Factors associated with bicycle ownership and use: a study of six small U.S. cities

As a means of transportation and as a form of physical activity, bicycling generates benefits to the bicyclist as well as to the community as a whole. Bicycling now accounts for less than 1 percent of all trips for all purposes in the U.S., but evidence from other western countries suggests that under the right conditions, bicycling levels can be significantly higher. Indeed, the experiences of some U.S. cities suggest that it is possible to create conditions conducive to higher levels of bicycling even in the U.S. However, the extent to which bicycle investments have contributed to bicycling levels in these communities has not been rigorously assessed. The purpose of this study is to provide a better understanding of the determinants of bicycle ownership and use as a basis for identifying ways to promote bicycling. A cross-sectional study of six cities was designed to test the importance of bicycle infrastructure and other physical environment factors relative to individual factors and social environment factors, using a nested logit model to examine ownership and use decisions jointly. The results show strong effects of individual attitudes and physical and social environment factors on bicycle ownership and use.     

Parameter transfer of common-metric attributes in choice analysis: implications for willingness to pay

There is a growing literature that promotes the presence of a mix of compensatory and semi-compensatory processing strategies in the way that individuals evaluate packages of attributes in real or hypothetical markets, and make choices. This paper proposes a specification for the utility form in a choice model to test if, given a pair of attributes with a common-metric (e.g., components of travel time or cost), the attribute with the dominating level defines the marginal (dis)utility that is assigned to both attributes. We refer to this processing strategy as a parameter transfer rule. We use a stated choice data set, in the context of car driving individuals choosing between tolled and non-tolled routes, to estimate a mixed logit model which incorporates the presence of the parameter transfer rule and the conventional fully compensatory rule, both existing up to a probability. We find that if this parameter transfer heuristic is part of the mix, the WTP is more than 30% higher, on average, than when only a fully compensatory rule is imposed. We also contrast the parameter transfer rule with other semi-compensatory heuristics which have been investigated in other papers, and show that the finding adds further support to the accumulating evidence that a semi-compensatory attribute processing rules tend to result in higher mean WTP estimates compared to the fully compensatory attribute processing rule.     

Mass transit systems of Beijing: governance evolution and analysis

Developing a more efficient mass transit system, in highly populated cities, improves the mobility, decreases the dependency of private cars, alleviates traffic congestion, and provides a more environmentally friendly means of travel. Recently, the city of Beijing decided to have a target of becoming as a ‘public-transport city’ with a fascinating mass transit system within a larger plan, of building humanistic, scientific and technological, and green public-transport systems. This work discusses the governance evolution of the mass transit system of Beijing between 1949–2008, comprised of two groups of transit systems, the road surface public-transport system (bus, tram, trolley, etc.), and the subway public-transport system. In addition, a time-series analysis is introduced in an attempt to examine the effect of governance evolution on the two transit systems, and of the impacts of the governance structural changes on the mass transit system. The time-series model is introduced using the annual statistics data of the period 1949–2008. The outcome of the analysis is viewed with precaution because of the incompleteness of the many endogenous and exogenous factors to affect the public-transport demand. Generally speaking it is concluded that the governance evolution provides beneficial effect of the Beijing mass transit activity; however, for satisfying the significant increase of the Beijing city’s travel demand and maintaining sustainable development, the governance-involvement pattern needs to be reformed.     

