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on Transport Economics |
| By: | Yuan, Tianchen; Ioannou, Petros |
| Abstract: | Highway bottlenecks caused by traffic incidents, lane drop, ramp merging or slow vehicles negatively impact traffic mobility and safety. Traffic regulation techniques, such as adjusting speed limits, providing lane-change recommendations, and restricting on-ramp vehicle inputs with traffic signals in response to an incident, have been found to mitigate congestion from these types of bottlenecks. However, most existing research assumes that traffic models and measured traffic data are accurate and that vehicle drivers always comply with recommendations from the infrastructure. These assumptions are rarely true in the real world and can lead to inconsistencies between the theoretical benefits and the actual benefits obtained in field tests. Researchers at the University of Southern California developed, analyzed, and evaluated an innovative approach to alleviate highway bottleneck congestion. The approach includes issuing variable-speed advisories and lane-change recommendations when needed to the upstream vehicles, as well as ramp control to manage incoming traffic, while accounting for inaccuracies in traffic data and road information and the complex behavior of human driving. This policy brief summarizes the key findings from that research. View the NCST Project Webpage |
| Keywords: | Engineering, Connected vehicles, Ramp metering, Speed control, Traffic simulation, Uncertainty, Variable speed limits |
| Date: | 2022–05–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cdl:itsdav:qt2sz308jc&r= |
| By: | Pereira, Rafael H. M.; Andrade, Pedro R.; Bazzo Vieira, João Pedro |
| Abstract: | The creation of the General Transit Feed Specification (GTFS) in the mid-2000s provided a new data format for cities to organize and share digital information on their public transport systems. GTFS feeds store geolocated data on public transport networks, including information on routes, stops, timetables, and service levels. The GTFS standard is now widely adopted by thousands of transport authorities and a wide variety of software applications for different purposes, including trip planning, timetable creation and accessibility analysis. Yet, there is still a lack of tools to parse GTFS data in a way that allows one to analyze the complex spatial and temporal patterns of public transport systems. This paper presents gtfs2gps, a new computational tool to easily process GTFS data that allows one to analyze the space-time trajectories of public transport vehicles at fine spatial and temporal resolutions. gtfs2gps is an open-source R package that employs parallel computing to convert GTFS feeds from relational text files into a data table format similar to GPS records with the timestamps of vehicles in every single trip. This paper explains the package functionalities and demonstrates how gtfs2gps can be used to articulate key concepts in time geography to explore and visualize the spatial and temporal patterns of public transport networks. The paper is accompanied by a computational notebook in R Markdown that allows one to easily reproduce the results in this paper or even replicate the analysis and data visualizations for other contexts where GTFS data is available. Given the widespread use of GTFS by transport agencies, gtfs2gps opens new possibilities for researchers to examine the time geography of public transport systems in urban areas across the globe. |
| Date: | 2022–04–28 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:osf:socarx:qydr6&r= |
| By: | Marco Francesconi; Jonathan James |
| Abstract: | In May 2018, Scotland introduced a minimum unit price on alcohol. We examine the impact of this policy on traffic fatalities and drunk driving accidents. Using administrative data on the universe of vehicle collisions in Britain and a range of quasi-experimental modeling approaches, we do not find that the policy had an effect on road crash deaths and drunk driving collisions. The results are robust to several sensitivity exercises. There is no evidence of effect heterogeneity by income and other predictors of alcohol consumption or cross-border effects. A brief discussion of the policy implications of our findings is provided. |
| Keywords: | externality, alcohol, minimum unit pricing, motor vehicle collisions, driving under the influence |
| JEL: | D12 D62 H23 K42 R41 |
| Date: | 2022 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_9745&r= |
| By: | Boeing, Geoff (Northeastern University); Riggs, William (University of San Francisco) |
| Abstract: | Planning scholars have identified economic, safety, and social benefits of converting one-way streets to two-way. Less is known about how conversions could impact vehicular distances traveled—of growing relevance in an era of fleet automation, electrification, and ride-hailing. We simulate such a conversion in San Francisco, California. We find that its current street network’s average intra-city trip is about 1.7% longer than it would be with all two-way streets, corresponding to 27 million kilometers of annual surplus travel. As transportation technologies evolve, planners must consider different facets of network efficiency to align local policy and street design with sustainability and other societal goals. |
