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Abstracts from theJournal of Public TransportationVolume 11, No. 3, 2008 Vehicle Trip Reduction Impacts of Transit-Oriented HousingAbstract A survey of 17 transit-oriented developments (TOD) in five U.S. metropolitan areas showed that vehicle trips per dwelling unit were substantially below what the Institute of Transportation Engineer’s Trip Generation manual estimates. Over a typical weekday period, the surveyed TOD housing projects averaged 44 percent fewer vehicle trips than that estimated by the manual (3.754 versus 6.715). Vehicle trip rates of transit-oriented housing projects were particularly low in metropolitan Washington, D.C. and Portland, Oregon, both known for successful TOD planning at the regional and corridor levels. Trip rates also generally fell as neighborhood densities increased. Local officials should account for the lower automobile use of those residing in TOD housing through such measures as traffic impact-fee adjustments and reduced off-street parking requirements. Full text (pdf) Estimating Energy Savings from Bus Improvement Options in Urban CorridorsMoazzem Hossain, Department of Civil Engineering, Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) , Bangladesh, and Scott Kennedy, Masdar Institute of Science and Technology, UAE Abstract The potential to achieve significant energy savings in the road transport sector can be a powerful driver to promote bus transport, especially bus rapid transit (BRT) development. This research introduces a spreadsheet tool for making realistic estimates of energy savings due to increased use of buses, with an explicit inclusion of the effect of congestion on traffic flow and fuel consumption. Based on scenarios developed around projected growth in trip demand, changes in vehicle technology, lane expansion, and modal distribution of trips, the model determines typical daily profiles for fuel consumption by vehicle types. A case study has been performed on an urban corridor in the city of Kuala Lumpur to compare energy usage among three scenarios: business as usual, conventional bus lane, and full-scale BRT implementation. The BRT provides significant energy savings over both alternatives, with the greatest savings achieved when locating the BRT in a newly constructed lane. Full text (pdf) Travel Demand Management: Lessons for MalaysiaJeyapalan Kasipillai and Pikkay Chan, Monash University Sunway Campus Abstract The growth in the number of motor vehicles has exacted costs on both the Malaysian economy and environment. For reasons such as increasing disposable incomes and poor management of the public transportation system, the number of vehicles has grown unabated and, in fact, is aided by various contradictory policy measures such as national car projects and the existence of fuel subsidies. A phased, five-pronged Transport Development Management-based approach is recommended towards targeting a sustainable transportation system in Malaysia: (1) alteration of charges on road taxes and car insurance, (2) elimination of fuel subsidies, (3) imposition of fuel taxes and amendments in the bases for car taxation, (4) congestion charging, particularly in Kuala Lumpur, and (5) national road pricing. This move towards an eventual sustainable transportation system is presented for consideration. Full text (pdf) More Passengers and Reduced Costs - The Optimization of the Berlin Public Transport NetworkTom Reinhold, and A. T. Kearney, GmbH Abstract The Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe (BVG) has succeeded in increasing its revenue by more than 22 percent in three years. This was made possible by restructuring the transportation network as part of an integrated marketing strategy. Traffic simulations demonstrated that improving frequency on the main lines could shorten travel times and attract many new customers to public transportation. In addition, lines outside the core network with little utilization were identified where service could be reduced to achieve significant cost savings with only a slight decline in the number of passengers. In 2004, new premium products, the MetroBus and MetroTram, were introduced; in 2006, their services were improved yet further. Today, the MetroBus and MetroTram run on the 26 most important lines (in addition to the subway), 24 hours a day at very short intervals. They are intensively marketed, and customers can understand the Metro network almost as well as they can the subway network. The new MetroBus and MetroTram products have achieved great success, with passenger volume on some lines rising by more than 30 percent. Overall, the BVG has gained more than 21 million new trips per year and reduced its annual operating costs by more than 9.5 million euros. Full text (pdf) Smart Growth and Transit - Oriented Development at the State Level: Lessons from California, New Jersey, and Western AustraliaAbstract The states of California, New Jersey, and Western Australia encourage smart growth through the employment of transit-oriented development (TOD). This article documents each state’s approach and highlights the importance of interagency cooperation at the state-level and intergovernmental cooperation between state and local governments. This article discusses the importance of state government participation in the planning and creation of policy to facilitate TOD and recommends elements for a model state TOD program. Full text (pdf) The Emerging Field of Travel Training Services: A Systems PerspectiveAbstract Travel training provides a promising approach for moving persons from paratransit to fixed-route transportation services. This study identifies current funding trends and discusses the volume and diversity of services within the travel training instruction field. Measuring the emergence of this field focused on four properties of systems: intention, boundary, resources, and exchange. We used these properties to facilitate sharing of information and learning among the participating organizations. Initial findings indicated that older, established programs tended to be larger and moved more persons to fixed routes, while programs that employed their own staff rather than contracting out staff produced more outputs per staff person. We conclude that the diversity of the field’s innovators have strengthened the problem-solving capacity. Based on the findings, a preliminary research and evaluation agenda is proposed. Full text (pdf) |
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