Exploring public transport usage trends in an ageing population

An ageing population remains one of the most significant challenges for Western society in the 21st century. Whilst public transport use has attractive sustainability features for older generations there is mixed evidence with regard to trends in travel and public transport use in ageing societies. This paper explores public transport trip rates amongst older age groups using travel survey evidence collected from a household travel survey in Melbourne, Australia for the period 1994 to 1999. A particular aim of the research was to establish trends in trip rates so as to explore the impact of the ageing Baby Boomer generation on travel by public transport. The results suggested that compared to those aged below 60, those aged over 60 years demonstrated 30% lower trip making overall and 16% lower public transport trip rates. Longitudinal trends in trip rates showed those aged over 60 had a very small decline in trip rates by public transport (−0.004 average daily trips per annum) but increasing rates for car trips. A further analysis showed a small but significant increase in longitudinal trip rates of public transport use amongst Baby Boomers (0.004 daily trips p.a., p < .05) while car usage for Baby Boomers was steady. The implication of these findings is that trends in the existing over 60s population are not necessarily going to flow through to behaviour patterns in the Baby Boomer generations. The Baby Boomer age group showed longitudinal trends in travel behaviour which contrasted with those of the existing over 60s generation notably with a trend towards increased public transport usage.     

Asymptotic field of mode Ⅱ dynamic growing crack in visco-elastic material

A mechanical model of visco-elastic material is established in order to investigate viscous effect in dynamic growing crack-tip field of mode Ⅱ. It is shown that in stable creep growing phase, elastic deformation and viscous deformation are equally dominant in the near-tip field, the stress and strain have the same singularity, namely, (σε) ∝r^-1/(n-1). The asymptotic solutions of separatied variables of stress, stain and displacement in crack-tip field are obtained by asymptotic analysis, and the results of numerical value of stress and strain in crack-tip field are obtained by shooting method. Through numerical calculation, it is shown that the near-tip fields are mainly governed by the creep exponent n and Mach number M. By the asymptotic analysis to the crack-tip field, the fracture criterion of mode Ⅱ dynamic growing crack of visco-elastic materials is put forward from the point of view of strain.     

基于LabVIEW的“海院1号”波浪发电平台浮筒取能效率数据采集系统设计

浮筒取能效率测试是波浪发电平台研究的重要组成部分。传统的测试系统不但测量精度低,而且自动化程度低、操作复杂。为此,该文基于“海院1号”波浪发电平台,采用虚拟仪器LabVIEW软件开发了浮筒取能效率数据采集系统。文中介绍了“海院1号”波浪发电平台及其浮筒,进行了测试系统的设计,实现了浮筒取能效率测试的数据采集、数据管理、曲线拟合及绘制、生成报表、信号分析以及数据处理等工程。对实际运行效果进行分析,结果表明该系统具有精度高、运行稳定可靠、自动化程度高、人机界面友好以及操作简单等特点,具有重要的工程实践意义。     

Subjective well-being and travel: retrospect and prospect

Although the improvement of well-being is often an implicitly-assumed goal of many, if not most, public policies, the study of subjective well-being (SWB) and travel has so far been confined to a relatively small segment of the travel behavior community. Accordingly, one main purpose of this paper is to introduce a larger share of the community to some fundamental SWB-related concepts and their application in transportation research, with the goal of attracting others to this rewarding area of study. At the same time, however, I also hope to offer some useful reflections to those already working in this field. After discussing some basic issues of terminology and measurement of SWB, I present from the literature four conceptual models relating travel and subjective well-being. Following one of those models, I review five ways in which travel can influence well-being. I conclude by examining some challenges associated with assessing the impacts of travel on well-being, as well as challenges associated with applying what we learn to policy.

     

铁路隧道穿越岩溶群区施工控制技术研究

文章以渝(重庆)怀(怀化)铁路板桃隧道为工程背景,阐述了该隧道穿越DK215+650～DK216+105段岩溶群区的施工技术.为确保施工工期,施工中采取了"先绕行后处理"的原则,设置施工迂回导洞绕行岩溶区,并通过横通道与正线相连.针对岩溶区内不同的溶洞类型分别采取跨越、支顶、锚喷支护、浆砌片石回填等技术措施,同时根据暗河与溶洞内的水流大小及流向采取了诸如涵洞、小桥等设施或开凿泄水洞将水排出洞外,安全稳妥地通过了455 m岩溶群区.本工程取得的经验可供类似工程施工中借鉴.