transit service quality analysis using cluster analysis and decision trees: a step forward to personalized marketing in public transportation

A transit service quality study based on cluster analysis was performed to extract detailed customer profiles sharing similar appraisals concerning the service. This approach made it possible to detect specific requirements and needs regarding the quality of service and to personalize the marketing strategy. Data from various customer satisfaction surveys conducted by the Transport Consortium of Granada (Spain) were analyzed to distinguish these groups; a decision tree methodology was used to identify the most important service quality attributes influencing passengers’ overall evaluations. Cluster analysis identified four groups of passengers. Comparisons using decision trees among the overall sample of all users and the different groups of passengers identified by cluster analysis led to the discovery of differences in the key attributes encompassed by perceived quality.     

Changes in level of household car ownership: the role of life events and spatial context

Recent longitudinal studies of household car ownership have examined factors associated with increases and decreases in car ownership level. The contribution of this panel data analysis is to identify the predictors of different types of car ownership level change (zero to one car, one to two cars and vice versa) and demonstrate that these are quite different in nature. The study develops a large scale data set (n = 19,334), drawing on the first two waves (2009–2011) of the UK Household Longitudinal Study (UKHLS). This has enabled the generation of a comprehensive set of life event and spatial context variables. Changes to composition of households (people arriving and leaving) and to driving licence availability are the strongest predictors of car ownership level changes, followed by employment status and income changes. Households were found to be more likely to relinquish cars in association with an income reduction than they were to acquire cars in association with an income gain. This may be attributed to the economic recession of the time. The effect of having children differs according to car ownership state with it increasing the probability of acquiring a car for non-car owners and increasing the probability of relinquishing a car for two car owners. Sensitivity to spatial context is demonstrated by poorer access to public transport predicting higher probability of a non-car owning household acquiring a car and lower probability of a one-car owning household relinquishing a car. While previous panel studies have had to rely on comparatively small samples, the large scale nature of the UKHLS has provided robust and comprehensive evidence of the factors that determine different car ownership level changes.     

A Cooperative Intelligent Transport Systems (C‐ITS)‐based lane‐changing advisory for weaving sections

Weaving sections, a common design of motorways, require extensive lane‐change manoeuvres. Numerous studies have found that drivers tend to make their lane changes as soon as they enter the weaving section, as the traffic volume increases. Congestion builds up as a result of this high lane‐changing concentration. Importantly, such congestion also limits the use of existing infrastructure, the weaving section downstream. This behaviour thus affects both safety and operational aspects. The potential tool for managing motorways effectively and efficiently is cooperative intelligent transport systems (C‐ITS). This research investigates a lane‐change distribution advisory application based on C‐ITS for weaving vehicles in weaving sections. The objective of this research is to alleviate the lane‐changing concentration problem by coordinating weaving vehicles to ensure that such lane‐changing activities are evenly distributed over the existing weaving length. This is achieved by sending individual messages to drivers based on their location to advise them when to start their lane change. The research applied a microscopic simulation in aimsun to evaluate the proposed strategy's effectiveness in a one‐sided ramp weave. The proposed strategy was evaluated using different weaving advisory proportions, traffic demands and penetration rates. The evaluation revealed that the proposed lane‐changing advisory has the potential to significantly improve delay. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Transfer demand prediction for timed transfer coordination in public transport operational control

Timed transfer coordination in public transit reduces passenger transfer time by providing seamless interconnected transfers. The problem arises when a Receiving Vehicle (RV) arrives to the transfer stop before a Feeding Vehicle (FV) carrying transferring passengers. Timed transfer coordination in operational control dynamically decides whether a RV is held at the transfer stop to allow transfers, or departs as scheduled. While transfer demand is essential for implementing timed transfer coordination, this variable is generally not available in public transit because of the lack of passenger transfer plans. The problem of acquiring this variable in real‐time has also received limited attention in the related literature. This paper proposes a new method to dynamically predict the transfer demand. We anticipate the transferring probability from each individual passenger by examining historical travel itineraries. Three different types of models (simple analytical, statistical, and computation intelligence model) are developed to forecast the number of transferring passengers. Numerical experiments using observed Automatic Vehicle Location and Automatic Fare Collection data from South East Queensland, Australia show the accuracy and applicability of the proposed models in timed transfer coordination. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Queue discharge patterns at signalized intersections with green signal countdown device and long cycle length

Two apparent features that prevail at signalized intersections in China are green signal countdown device and long cycle lengths. The objective of this study is to investigate the impacts of green signal countdown device and long cycle length on queue discharge patterns and to discuss its implications on capacity estimation in the context of China's traffic. At five typical large intersections in Shanghai and Tianjin, 11 through lanes were observed, and 9251 saturation headways were obtained as valid samples. Statistical analyses indicate that the discharge process of queuing vehicles can be divided into three distinct stages according to the discharge flow rate: a start‐up stage, a steady stage, and a rush stage. The average time for queuing vehicles to reach a stationary saturation flow rate, that is, the start‐up stage, was found to be approximately 20–30 seconds; the rush stage usually occurs during the phase transition period. The finding is contrary to the conventional assumption that the discharge rate reaches a maximum value after the fourth vehicle is discharged and then remains constant during the green time until the queue is completely dissolved. The capacity estimation errors that might arise from the conventional methods are discussed through a comparative study and a sensitivity analysis that are based on the identified queue discharge patterns. In addition, a piecewise linear regression method was proposed in order to reduce such errors. The proposed method can be used for capacity estimation at signalized intersections with the identified queue discharge patterns. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Disentangling the influence of neighborhood type and self-selection on driving behavior: an application of sample selection model

