by Innovative Mobility Research | Apr 8, 2021 |
Authors: Jessica Lazarus, Gordon Bauer, Jeffery Greenblatt, PhD, Susan Shaheen, PhD Date: March 1, 2021 Abstract: This research investigates strategies to improve the mobility of low-income travelers by incentivizing the use of electric SAVs (SAEVs) and public transit. We employ two agent-based simulation engines, an activity-based travel demand model of the San Francisco Bay Area, and vehicle movement data from the San Francisco Bay Area and the Los Angeles Basin to model emergent travel behavior of commute trips in response to subsidies for TNCs and public transit. Sensitivity analysis was conducted to assess the impacts of different subsidy scenarios on mode choices, TNC pooling and match rates, vehicle occupancies, vehicle miles traveled (VMT), and TNC revenues. The scenarios varied in the determination of which travel modes and income levels were eligible to receive a subsidy of $1.25, $2.50, or $5.00 per ride. Four different mode-specific subsidies were investigated, including subsidies for 1) all TNC rides, 2) pooled TNC rides only, 3) all public transit rides, and 4) TNC rides to/from public transit only. Each of the four modespecific subsidies were applied in scenarios which subsidized travelers of all income levels, as well as scenarios that only subsidized low-income travelers (earning less than $50,000 annual household income). Simulations estimating wait times for TNC trips in both the San Francisco Bay Area and Los Angeles regions also revealed that wait times are distributed approximately equally across low- and high-income trip requests. View...
by Innovative Mobility Research | May 30, 2019 |
Authors: Elliot W Martin, Nelson D Chan, Susan A Shaheen Published: January 2012 Abstract: Ecodriving, the concept of changing driving behavior and vehicle maintenance to impact fuel consumption and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in existing vehicles, has gained recent prominence in North America. One ecodriving strategy involves public education through Internet-based information dissemination. This paper presents the results of a controlled stated-response study conducted from June to December 2010 with approximately 100 University of California, Berkeley faculty, staff, and students, assessing the effectiveness of static ecodriving web-based information. A comparison of the experimental and control groups found that exposure to ecodriving information influenced people’s driving behavior and maintenance practices. The experimental group’s distributional shift was statistically significant, particularly for key practices including: lower highway cruising speed, driving behavior adjustment, and proper tire inflation. Within the experimental group (N = 51), fewer respondents significantly changed their maintenance practices (16%) than the majority that altered some driving practices (71%); this suggests intentional altering of driving behavior is easier than planning better maintenance practices. A comparison of before-and-after surveys found that 57% of the experimental group improved their ecodriving behavior, while 43% made no change or worsened. Key characteristics of the drivers that improved include: being female, living in smaller households, and owning a newer car with higher fuel economy. While it was evident that not everyone modifies their behavior as a result of reviewing the website, even small shifts in behavior due to inexpensive information dissemination could be deemed cost effective in reducing fuel consumption and emissions. View...
by Innovative Mobility Research | Aug 26, 2015 |
Author: Elliot Martin, Ph.D, Kanok Boriboonsomsin, Ph.D, Nelson Chan, Nigel Williams, Susan Shaheen, Ph.D, Matthew Barth, Ph.D Date Published: November 15, 2012 Abstract: Ecodriving describes the behavioral modifications that drivers can make to improve their fuel economy. Dynamic ecodriving comprises the use of real-time feedback information that informs the driver of vehicle performance. This study evaluates the performance of an aftermarket real-time feedback device that reported instantaneous fuel economy to drivers while driving. Study participants (N = 18) drove with the device for two months. During the first month, the device provided no feedback, but collected data on driving activity. During the second month, the device continued to collect data, but also provided the participant with feedback on real-time fuel economy. Participants could then use the information to self-teach how to improve their fuel economy. The participants took two surveys to evaluate their response to the device, and vehicle activity data was analyzed to ascertain the degree to which driving behavior changed. A majority (56%) reported in surveys that the device changed how they drove during the second month. Vehicle activity data showed that different participants modified different behaviors in response to the feedback. Nine participants made some reduction to their acceleration from a stop, and eight made some reduction in the magnitude of their deceleration to a stop. Eleven participants reduced their average highway speeds. Across the broader sample, average highway speeds declined from 65.9 to 65.4 mph. Overall changes observed in fuel efficiency were small across...
by Innovative Mobility Research | Jul 21, 2015 |
Authors: Elliot Martin, Nelson Chan, Susan Shaheen Published: November 15, 2011 Abstract: Ecodriving, the concept of changing driving behavior and vehicle maintenance to impact fuel consumption and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in existing vehicles, has gained recent prominence in North America. One ecodriving strategy involves public education through Internet-based information dissemination. This paper presents the results of a controlled stated-response study conducted with approximately 100 University of California, Berkeley faculty, staff, and students, assessing the effectiveness of static ecodriving web-based information. A comparison of the experimental and control groups found that exposure to ecodriving information influenced people’s driving behavior and maintenance practices. The experimental group’s distributional shift was statistically significant, particularly for key practices including: lower highway cruising speed, driving behavior adjustment, and proper tire inflation. Within the experimental group (N = 51), fewer respondents significantly changed their maintenance practices (16%) than the majority that altered some driving practices (71%); this suggests intentional altering of driving behavior is easier than planning better maintenance practices. A comparison of before- and after-surveys found that 57% of the experimental group improved their ecodriving behavior, while 43% made no change or worsened. Key characteristics of the drivers that improved include: being female, living in smaller households, and owning a newer car with higher fuel economy. While it was evident that not everyone modifies their behavior as a result of reviewing the website, even small shifts in behavior due to inexpensive information dissemination could be deemed cost effective in reducing fuel consumption and emissions. View...
by Innovative Mobility Research | Jul 21, 2015 |
Authors: Caroline Rodier, Susan Shaheen, Ellen Cavanagh Published: January 1, 2006 Abstract: In the past five years, commercial vehicle travel has increased 60 percent on California’s highways, without a corresponding increase in compliance inspection station capacity or enforcement officers. Commercial vehicles that do not comply with regulations impose significant public costs including, for example, pavement and structural damage to roads and catastrophic crashes. In response to these problems, the California Department of Transportation is investigating the potential application of detection and communication technology in virtual compliance stations (VCS) to cost effectively improve enforcement of commercial vehicle regulations. This study begins with a description of the fledgling VCS research programs in the U.S., as well as more advanced international VCS programs. Next, the results of expert interviews with key officials involved in the early deployment stages of VCS programs in Kentucky, Florida, and Indiana, and Saskatchewan are reported. This is followed by an analysis of institutional barriers to VCS screening and automated enforcement based on the relatively extensive body of literature on the commercial vehicle electronic pre-screening programs and red-light and speeding automated enforcement programs. The paper concludes with some key recommendations to address legal and institutional barriers to VCS deployment in the U.S. View...
