Demand elasticity estimation for a park & ride facility by means of discrete choice modelling

Park & ride facilities have been proposed as a solution for the traffic problem of large cities prevalent around the world. In this article we define them as large parking facilities located in the surroundings of the city, with the purpose of deterring commuters from using their cars in the city centre. Building a park & ride facility requires a large investment. Demand estimation at various price levels is a critical input for the project evaluation.In a previous article (Picasso et al., 2012) we have modelled the demand for a park & ride facility in the north access to Buenos Aires city via discrete choice methods, determining its attractiveness for different segments of the target population. In this article we focus on the price sensitivity of demand. A predicting application was developed to estimate the demand at different price levels for a range of demographic characteristics. The value of time is also determined, by means of the compensated variation

Carpooling desde la perspectiva del conductor. Un experimento de selección

The city of Buenos Aires, like other large metropolis, suffers the increasing of congestion on its main access routes and highways. Carpooling has been proposed to alleviate this problem. The present article continues the one from Picasso, Bonoli Escobar and Cosatto Ammann (2020) “Evaluación de una plataforma de carpooling mediante experimentos de selección”, with the objective of evaluating people interest in bidding in a potential carpooling system. The methodology is based on the application of Discrete Choice Models to a sample from an ad-hoc survey, where people face a choice experiment including carpooling besides the existing travel modes. The individuals were exposed to various choice sets with carpooling besides the existing travel modes at different travel time and cost, for them to choose the preferred alternative. The results show that commuters are highly interested in offering their cars for carpooling for an adequate compensation, especially young people and those who travel more frequently to the city.La ciudad de Buenos Aires, al igual que otras grandes metrópolis, sufre un incesante aumento de la congestión de sus principales vías de acceso. Ante esta problemática, que varios conductores en solitario opten por el carpooling, de modo de aliviar el tránsito vehicular, constituye una posible solución. El presente trabajo continúa el de Picasso, Bonoli Escobar y Cosatto Ammann (2020) “Evaluación de una plataforma de carpooling mediante experimentos de selección”, con el objetivo de analizar el interés de los habitantes de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires de ser oferentes de un potencial sistema de carpooling. La metodología se basó en la aplicación de Modelos de Selección Discreta a una muestra representativa proveniente de una encuesta realizada ad hoc, en donde se enfrentaba a las personas a un experimento de selección que incluía al carpooling junto con las alternativas de transporte existentes.  Los individuos debían elegir qué alternativa escogerían en una serie de escenarios con diferentes atributos de tiempo y costo de viaje para cada medio de transporte, para luego determinar el atractivo y viabilidad del sistema. Se encontró que el carpooling tiene una alta probabilidad de elección en la población, sobre todo en los jóvenes y aquellos que viajan con más asiduidad a la ciudad. ARK CAICYT: http://id.caicyt.gov.ar/ark:/s18539777/iyqrx52e

Evaluación de una plataforma de carpooling mediante experimentos de selección

Resumen: La ciudad de Buenos Aires sufre un incesante aumento de la congestión de sus principales vías de acceso, con el consecuente deterioro ambiental. El carpooling constituye una posible solución, complementaria al transporte público, con la flexibilidad y el confort del vehículo particular. En el presente estudio se investiga el interés de los habitantes de la ciudad de Buenos Aires por un potencial sistema de carpooling basado en una red social, materializada mediante una plataforma online que permite a oferentes y demandantes de un viaje encontrarse y acordar las condiciones. El sistema no supone la existencia de un organizador con fines de lucro ni de conductores profesionales. Como incentivo se plantea la implementación de un carril preferencial exclusivo para vehículos adheridos al sistema de carpooling en las principales vías de acceso a la ciudad. La validación empírica se realiza mediante un experimento de selección, que añade el carpooling a las alternativas de transporte existentes. Se proponen diferentes escenarios variando el tiempo de viaje y el costo para cada medio y se lo distribuye a través de un instrumento online a una muestra representativa. Los resultados del experimento se analizan mediante modelos de selección discreta, para determinar las curvas de oferta y demanda del sistema, para evaluar la viabilidad del sistema.Abstract: The city of Buenos Aires, as other large metropolis, struggles with traffic congestion in its main access routes and highways, the saturation of different transport modes, and the resulting environmental deterioration. The increasing trend in the number of motor vehicles, in addition to the steady tendency of people to live farther away from the urban centers have aggravated this problem. Carpooling of individuals making similar routes can contribute to solve this problem, by complementing transit with the flexibility and comfort of a private motor vehicle. In this article we analyze the interest among Buenos Aires city habitants for a carpooling system based on a social network, materialized through an online platform that allows car drivers and riders that share similar routes to meet and to get to an agreement about the economic aspects of the trip. Neither professional drivers nor a commercial enterprise is required for the system to operate. As an incentive for drivers to subscribe to the carpooling system, a high occupancy vehicle lane in the main access highways of the city is proposed. The empirical validation has been carried out by means of a discrete choice experiment in which the carpooling alternative competes with existing transport modes. Variation in travel time and cost for each alternative are proposed through different scenarios which are distributed via an on-line instrument to a representative sample of people living in multiple suburban neighborhoods in the metropolitan area of Buenos Aires. Discrete choice models are used to analyze the data gathered in the experiment to calculate the supply and demand curves and evaluate the economic and operating viability of the system

