Travel Behavior

Where people live, work, shop, and recreate fundamentally determines their local travel options. In this study, we use an experimental research design to test how strongly the dissemination of integrated accessibility and housing information influences individuals’ residential location choices. We hypothesize that individuals who receive information about accessibility to transit and accessibility to important destinations in an area as part of each rental unit listing they see are more likely to choose to live in highaccessibility neighborhoods than are individuals who do not receive such...

This report proposes a generalized process for evaluating the ridership impact and traffic impact of a bus rapid transit system. The process proposed aims at providing such evaluation at the sketch planning stage and has a specific focus on two aspects -- the ridership forecast based on the implementation of various ITS technologies and the degradation of level of service that results from converting a traffic lane into exclusive bus lane for the implementation of a bus rapid transit system. The proposed process is tested on the Van Ness Blvd site in San Francisco, California. It is also...

Changeable Message Signs (CMSs), which are also called dynamic or variable message signs, are programmable signs used on highways worldwide to provide drivers with real-time information, such as traffic updates, roadwork warnings, and other traffic and safety-related information. CMSs allow motorists to take immediate action in response to information—to slow down or change routes, for example, which leads to safer driving conditions and less congestion. More recently, in California and throughout the U.S., CMSs have been used as part of public campaigns to promote roadway safety by...

This paper examines further characteristics of the activity patterns of blind and vision impaired non-driving populations previously discussed in PATH Database Reference No. The report begins with an exploration of the activity patterns of blind or vision impaired people, followed by an evaluation of the impact of non-driving on employability and movement potential of the disabled non-driving group. The results of a survey of blind and vision impaired users of public transit facilities are then examined. Travel behavior characteristics and travel modes are studied. Possible assistive...