Travel Behavior

TravInfo Evaluation: Traveler Response Element; TravInfo 817-1717 Caller Study; Phase 2 Results

Koo, Ronald
Yim, Y. B.
2001

TravInfo was a federally funded Field Operational Test (FOT) of the Advanced Traveler Information System (ATIS) in the San Francisco Bay Area. The general public can obtain most current traveler information through TravInfo's Traveler Advisory Telephone System (TATS) and privately offered information services including traffic Web sites. As part of the TravInfo FOT Evaluation, two waves of TATS callers were surveyed. The first wave of the TATS caller survey was conducted in April 1997. The second wave TATS caller survey was completed in April 1999. This paper presents the findings of the...

Consumer Research on Advanced Traveler Information Systems: TravInfo Field Operational Test

Yim, Youngbin
1997

The paper describes the evaluation framework of the TravInfo project, a field operational test of the San Francisco Bay Area advanced traveler information system. The purpose of the evaluation study is to measure changes in individual travel patterns that result from the TravInfo project and to assess traveler acceptance of and preference for advanced traveler information technology. The anticipated effects of TravInfo on Bay Area travelers were described using some of the economic concepts of supply and demand relationships between information providers and information users. Consumer...

Safety Aspects of Freeway Weaving Sections

Golob, Thomas F.
Recker, Wilfred W.
Alvarez, Veronica M.
2003

One source of vehicle conflict is the freeway weaving section, where a merge and diverge in close proximity require vehicles either entering or exiting the freeway to execute one or more lane changes. Using accident data for a portion of Southern California, we examined accidents that occurred on three types of weaving sections defined in traffic engineering: Type A, where every merging or diverging vehicle must execute one lane change, Type B, where either merging or diverging can be done without changing lanes, and Type C, where one maneuver requires at least two lane changes. We found...

A Tool to Evaluate the Safety Effects of Changes in Freeway Traffic Flow

Golob, Thomas F.
Recker, Wilfred W.
Alvarez, Veronica M.
2003

This research involves the development of a tool that can be used to assess the changes in traffic safety tendencies that result from changes in traffic flow. The tool uses data from single inductive loop detectors, converting 30-second observations of volume and occupancy for multiple freeway lanes into traffic flow regimes. Each regime has a specific pattern of crash types, which were determined through nonlinear multivariate analyses of over 1,000 crashes on freeways in Southern California. These analyses revealed ways in which differences in variances in speeds and volumes across lanes...

TravInfo Evaluation: Traveler Response Element Willingness to Pay for Traveler Information: Analysis of Wave 2 Broad Area Survey

Wolinetz, Louis
Khattak, Asad J.
Yim, Youngbin
2001

TravInfo is a Field Operational Test (FOT) sponsored by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and California Department of Transportation. It aimed to develop a multi-modal traveler information system for the San Francisco Bay Area, combining public and private sector talents. The Broad Area Study is part of the TravInfo FOT evaluation. This paper addresses issues on the willingness to pay for traveler information. Two waves of telephone surveys of Bay Area households were conducted, one prior to and one after the Field Operational Test. The initial survey was conducted in November...

Commuter Response To Traffic Information On An Incident

Koo, Ronald
Yim, Youngbin
1998

This paper presents and discusses how traffic information is obtained and how it affects travel behavior when a major freeway is congested. Immediately following a major highway incident south of San Francisco which caused congestion, a telephone survey was conducted of commuters who utilize the affected corridor of highway. The behavior of commuters before and during their commute at the time of the incident was determined, including obtaining traffic information and how the information influenced changes in route, mode of travel and departure time. The results of the survey suggest that...

Variable Message Signs and Link Flow Evaluation: A Case Study of the Paris Region

Yim, Youngbin
Lygeros, John
1995

SIRIUS (Systeme d'Information Routiere Intelligible aux Usagers) is the largest urban field operational test of the advanced traveler information and automated traffic management system in Europe. With variable message signs, SIRIUS has been in operation in the Paris region since December 1992. This study is a preliminary investigation of the effectiveness of the SIRIUS system in traffic management.The concern of the paper is the extent to which drivers respond to real-time traffic information and the consequential changes in link flow under SIRIUS. Time-series traffic data were analyzed...

Public Transit Use By Non-driving Disabled Persons: The Case Of The Blind And Vision Impaired

Golledge, R.
Costanzo, C. M.
Martson, J.
1996

This paper examines characteristics of the activity patterns of blind and vision impaired non-driving populations. The employability and movement potential of the disabled non-driving group is evaluated. Survey results of impaired public transit users are reported. Possible assistive technologies to aid in making travel decisions and undertaking travel are discussed. This paper examines characteristics of the activity patterns of blind and vision impaired non-driving populations. The employability and movement potential of the disabled non-driving group is evaluated. Survey results of...

A Survey of Value Added Resellers: Private Sector Views on Advanced Traveler Information Markets

Ygnace, Jean-Luc
Yim, Youngbin
Weissenberger, Stein
1997

This is a case study of publidprivate partnerships for the implementation of TravInfo, an advanced traveler information system for the San Francisco Bay Area. The purpose of the paper is to illuminate private sector views on how the public/private partnership should work in order to successfilly implement TravInfo. This paper reports on the analysis of a series of interviews conducted among those private sector firms who are participating in the federal Field Operational Test of TravInfo. The firms interviewed range from product manufacturers to service providers, including traffic...

Predictability of Time-Dependent Traffic Backups and Other Reproducible Traits in Experimental Highway Data

Smilowitz, Karen
Daganzo, Carlos
1999

Traffic data from a 4-mile long congested rural road in Orinda, California, are used to show that traffic delays and vehicle accumulations between any two generic observers located inside a road section can be predicted from the traffic counts measured at the extremes of the section. The traffic model does not require "recalibration" on the day of the experiment, and works well despite what appears to be location-specific driver behavior.