The causality issue has become one of the key questions in the debate over the relationships between the built environment and travel behavior. Although previous studies have tested statistical and/or practical significance of the built environment on travel behavior, few have quantified the relative roles of the built environment and residential self-selection in influencing travel behavior. Using 1,479 residents living in four traditional and four suburban neighborhoods in Northern California, this study explores the causal effect of neighborhood type on driving behavior and its relative contribution to the total influence of neighborhood type. Specifically, this study applied Heckman’s sample selection model to separate the effect of the built environment itself and the effect of self-selection. The results showed that, on average, the effect of neighborhood type itself on driving distance was 25.8 miles per week, which accounted for more than three quarters of the total influence of neighborhood type and 16% of individuals’ overall vehicle miles driven. These results suggest that the effect of the built environment on driving behavior outweighs that of self-selection. This paper also discussed the advantages and weaknesses of applying the Heckman’s model to address the self-selection issue.

Analysis of personal action space using a model system with multiple choice structures

The concept of heterogeneity in choice structure is applied in this study to examine individuals’ action space, which is defined in terms of the reported frequencies of visits. A disaggregate model system that predicts the frequency of visits is condensed using a nested logit model with multiple choice structures.     

Spreading distinctive insignia benefits from mobile service: evidence from a mobile application of transportation

ABSTRACT

Mobile commerce (m-commerce) faces a growing array of client devices for which applications are designed. Applications developed for general consumer use must be compatible with a wide range of devices. This research investigates how perceived usefulness and enjoyment affect intention to use a mobile application service (T-Express). In this study, we formulate a commitment model from the perspective of the social identity and technology acceptance perspective. Empirical data were collected by conducting a field survey of users of T-Express from Taiwan High Speed Rail Corporation (THSRC) stations in Taiwan. The main findings of the study are that wireless technology provides great value to businesses when it allows consumers to access real-time data to make timely decisions that either decrease costs or increase revenues; and to achieve a higher intention to use mobile applications, there should be a clear communication process between mobile application and passenger. Our findings indicate that one of the more overt illustrations of the power of packaging symbolism involves package design strategies that serve to provide a radical new upscale positioning for the THSRC brand.     

Turbulence in coastal fronts near the mouths of Block Island and Long Island Sounds

Measurements of turbulence were performed in four frontal locations near the mouths of Block Island Sound (BIS) and Long Island Sound (LIS). These measurements extend from the offshore front associated with BIS and Mid-Atlantic Bight Shelf water, to the onshore fronts near the Montauk Point (MK) headland, and the Connecticut River plume front. The latter feature is closely associated with the major fresh water input to LIS. Turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) dissipation rate, ε, was obtained using shear probes mounted on an autonomous underwater vehicle. Offshore, the BIS estuarine outflow front showed, during spring season and ebb tide, maximum TKE dissipation rate, ε, estimates of order 10^− 5 W/kg, with background values of order 10^− 6 to 10^− 9 W/kg. Edwards et al. [Edwards, C.A., Fake, T.A., and Bogden, P.S., 2004a. Spring–summer frontogenesis at the mouth of Block Island Sound: 1. A numerical investigation into tidal and buoyancy-forced motion. Journal of Geophysical Research 109 (C12021), doi:10.1029/2003JC002132.] model this front as the boundary of a tidally driven, baroclinically adjusted BIS flow around the MK headland eddy. At the entrance to BIS, near MK, two additional fronts are observed, one of which was over sand waves. For the headland site front east of MK, without sand waves, during ebb tide, ε estimates of 10^− 5 to 10^− 6 W/kg were observed. The model shows that this front is at the northern end of an anti-cyclonic headland eddy, and within a region of strong tidal mixing. For the headland site front further northeast over sand waves, maximum ε estimates were of order 10^− 4 W/kg within a background of order 10^− 7–10^− 6 W/kg. From the model, this front is at the northeastern edge of the anti-cyclonic headland eddy and within the tidal mixing zone. For the Connecticut River plume front, a surface trapped plume, during ebb tide, maximum ε estimates of 10^− 5 W/kg were obtained, within a background of 10^− 6 to 10^− 8 W/kg. Of all four fronts, the river plume front has the largest finescale mean-square shear, S² ~ 0.15 s^− 2. All of the frontal locations had local values of the buoyancy Reynolds number indicating strong isotropic turbulence at the dissipation scales. Local values of the Froude number indicated shear instability in all of the fronts.     

Exhaust emissions and fuel consumption of a triple-fuel spark-ignition engine powered passenger car

This paper examines the influence of compressed natural gas, liquefied petroleum gas and gasoline fuel on the exhaust emissions and the fuel consumption of a spark-ignition engine powered passenger car. The vehicle was driven according to the urban driving cycle and extra urban driving cycle speed profiles with the warmed-up engine. Cause and effect based analysis reveals potential for using different fuels to reduce vehicle emission and deficiencies associated with particular fuels. The highest tank to wheel efficiency and the lowest CO₂ emission are observed with the natural gas fuelled vehicle, that also featured the highest total hydrocarbon emissions and high NO_x emissions because of fast three way catalytic converter aging due the use of the compressed natural gas. Retrofitted liquefied petroleum gas fuel supply systems feature the greatest air-fuel ratio variations that result in the lowest TtW efficiency and in the highest NO_x emissions of the liquefied gas fuelled vehicle.