Assessment of the transfer penalty to transit trips in Downtown Boston : a GIS-based disaggregate modeling approach

Thesis (M.C.P.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Urban Studies and Planning, 2003.Includes bibliographical references (p. 101).This research aims to examine the impacts of transfers since transfer activities have significant implications not only for the daily operation of a transit system, but also the integration and coordination between transit lines. Transfers affect transit system performance in at least two respects. On the one hand, the use of transfers in the design of transit services provides more options for the transit operator in terms of area coverage, resource allocation, and flexibility. These factors result in better overall service. On the other hand, transit users do not seek to make transfers on their trips unless there is no alternative or the transfer offers a compelling performance advantage for a given trip. Exploring this trade off associated with transfers helps in understanding passenger dissatisfaction with the transfer, or the transfer penalty. A trade off between making a transfer and extra walking time is explored using a binary logit choice model to review the existence of the transfer penalty, the components inside the penalty, the effects of the urban environment outside the transit system, and the variation of the penalty across trip and personal characteristics. The MBTA subway system in Downtown Boston is used for the analysis, and GIS techniques are used extensively for data processing and results display. The study shows that there is indeed a perceived transfer penalty among MBTA subway riders. Transfer walking time, transfer waiting time, the change of level, and the existence of concession capture the majority of the penalty. The remaining part is explained by the general condition of the subway transfer station, and the in-vehicle travel time spent on making a transfer. The study also shows there is a variation of the transfer penalty across different transfer stations. The urban environment in Downtown Boston as explained by measures, such as sidewalk width, land use, open space, and topology, also has a significant impact on the transfer penalty. In particular pedestrian friendly Downtown area encourage riders to leave the subway system early and walk further. The penalty is found to be largely independent on the trip and demographic characteristics though this finding may be affected by the population being limited to those who already choose the subway system to reach their final destinations in Downtown Boston.by Zhan Guo.M.C.P

Transfers and path choice in urban public transport systems

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Urban Studies and Planning, 2008.Includes bibliographical references (p. 285-294).Transfers are endemic in public transport systems. Empirical evidence shows that a large portion of public transport journeys involve at least one change of vehicles, and that the transfer experience significantly affects the travelers' satisfaction with the public transport service, and whether they view public transport as an effective option. Despite their importance, however, transfers have long been overlooked by decision-makers, transportation planners, and analysts. Transfer-related research, practice, and investments are rare compared with many other aspects of transportation planning, probably because (1) the underlying transfer behavior is too complex; (2) the analysis methods are too primitive; and (3) the applications are not straightforward. This dissertation focuses on these issues and contributes to current literature in three aspects: methodology development, behavior exploration, and applications in practice. In this research, I adopt a path-choice approach based on travelers' revealed preference to measure the disutility associated with transfer, or the so-called transfer penalty. I am able to quantify transfer experience in a variety of situations in great spatial detail, and reduce the external "noises" that might contaminate the model estimation. I then apply the method to two public transport networks: a relative small and simple rail network (subway and commuter rail) in Boston and a large and complex network (Underground) in London. Both networks offer a large variability of transfer environment and transfer activities. Estimation results show high system-wide transfer penalties in both studies, indicating that transfer experience can have a very negative impact on the performance and competitiveness of public transport. They also suggest that the system-average value has limited applications in planning and operation because the transfer penalty varies greatly across station and movement. Such variation is largely caused by different transfer environments, not by different personal characteristics, attitudes, preferences, or perceptions, at least in the two investigated networks.The two applications to the London Underground network illustrate that the lack of careful consideration of transfer effect can lead to inaccurate passenger flow estimation as well as less credible project evaluation and investment justification. The results further confirm the potential, as well as the importance, of transfer planning in major multimodal public transport networks.by Zhan Guo.Ph.D

Improving Safety for Pedestrians and Bicyclists Accessing Transit

Regardless of how a person began their trip; they walk, roll, or bicycle to access transit. Because of this, agencies should understand pedestrian and bicyclist characteristics and needs when planning and designing transit systems. This guide is intended for transit agencies, State and local roadway owners, and regional organizations involved with planning and designing transit stops and the roadway, pedestrian, and bicycle facilities that provide access to transit. The guide contains wide ranging topics related to pedestrian and bicyclist safety and access to transit

Planning for Complementarity: An Examination of the Roll and Opportunities of First-Tier and Second-Tier Cities Along the High-Speed Rail Network in California, Research Report 11-17

The coming of California High-Speed Rail (HSR) offers opportunities for positive urban transformations in both first-tier and second-tier cities. The research in this report explores the different but complementary roles that first-tier and second-tier cities along the HSR network can play in making California more sustainable and less dependent on fossil fuels while reducing mobile sources of greenhouse gas emissions and congestion at airports and on the state’s roadways. Drawing from case studies of cities in Northern and Southern California, the study develops recommendations for the planning, design, and programming of areas around California stations for the formation of transit-supportive density nodes

GIS and genetic algorithm based integrated optimization for rail transit system planning