| Date: | 2022–04–22 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:osf:socarx:fyhbc&r= |
| By: | Wang, Guihua; Fulton, Lewis; Miller, Marshall |
| Abstract: | This project aims to assess the current and future performance and costs of battery electric trucking, through reviewing key recent studies in the U.S. and presenting a detailed comparison of their cost modeling scope and coverage. This white paper presents a review of 10 recent studies of the total cost of ownership (TCO) of battery electric trucks (BET), now and in the future, compared to a baseline diesel truck, for the following 3 important types of truck: heavy-duty long-haul trucks, medium-duty delivery trucks, and heavy-duty drayage/short-haul trucks. The researchers break down the studies into their estimates for a range of important cost and operating factors, such as vehicle purchase cost, efficiency, fuel cost, maintenance cost, required range and thus battery pack sizing, and other factors. Of note are differences in major assumptions of studies and variables that are included or excluded from consideration. The authors do not judge these studies against each other but attempt to derive general findings that are robust across studies, areas of significant difference, and areas for further research. Overall, TCO estimates across the studies, for a given truck type, can vary dramatically, though often several studies cluster together. But as this study explores, the differences in TCO link directly to differences in assumptions, parameters and other differences across the studies. The studies vary in important ways that should be taken into account when comparing TCO estimates. Policy makers should consider the context of truck type, truck use and other factors when reading such studies, and pay attention to assumptions. Policies should reflect the wide range of situations that trucks may encounter and avoid assuming a simple average TCO across all situations. View the NCST Project Webpage |
| Keywords: | Business, Engineering, Battery Electric Trucks, Total Cost of Ownership (TCO), Medium and Heavy Duty Trucks, Battery Cost, Zero Emission Vehicles |
| Date: | 2022–06–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cdl:itsdav:qt8zj9462h&r= |
| By: | Andrew L. Kun; Raffaella Sadun; Orit Shaer; Thomaz Teodorovicz |
| Abstract: | Commuting has enormous impact on individuals, families, organizations, and society. Advances in vehicle automation may help workers employ the time spent commuting in productive work-tasks or wellbeing activities. To achieve this goal, however, we need to develop a deeper understanding of which work and personal activities are of value for commuting workers. In this paper we present results from an online time-use study of 400 knowledge workers who commute-by-driving. The data allow us to study multitasking-while-driving behavior of com-muting knowledge workers, identify which non-driving tasks knowledge workers currently engage in while driving, and the non-driving tasks individuals would like to engage in when using a safe highly automated vehicle in the future. We discuss the implications of our findings for the design of technology that supports work and wellbeing activities in automated cars. |
| Keywords: | In-vehicle user interfaces, time-use study, automated vehicles, knowledge workers, commuting |
| Date: | 2022–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cep:cepdps:dp1841&r= |
| By: | Yuxian Chen; Yannis M. Ioannides; Ferdinand Rauch |
| Abstract: | Asymmetric transport costs arise when shipping times from point i to point j differ from shipping from point j to i. We show that such asymmetric transport costs predict distinct patterns of location in a class of models using Dixit-Stiglitz preferences. We then study factors affecting the location of cities in ancient Hellas. Prevailing winds create an environment of asymmetric trade costs in ancient Greece. We show that predictions of these models are consistent with the location of ancient cities. |
| Date: | 2022–04–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:oxf:wpaper:969&r= |
| By: | Jolian McHardy (Department of Economics, University of Sheffield, UK) |
