Barriers towards intermodality for pursuing to-work commuters modal shift to bus rapid transit

Institute of Transport and Logistics Studies. Faculty of Economics and Business. The University of Sydne

On the effect of the built environment and preferences on non-work travel: Evidence from Japan

This study uses data from the 4th Nationwide Person Trip Survey to analyse the relation between the built environment, modal access preference at residential location and travel behaviour in Japan. By estimating random parameter count models, significant statistical associations were found between the built environment and preferences with non-work trip frequency by mode. Furthermore the effect of population density, car ownership and some access preference traits were found to be heterogeneous for some modes. Since most of the recent literature has focused largely on North-American and European cities, this study contributes to the existing body of literature by examining the role of the built environment and individual preferences on travel behaviour in the context of Japanese cities, and sheds some light on existing heterogeneity in the effects of some factors related to travel behaviour

公共交通車内における協力行動と規範に関する国際比較

本研究では、我が国において、公共交通車内における「弱者に席を譲る」「騒ぐ自分の子どもを注意する（抑止する）」という二つの協力行動を促すための有効な方策を明らかにすることを目的とし、欧州と東アジアの6か国における協力行動と規範の関係性に着目した。協力行動と規範の主観的評価については国際アンケート調査から、「マナーに関するアナウンスや掲示物」等、協力行動に影響を及ぼすと考えられる環境要因については鉄道会社のWebサイトや現地調査から把握し、分析を行った。その結果、「優先席」で席を譲る行動を促すアナウンスは、優先席以外で席を譲る行動を阻害している可能性がある事、また「騒ぐ自分の子供を注意する」行動を促すためには、周囲の協力行動に対する認知「記述的規範」を高める事が効果的である可能性が示された。This study examine the effective measures to encourage cooperative behavior of the "yield one\u27s seat to the elderly or pregnant women" and "scold noisy one\u27s children" in the public transportation.In order to its purpose, we focused on relationship between cooperative behavior and norm in Europe and East Asia of six countries. We conducted international survey that measured subjective evaluation of cooperative behavior and norms, and obtain data about environmental factors (such as announcement and bulletin) that are considered to affect the cooperative behavior from the field survey and the web site of railway company. Analysis results showed that announcement for urging to "yield your seat" at priority seat interrupt its behavior at seat other than priority seat ,and that it is effective to raise descriptive norm (awareness of the surrounding behavior) for encouraging to "scold noisy one\u27s children"

Finishing the euchromatic sequence of the human genome

The sequence of the human genome encodes the genetic instructions for human physiology, as well as rich information about human evolution. In 2001, the International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium reported a draft sequence of the euchromatic portion of the human genome. Since then, the international collaboration has worked to convert this draft into a genome sequence with high accuracy and nearly complete coverage. Here, we report the result of this finishing process. The current genome sequence (Build 35) contains 2.85 billion nucleotides interrupted by only 341 gaps. It covers ∼99% of the euchromatic genome and is accurate to an error rate of ∼1 event per 100,000 bases. Many of the remaining euchromatic gaps are associated with segmental duplications and will require focused work with new methods. The near-complete sequence, the first for a vertebrate, greatly improves the precision of biological analyses of the human genome including studies of gene number, birth and death. Notably, the human enome seems to encode only 20,000-25,000 protein-coding genes. The genome sequence reported here should serve as a firm foundation for biomedical research in the decades ahead

HOW DIFFERENT ARE ACTIVITIES WHILE COMMUTING BY TRAIN? A CASE IN TOKYO

Generally, travel is considered a demand derived from the desire to engage in activities at destinations and travel time is also considered a wasteful time. However, if people can engage in activities while travelling, travel time is not just a wasteful time but could be a productive time. In recent years, ICTs provide travellers with various activity opportunities while travelling. This paper examined what activities train commuters were engaging in while travelling and what factors of travel environment and passengers' characteristics caused the difference in activities conducted and desired. Through on-board observation and questionnaire surveys, we found that difference in travelling mode (standing, sitting in normal/high-grade/extra-high-grade trains), the length of in-vehicle time and type of work hours affected the participation rate of different types of activities. Train environment with wider personal space and more secure privacy would induce activities restricted in the current travel environment and some commuters prefer to pay extra money to obtain it. Copyright (c) 2008 by the Royal Dutch Geographical Society KNAG.

Transportation modes and social participation in older drivers and non-drivers: Results from urbanised Japanese cities

Age-related changes contribute to shifting transportation modes, which affects participation in social activities. Driving status has been highlighted in this context, but there is less evidence on the differences in transportation modes regarding how conducive they are to social participation between drivers and non-drivers. This study examined the relationship between transportation modes and social participation among older adults. The participants were 17,364 older adults aged 65–84 years living in Tokyo and Yokohama, Japan, which are urbanised cities with well-developed public transportation systems. We obtained data on transportation modes used at least once per week, including walking, cycling, car use as a driver, car use as a passenger, train use, and bus use. Social participation was defined as participation in the following social groups at least once per month: public social activities (i.e. neighbourhood associations and senior clubs) and private social activities (i.e. volunteering, sports, and hobbies). We performed a logistic regression analysis and included product terms between driving status (drivers or non-drivers) and other modes of transportation. Subgroup analyses were conducted regardless of the significance of the product term, as they would yield valuable information. There was a significant relationship of the product term between driving status and cycling with participation in private social activities; cycling was associated with 30% (95% CI: 1.12, 1.51) higher odds in drivers and 68% (1.52, 1.85) higher odds of participation in those activities in non-drivers. For both driving statuses, cycling was associated with higher odds of participation in public social activities, and train and bus use showed higher odds of participation in private social activities. These results suggest that cycling and public transportation use are crucial for participation in social activities among both older drivers and non-drivers living in urbanised cities, and the importance of cycling may be emphasised in nondrivers. Our findings would help the transportation, urban planning, and public health sectors develop plans to encourage older adults to participate in social activities