Development Challenges of Secondary and Small Airports in California, Research Report 11-21

This study investigates the development of secondary and smaller airports in California. Low-Cost Carrier (LCC) business is growing at these airports because they offer reduced operating costs, and they have adequate capacity to help LCCs avoid battling with incumbent airlines at the large hubs for limited resources, such as gates. However, increased LCC aircraft operations at the secondary airports have led to significant noise impacts on the surrounding communities and this has been a challenge for the secondary airport operators. They have imposed operational curfews to limit the noise impacts, but this approach constrains the resident airlines that want to increase their traffic. As a result, some LCCs have begun to initiate flights out of the large hubs. Statistics from this study show that the LCCs have replaced the legacy airlines as the dominant air provider in the state. With their growing dominance, the LCCs will become more attractive to the large hub airports, and the secondary airports will face increased competition in retaining them. To retain those LCCs, the secondary airports must better understand how LCCs make investment decisions related to airport development. At the same time, they must better educate the LCCs about their airport needs

Advancing High-Speed Rail Policy in the United States, Research Report 11-18

This report builds on a review of international experience with high-speed rail projects to develop recommendations for a High-speed rail policy framework for the United States. The international review looked at the experience of Korea, Taiwan, China, and several countries in Europe. Countries in Asia and Europe have pursued high-speed rail (HSR) to achieve various goals, which include relieving congestion on highway networks, freeing up capacity on rail network for freight train operations, and reducing travel time for travelers. Some of the key rationales do not work well in the US context. As an example, in the US, freight companies own most of the rail network and, hence, do not need government intervention to free up capacity for their operations. We concluded the potential to reduce travel times coupled with improved travel time reliability and safety will be the strongest selling points for HSR in the US. HSR lines work best in high-density, economically active corridors. Given that there are a limited number of such corridors in the US, our study recommends the US HSR project funding mix be skewed heavily toward state bonds guaranteed by the federal government. This will ensure that the states that benefit directly from the projects pay most of the costs, making it more palatable to states that may not have HSR projects. For the projects that span multiple states, member states may have to negotiate the level of financial responsibility they will bear, and this will require detailed negotiations and financial setups that are not addressed in this report. Other measures the federal government needs to put in place include designating a key agency and dedicated funding source, and developing regulations and specifications for HSR design and construction. States that embark on HSR projects should start with formal legislation and put in place structures to ensure sustained political support throughout the planning and construction of the project. The federal government also needs to move quickly to foster educational and training centers to build up the HSR workforce in the country

Multi-level DEA Approach in Research Evaluation

It is well known that the discrimination power of DEA models will be diminishing if too many inputs or outputs are used. It is a dilemma if the decision makers want to select comprehensive indicators to present a relatively holistic evaluation using DEA. In this work we show that by utilizing hierarchical structures of input-output data DEA can handle quite large numbers of inputs and outputs. We present two approaches in a pilot evaluation of 15 institutes for basic research in Chinese Academy of Sciences using DEA models

Collaborative Funding to Facilitate Airport Ground Access, Research Report 11-27

This report presents the findings and conclusions from a research study that has examined the challenges of funding airport ground access projects and the role of collaborative funding strategies between the different agencies that typically become involved in such projects. The report reviews the recent literature on funding airport ground access projects, as well as funding transportation projects more generally. This is followed by a detailed review of current federal transportation funding programs relevant to airport ground access projects, as well as a discussion of state and local funding programs and potential opportunities for private-sector funding. A major component of the research described in the report consists of detailed case studies of seven selected airport ground access projects, including a major intermodal center, two automated people-mover projects, two airport access highway projects, and two airport rail links. These case studies examine the history of each project, the costs involved, and the funding programs and mechanisms used to finance the projects. Based on the literature review, the review of current funding programs, and the case study findings, the report identifies potential funding strategies for intermodal airport ground access projects, requirements for effective implementation of these strategies, and a recommended approach to facilitate successful project development and implementation. The report also presents recommended changes to transportation funding program rules and regulations that could facilitate and simplify development of intermodal solutions to future airport ground access needs

Promoting Intermodal Connectivity at California’s High Speed Rail Stations

High-speed rail (HSR) has emerged as one of the most revolutionary and transformative transportation technologies, having a profound impact on urban-regional accessibility and inter-city travel across Europe, Japan, and more recently China and other Asian countries. One of HSR’s biggest advantages over air travel is that it offers passengers a one-seat ride into the center of major cities, eliminating time-consuming airport transfers and wait times, and providing ample opportunities for intermodal transfers at these locales. Thus, HSR passengers are typically able to arrive at stations that are only a short walk away from central business districts and major tourist attractions, without experiencing any of the stress that car drivers often experience in negotiating such highly congested environments. Such an approach requires a high level of coordination and planning of the infrastructural and spatial aspects of the HSR service, and a high degree of intermodal connectivity. But what key elements can help the US high-speed rail system blend successfully with other existing rail and transit services? That question is critically important now that high-speed rail is under construction in California. The study seeks to understand the requirements for high levels of connectivity and spatial and operational integration of HSR stations and offer recommendations for seamless, and convenient integrated service in California intercity rail/HSR stations. The study draws data from a review of the literature on the connectivity, intermodality, and spatial and operational integration of transit systems; a survey of 26 high-speed rail experts from six different European countries; and an in-depth look of the German and Spanish HSR systems and some of their stations, which are deemed as exemplary models of station connectivity. The study offers recommendations on how to enhance both the spatial and the operational connectivity of high-speed rail systems giving emphasis on four spatial zones: the station, the station neighborhood, the municipality at large, and the region

Feasibility Of One–Dedicated–Lane Bus Rapid Transit ⁄Light–Rail Systems And Their Expansion To Two–Dedicated–Lane Systems: A Focus On Geometric Configuration And Performance Planning, MTI Report 08-01

This report consists primarily of two parts, the first on feasibility and the next on space minimization. In the section on feasibility, we propose the concept of a Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) or light–rail system that effectively requires only one dedicated but reversible lane throughout the system to support two-way traffic in the median of a busy commute corridor with regular provision of left–turn lanes. Based on key ideas proposed in that section, the section on space minimization first addresses how to implement a two–dedicated–lane BRT or light–rail system with minimum right–of–way width and then proposes ways to expand a one–dedicated–lane system to two dedicated lanes. In a one–dedicated–lane system, traffic crossing is accommodated on the otherwise unused or underused median space resulting from provision of the left–turn lanes. Although not necessary, some left–turn lanes can be sacrificed for bus stops. Conceptual design options and geometric configuration sketches for the bus stop and crossing space are provided in the section on feasibility, which also discusses system performance in terms of travel speed, headway of operations, distance between two neighboring crossing spaces, and number of crossing spaces. To ensure practicality, we study implementation of such a system on an existing corridor. Such a system is also useful as an intermediate step toward a two–dedicated–lane system because of its potential for facilitating transit–oriented development. In typical existing or planned BRT or light–rail systems implemented with two dedicated traffic lanes, a space equivalent to four traffic lanes is dedicated for a bus stop. In the section on space minimization, we propose implementations requiring only three lanes at a bus stop, based on two key ideas proposed for a one–dedicated–lane system. That section also discusses ways to expand a one–dedicated–lane system to its corresponding two–dedicated–lane system

Reverse order laws for least squares g-inverses and minimum norm g-inverses of products of two matrices

AbstractIn this paper, we derive equivalent conditions for reverse order laws of least squares g-inverses and minimum norm g-inverses of product of two matrices A and B, by applying the product singular value decomposition (P-SVD)