Validación de escalas neurocientíficas de tiempo de reacción

Resumen: El Marketing se propone comprender el comportamiento del consumidor mediante el estudio de las actitudes, creencias y otros entes mentales, y la influencia que los productos y la comunicación tienen sobre los mismos. Tradicionalmente la investigación de la mente del consumidor se realiza a través de sus declaraciones. Esto tiene limitaciones, ya que gran parte de los procesos decisorios transcurre en niveles subconscientes donde reinan las emociones, mientras que las declaraciones implican racionalizaciones ajenas al proceso decisorio que introducen sesgo de diversos tipos: aquiescencia, cortesía, pertenencia, etc. La Neurociencia pone a disposición del Marketing nuevas formas de medir estos entes mentales, en instancias anteriores a la declaración, lo cual permite reducir o eliminar estos sesgos. La resonancia magnética (FMRI) permite detectar las áreas del cerebro que se activan frente a los estímulos, con una alta resolución espacial. La electroencefalografía (EEG) permite detectar la actividad eléctrica de la corteza cerebral, y gracias a las investigaciones de Richard Davidson distinguir la actividad racional de la emocional. La conductancia de la piel (GSR), el seguimiento de los ojos (ET) y el reconocimiento facial (FR) permiten medir la magnitud y reconocer las emociones en distintos puntos de un estímulo comunicativo. Y finalmente, el tiempo de reacción (RT) mide el grado de identificación de dos objetos, como por ejemplo una marca y un atributo. Este trabajo se propone estudiar esta última técnica neurocientífica en comparación con técnicas declarativas tradicionales. Realizamos mediciones de distintas variables, como la preferencia, la imagen de marca, la intención de compra, la credibilidad, la originalidad, y la relevancia; de ambas maneras: con escalas declarativas tradicionales y con tiempo de reacción en celdas independientes. Luego creamos y calibramos las escalas de tiempo de reacción mediante algoritmos no lineales apropiados, y finalmente comparamos su consistencia con las escalas declarativas

Respondent engagement and task complexity effects in stated choice experiments

Abstract: Discrete Choice Modelling (DCM) provides a valuable tool for understanding the consumer behaviour. DCM can source on two kinds of empirical base. The first one are preferences revealed by individuals in their actual behaviour. The second kind are preferences stated by them in choice experiments, where the individual is exposed to hypothetical situations specifically designed to elicit decisions. The repeat nature of the choice experiment along a number of choice sets has been recognized as a feature that requires special attention, with the focus primarily on ways of accounting for the correlated structure induced by offering each respondent multiple choice sets in a sequence. Significant research has been produced about this issue after the first paper from Bradley and Daly (1994). The harsh empirical nature of the problem has made it difficult for researchers to be conclusive. They have rather built knowledge on a case by case basis, not exempt of apparent inconsistencies. The present paper brings new information about this issue, extending the present level of knowledge in three directions. A choice experiment was set up in the marketing domain, with unique characteristics vs previous research mostly focused on transportation research. Secondly, we went beyond most previous experience in terms of the number of choice tasks. This enabled us to find the respondent disengagement phenomenon. Thirdly, we address the behavioural nature of engagement along the choice experiment, finding that it is mostly due to boredom rather than due to fatigue. Two versions of DCM are employed: the simple Multinomial Logit model (MNL) and the more sophisticated Mixed Logit (MXL) model, with a suitable specification to measure the respondent disengagement effect as increased variance of utility

Car-sharing vs bike-sharing: A choice experiment to understand young people behaviour