The planning of a rail transit system is a complex process involving the determination of station locations and the rail line alignments connecting the stations. There are many requirements and constraints to be considered in the planning process, with complex correlations and interactions, necessitating the application of optimization models in order to realize optimal (i.e. reliable and cost-effective) rail transit systems. Although various optimization models have been developed to address the rail transit system planning problem, they focus mainly on the planning of a single rail line and are therefore, not appropriate in the context of a multi-line rail network. In addition, these models largely neglect the complex interactions between station locations and associated rail lines by treating them in separate optimization processes. This thesis addresses these limitations in the current models by developing an optimal planning method for multiple lines, taking into account the relevant influencing factors, in a single integrated process using a geographic information system (GIS) and a genetic algorithm (GA). The new method considers local factors and the multiple planning requirements that arise from passengers, operators and the community, to simultaneously optimize the locations of stations and the associated line network linking them. The new method consists of three main levels of analysis and decision-making. Level I identifies the requirements that must be accounted for in rail transit system planning. This involves the consideration of the passenger level of service, operator productivity and potential benefits for the community. The analysis and decision making process at level II translates these requirements into effective criteria that can be used to evaluate and compare alternative solutions. Level III formulates mathematical functions for these criteria, and incorporates them into a single planning platform within the context of an integrated optimization model to achieve a rail transit system that best fits the desired requirements identified at level I. This is undertaken in two main stages. Firstly, the development of a GIS based algorithm to screen the study area for a set of feasible station locations. Secondly, the use of a heuristic optimization algorithm, based on GA to identify an optimum set of station locations from the pool of feasible stations, and, together with the GIS system, to generate the line network connecting these stations. The optimization algorithm resolves the essential trade-off between an effective rail system that provides high service quality and benefits for both the passenger and the whole community, and an economically efficient system with acceptable capital and operational costs. The proposed integrated optimization model is applied to a real world case study of the City of Leicester in the UK. The results show that it can generate optimal station locations and the related line network alignment that satisfy the various stakeholder requirements and constraints.Open Acces

NEIGHBORHOODS, PROXIMITY TO DAILY NEEDS, & WALKABILITY IN FORM-BASED CODES

Form-based codes are evaluated with criteria often requiring additional clarification. To better identify form-based code evaluation criteria, this thesis identifies the major intentions of form-based codes from the literature and focuses on the first intention, quality of life. The form-based code literature relates quality of life to three principles with underlying parameters: neighborhood with a center and edge, proximity to daily needs, and walkability. Neighborhood refers to the identification of walkable districts of about .25 mile radius with a clear center and edge. Proximity to daily needs requires diversity of uses in proximity to residential uses so that residents travel short distances to address daily needs. Walkability is a more complex principle with numerous impacting parameters effective only when working in tandem with each other. A selection of six case studies from award-wining form-based codes test the presence of the three quality of life principles in form-based code practice and the findings are discussed. All six case studies incorporated the three quality of life principles with some differences in all form-based planning process phases. Neighborhood is used as equivalent to a .25 mile pedestrian shed. The value of the concept of neighborhood edge in from-based codes remains unclear, however, since few case studies included it and needs to be explored further. Neighborhood with a center and edge therefore can be rephrased to a .25 mile pedestrian shed with a center. The .25 mile pedestrian shed alone is a fundamental parameter in all 3 quality of life principles and all case studies incorporated this parameter. Proximity to daily needs parameters as identified are also incorporated in all case studies. Walkability parameters that require building adaptations to walkable environments were present in all case studies. Walkability parameters, however, addressing standards for sidewalks and streets, were uncommon in some studies and, as a result, application of walkability parameters varied across case studies. Therefore, satisfying the quality of life form-based code intention, the 3 principles of pedestrian shed with a center, proximity to daily needs, and walkability can be used as part of the set of criteria to assess form-based codes. All 3 principles point to the direction of sustainability in an effort to create cities that are efficient to manage and highly appropriate for daily human function

Framework for Life Cycle Assessment of Complete Streets Projects

Caltrans 65A0527 Task Order 034.3A multitude of goals have been stated for complete streets including non-motorized travel safety, reduced costs and environmental burdens, and creation of more livable communities, or in other words, the creation of livable, sustainable and economically vibrant communities. A number of performance measures have been proposed to address these goals. Environmental life cycle assessment (LCA) quantifies the energy, resource use, and emissions to air, water and land for a product or a system using a systems approach. One gap that has been identified in current LCA impact indicators is lack of socio-economic indicators to complement the existing environmental indicators. To address the gaps in performance metrics, this project developed a framework for LCA of complete streets projects, including the development of socio-economic impact indicators that also consider equity. The environmental impacts of complete streets were evaluated using LCA information for a range of complete street typologies. A parametric sensitivity analysis approach was performed to evaluate the impacts of different levels of mode choice and trip change. Another critical question addressed was what are different social goals (economic, health, safety, etc.) that should be considered and how to consider equity in performance metrics for social goals. This project lays the foundation for the creation of guidelines for social and environmental LCAs for complete streets

Networking Transportation

Networking Transportation looks at how the digital revolution is changing Greater Philadelphia's transportation system. It recognizes several key digital transportation technologies: Artificial Intelligence, Big Data, connected and automated vehicles, digital mapping, Intelligent Transportation Systems, the Internet of Things, smart cities, real-time information, transportation network companies (TNCs), unmanned aerial systems, and virtual communications. It focuses particularly on key issues surrounding TNCs. It identifies TNCs currently operating in Greater Philadelphia and reviews some of the more innovative services around the world. It presents four alternative future scenarios for their growth: Filling a Niche, A Tale of Two Regions, TNCs Take Off, and Moore Growth. It then creates a future vision for an integrated, multimodal transportation network and identifies infrastructure needs, institutional reforms, and regulatory recommendations intended to help bring about this vision