Public Health

Zero-Emission Bus Implementation Guidebook for California Transit Fleets

Lipman, Timothy, PhD
Rogers, Emily, MS
2023

Transit bus operations in California are experiencing new challenges due to economic conditions and the ongoing global pandemic. A confluence of factors has created a focus on this critical public-needs serving industry, due to state and local efforts to reduce emissions of pollutants and climate-changing gases. Transit bus operations in California provide essential and additional useful services that offer critical mobility to needy populations (elderly and handicapped) as well as many other groups for whom transit buses provide the most economical, convenient, and low-emission options....

East Oakland Mobility Justice: A Case Study of the International Boulevard Bus Rapid Transit Project Safety and Displacement

Soucy, Andre B.
2024

Low-income communities of color in formerly redlined neighborhoods face persistent racial disparities and inequities in pollution exposure, access to transportation and safe streets, and inadequate provisions for health, safety, stable housing, clean air, education, and employment. In the process of attempting to remedy such disparities through major transportation infrastructure and access improvements, residents who are intended to benefit from expanded transportation access and options are often placed at increased risk of harmful displacement, gentrification, and environmental...

High Accuracy Location Based Services CostBenefit Study: Final Report

Goodliss, Adam
Manasseh, Christian
Ekambaram, Venkatesan
Sengupta, Raja
Kanafani, Adib
Ramchandran, Kannan
2011

This report presents a benefit and cost study of a Cooperative High‐Accuracy LOcation (C‐HALO) service. A High Accuracy Location service should be ubiquitous and reliable as the GPS constellation. A survey of the literature on location services reveals a body of work on the benefits of a high accuracy location service. Focusing on road travel, benefits are estimated to be between $160-$320 billion dollars over slightly more than 20 years. The benefits arise from smoother traffic flow on the roads leading to reduced travel delays, and fewer accidents leading to reduced injuries and saved...

The Impact of COVID-19 on the Mobility Needs of an Aging Population in Contra Costa County

Ragland, David R, PhD, MPH
Schor, Glenn, PhD, MPH
Felschundneff, Grace
2020

In 2018, SafeTREC conducted a survey on transportation mobility issues among older adults in California. A follow-up survey planned for 2020, just as the COVID-19 pandemic changed life for all residents, was redesigned to assess mobility needs and changes during the Shelter-in-Place order and focused on COVID-19 impacts. Results indicate that the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent Shelter-in-Place order have had a major impact on senior mobility. Communications for many were restricted to phone, email, texts, social media and video chats. Among those with a medical problem, just over 60%...

Mitigating Exposure and Climate Change Impacts from Transportation Projects: Environmental Justice-Centered Decision-Support Framework and Tool

Horvath, Arpad, PhD
Greer, Fiona, PhD
Apte, Joshua, PhD
Rakas, Jasenka, PhD
2023

California must operate and maintain an effective and efficient transportation infrastructure while ensuring that the health of communities and the planet are not compromised. By assessing transportation projects using a life-cycle perspective, all relevant emission sources and activities from the construction, operation, maintenance, and end-of-life phases can be analyzed and mitigated. This report presents a framework to assess the life-cycle human health and climate change impacts from six types of transportation projects: (1) Roadways; (2) Marine ports; (3) Logistical distribution...

Future of Public Transit and Shared Mobility: Scenario Planning for COVID-19 Recovery

Shaheen, Susan, PhD
Wong, Stephen, PhD
2021

In 2020, the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic enveloped the world, leading to a public health crisis that profoundly changed all aspects of society, especially multiple sectors in transportation such as public transit and shared mobility. With so much uncertainty about the future of travel, the transportation sector needs to move rapidly to shape the nature of public transit and shared mobility services during the COVID-19 recovery period. Consequently, the University of California Institute of Transportation Studies (UC ITS) and the Transportation Research Board’s (TRB) Executive...

Public Transit and Shared Mobility COVID-19 Recovery: Policy Options and Research Needs

Shaheen, Susan, PhD
Wong, Stephen, PhD
2020

While the COVID-19 crisis has devastated many public transit and shared mobility services, it has also exposed underlying issues in how these services are provided to society. As ridership drops and revenues decline, many public and private providers may respond by cutting service or reducing vehicle maintenance to save costs. As a result, those who depend on public transit and shared mobility services, particularly those without access to private automobiles, will experience further loss of their mobility. These transportation shifts will be further influenced by changing work-from-home...

How Might Adjustments to Public Transit Operations Affect COVID-19 Transmission?

Huan, Yiduo, MSc
Shen, Zuojun Max, PhD
2022

During the COVID-19 pandemic, public transportation systems worldwide faced many challenges, including significant loss of ridership. Public agencies implemented various COVID-19-related policies to reduce transmission, such as reducing service frequency and network coverage of public transportation. Recent studies have examined the effectiveness of these policies but reach different conclusions due to varying assumptions about how passengers may react to service changes. Some studies proposed optimizing public transit operation timetables, service frequency, and network coverage to reduce...

COVID-19 has Significantly Impacted the Mobility and Activities of the Senior Population in Contra Costa County

Ragland, David R.
Schorr, Glenn
Felschundneff, Grace
2020

Meeting the mobility needs of an aging population is one of the most substantial challenges facing California in the coming decades. The number of residents age 60 and above will grow to 13.9 million by 2050, representing over 25% of the state population. Meanwhile, the number of residents age 85 and above is expected to increase by over 70% between 2010 and 2030. In 2018, the Safe Transportation Research and Education Center (SafeTREC) at UC Berkeley conducted a survey on transportation mobility issues among older adults in Contra Costa County in California. Results indicated, among other...

Mobility Challenges Facing Older Adults: A Contra Costa County Case Study

Ragland, David R.
McMillan, Tracy
Doggett, Sarah
2019

Meeting the mobility needs of an aging population is one of the most substantial challenges facing California in the coming decades. The number of residents age 60 and above will grow to 13.9 million by 2050, representing over 25% of the state’s population. Meanwhile, the number of residents age 85 and above is expected to increase by over 70% between 2010 and 2030. Many older adults, who have primarily been auto dependent, will reduce or stop driving due to medical and non-medical reasons. Declines in age-related physical functions may also reduce the ability to walk to access goods and...