Vehicle sharing has been proposed to alleviate congestion and environmental deterioration produced by the proliferation of private car traffic in urban areas. Even if transit is the main alternative, its spatial and time discontinuity coupled with lower comfort limit its use, particularly in developing countries with higher income heterogeneity. Vehicle sharing systems can be an effective complement for transit by supplying the flexibility offered by private cars on a public mode. They also promote less polluting vehicles and they free up circulation and parking space. In this paper we evaluate the demand for two vehicle sharing systems in Buenos Aires, Argentina: cars and bicycles. We contribute to the state of knowledge by analysing their interaction and demographic preferences within a developing economic environment. Young people are targeted as the main potential users of both services because of their aptitude to make use of mobile apps, which are important component of sharing mobility systems, and because of their low income, which facilitates sharing rather than ownership. Bicycle sharing has already been implemented in the city. Car sharing concepts (station-based/ free-floating, electric/ fuel) are proposed in a choice experiment, in competition with existing travel modes. Different scenarios with varying travel time and cost for each mode are distributed via online instrument to a sample of city network users. Discrete choice modelling with correlated random parameter specification is employed to analyse the data. Car sharing results as highly appreciated as private car, especially with electric vehicles, being the parking cost saving the major determinant of choice; whereas bicycle sharing lags behind transit, even for young people. Negative correlation is observed between car and bicycle sharing preferences, making it possible for both systems to operate simultaneously with little overlap

Evaluación de una red de car-pooling mediante experimentos de selección

Resumen: Como toda gran metrópolis, la ciudad de Buenos Aires sufre a diario la congestión de sus principales vías de acceso y la saturación de sus medios de transporte, con el consecuente deterioro ambiental. El incesante aumento del número de vehículos particulares, junto con la fuerte tendencia de las personas a mudarse lejos de los centros urbanos y laborales ha contribuido con este fenómeno. Ante esta problemática, surge una posible solución que busca ser complemento del transporte público añadiendo la flexibilidad y el confort característicos del vehículo particular: el car-pooling, la posibilidad de compartir el viaje con otra persona que haga un recorrido similar. En el presente estudio se evalúa un potencial sistema de car-pooling para la ciudad de Buenos Aires basado en una red social, materializada mediante una plataforma online que permite a oferentes y demandantes de cada trayecto particular encontrarse y ponerse de acuerdo sobre las condiciones económicas del viaje. El sistema no supone la existencia de un organizador con fines de lucro ni de conductores profesionales. Como incentivo se plantea la implementación de un carril preferencial exclusivo para vehículos adheridos al sistema de car-pooling en las principales vías de acceso a la ciudad. La validación empírica se realiza mediante un experimento de selección, en el que se presenta el sistema de car-pooling frente a las alternativas de transporte existentes. Se proponen diferentes escenarios variando el tiempo de viaje y el costo para cada medio y se lo distribuye a través de un instrumento online a una muestra representativa de personas de múltiples localidades del Gran Buenos Aires que viajan a la ciudad en horarios de alta congestión. Los datos del experimento se estudian mediante modelos de selección discreta, para determinar las curvas de oferta y demanda del sistema, a fin de evaluar la viabilidad económica y operativa del sistema.Abstract: The city of Buenos Aires, as any other big metropolis, struggles daily with traffic along its main access routes and highways; as well as suffering the saturation of its means of transport and the consequent environmental deterioration. The non-stop increase in the number of motor vehicles, in addition to the steady tendency of people to settle away from the urban centers has contributed to this issue. A possible solution for this problem arises and tries to be a complement of Transit but adding the flexibility and comfort of a motor vehicle: car-pooling, the possibility to share a ride with another person that makes a similar route. The main goal of this paper is to evaluate a car-pooling system for the city of Buenos Aires based on a social network, materialized through an online platform that allows suppliers and claimants that share similar routes to meet and to get to an agreement about the economic aspects of the trip. Neither professional drivers nor development of a commercial enterprise are taken into consideration for the system. As an incentive for vehicles subscribed to the car-pooling system, a high occupancy vehicle lane in the main arteries of the city is proposed. The empirical validation has been carried out through a discrete choice model experiment in which the car-pooling alternative is compared with already existing means of transport. Variation in travel time and cost for each alternative are proposed through different scenarios which are distributed via an on-line instrument to a representative sample of people living in multiple suburban neighborhoods in the metropolitan area of Buenos Aires. Discrete Choice models are used to analyze the data gathered in the experiment in order to calculate the supply and demand curves and evaluate the economic and operative viability of the system