| Abstract: | We develop a network model of differentiated transport services explicitly incorporating interchangeable and rival aspects, characteristic of many transport systems, allowing exploration of the implications of strategic interaction on pricing amongst multiple rival operators within and across modes. The model offers a framework for studying the impacts of alternative policy scenarios with a wide variety of applications across the transport sector in a way that is tractable and allows meaningful analysis. We illustrate some of the uses of the framework through a series of applications which demonstrate the importance of explicitly recognising the dual rival and interchangeable aspects across multiple operators. Amongst other things, we show that the base model, which we characterise as n = 2, and which has been widely employed in the transport literature, in some respects represents a special case and that the relative size of equilibrium profit, consumer surplus and welfare across regimes as well as the rankings of different regimes across these performance indicators are non-monotonic in n, hence justifying a framework which explicitly allows n to vary. One application examines the performance of the multi-operator ticketing card scheme under guidelines operating in the UK local bus sector. This features as a key part in the UK government’s local bus transport strategy but is also currently under statutory review. A calibration exercise shows this regime may offer higher profit, consumer surplus and welfare as well as a more extensive service provision than the ‘free-market’ case. |
| Keywords: | Multi-operator; Transport Networks; Pricing; Welfare |
| JEL: | D43 L13 L92 R48 |
| Date: | 2022–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:shf:wpaper:2022009&r= |
| By: | Geoff Boeing; Carl Higgs; Shiqin Liu; Billie Giles-Corti; James F Sallis; Ester Cerin; Melanie Lowe; Deepti Adlakha; Erica Hinckson; Anne Vernez Moudon; Deborah Salvo; Marc A Adams; Ligia Vizeu Barrozo; Tamara Bozovic; Xavier Delcl\`os-Ali\'o; Jan Dygr\'yn; Sara Ferguson; Klaus Gebel; Thanh Phuong Ho; Poh-Chin Lai; Joan Carles Martori; Kornsupha Nitvimol; Ana Queralt; Jennifer D Roberts; Garba H Sambo; Jasper Schipperijn; David Vale; Nico Van de Weghe; Guillem Vich; Jonathan Arundel |
| Abstract: | Benchmarking and monitoring urban design and transport features is critical to achieving local and international health and sustainability goals. However, most urban indicator frameworks use coarse spatial scales that only allow between-city comparisons or require expensive, technical, local spatial analyses for within-city comparisons. This study developed a reusable open-source urban indicator computational framework using open data to enable consistent local and global comparative analyses. We demonstrate this framework by calculating spatial indicators - for 25 diverse cities in 19 countries - of urban design and transport features that support health and sustainability. We link these indicators to cities' policy contexts and identify populations living above and below critical thresholds for physical activity through walking. Efforts to broaden participation in crowdsourcing data and to calculate globally consistent indicators are essential for planning evidence-informed urban interventions, monitoring policy impacts, and learning lessons from peer cities to achieve health, equity, and sustainability goals. |
| Date: | 2022–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:arx:papers:2205.05240&r= |
| By: | Cochran, Abigail L. (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill); Wang, Jueyu; Wolfe, Mary; Iacobucci, Evan; Vinella-Brusher, Emma; McDonald, Noreen |
| Abstract: | Introduction: Understanding spatial and temporal trends in travel for COVID-19 vaccinations by key demographic characteristics (i.e., gender, race, age) is important for ensuring equitable access to and increasing distribution efficiency of vaccines and other health services. The aim of this study is to examine trends in travel distance for COVID-19 vaccinations over the course of the vaccination rollout in North Carolina. Methods: Data were collected using electronic medical records of individuals who had first- or single-dose COVID-19 vaccination appointments through UNC Health between December 15, 2020, and August 31, 2021 (N = 204,718). Travel distances to appointments were calculated using the Euclidean distance from individuals’ home ZIP code centroids to clinic addresses. Descriptive statistics and multivariate regression models with individuals’ home ZIP codes incorporated as fixed effects were used to examine differences in travel distances by gender, race, and age. Results: Males and White individuals traveled significantly farther for vaccination appointments throughout the vaccination rollout. On average, females traveled 3.5% shorter distances than males; Black individuals traveled 10.0% shorter distances than White individuals; and people aged 65 and older traveled 2.6% longer distances than younger people living in the same ZIP code. Conclusions: Controlling for neighborhood socioeconomic status and spatial proximity to vaccination clinics, males and White individuals traveled longer distances for vaccination appointments, demonstrating more ability to travel for vaccinations. Results indicate a need to consider differential ability to travel to vaccinations by key demographic characteristics in COVID-19 vaccination programs and future mass health service delivery efforts. |
| Date: | 2022–04–26 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:osf:socarx:bq74k&r= |