Advances in technology have made transportation more energy efficient in recent decades, lowering emissions per mile and per unit of freight. But according to a new study, those efficiency gains haven’t been enough to offset the rise in emissions from new transportation demand. To hold transportation emissions steady going forward, the study says, global transportation demand must not continue rising, or we must make a more dramatic shift toward electrification than currently imagined.
demand
Effects of Parking Provision on Automobile Use in Cities: Inferring Causality (McCahill, Garrick, Atkinson-Palombo and Polinski, 2015)
Automobile use has been on the rise in cities for nearly a century and so has the supply of parking. Because driving often seems unavoidable, policymakers, developers and the public push endlessly for more parking to meet demand. That push, however, might only be making matters worse. SSTI Senior Associate Chris McCahill’s research suggests that abundant parking in cities causes people to drive more, shedding important light on the question of cause and effect.
Parking increases citywide car use, SSTI researcher finds
Automobile use has been on the rise in cities for nearly a century and so has the supply of parking. Because driving often seems unavoidable, policymakers, developers and the public push endlessly for more parking to meet demand. That push, however, might only be making matters worse. SSTI Senior Associate Chris McCahill’s research suggests that abundant parking in cities causes people to drive more, shedding important light on the question of cause and effect.
New tools for estimating biking and walking demand
A new NCHRP report and presentation at the recent Pro Walk/Pro Bike conference represents a major step toward fulfilling a long-standing need for analytic methods that can effectively represent non-motorized transportation modes in the transportation and land use planning process.
Considering bike share’s role in public transit
The question of whether public bike share is helping transit systems or taking a bite out of ridership has been on many transit planners’ minds. The answer that is emerging seems to be that both cases can be true depending on the situation, but that, overall, bike share helps support and improve transit operations.
With trend towards road tolling, demand forecasting critical
As VMT decreases, forecasting demand and toll revenues for new projects is becoming increasingly difficult. DOTs should consider three new factors in traffic forecasting: first, how flat-to-declining VMT will affect revenues collected; second, how the presence of untolled parallel roadways will also impact toll revenue; and third, how driver value-of-time plays into roadway choice, also affecting toll collection.
Demand for transit continues to grow; underfunded transit agencies work to meet the need
While demand for public transit continues to grow nationally, transit agencies are facing decreasing federal and state aid. In response, cities and counties served by transit are working with the private sector and other public agencies to develop nontraditional partnerships for funding the growth in their systems. Innovative partnerships—and revenues through levying local taxes—allow transit agencies that are bursting at the seams to improve service, make capital investments, and offer more efficient routes that often result in further ridership increases.
Land Use and Traffic Congestion (AZ Department of Transportation Research Center, 2012)
A first-ever analysis of land-use and transportation demand in Arizona contradicts fears that compact, “smart growth” development, while beneficial in moderating demand, will increase localized congestion. The report, produced for Arizona DOT in March, also suggests that traditional travel demand modeling is outmoded, unable to reflect land use effects on demand, and it disputes notions that compact development is inequitable and costly.
AZ DOT report finds compact development reduces VMT without increasing localized congestion
A first-ever analysis of land-use and transportation demand in Arizona contradicts fears that compact, “smart growth” development, while beneficial in moderating demand, will increase localized congestion. The report, produced for Arizona DOT in March, also suggests that traditional travel demand modeling is outmoded, unable to reflect land use effects on demand, and it disputes notions that compact development is inequitable and costly.
Transportation needs are changing, but gas price isn’t the major factor, think tank says
Gasoline makes headlines when it reaches $4 per gallon, but this price benchmark has less affect on travel behavior than many assume, according to a new white paper by The Mobility Collaborative. The paper supports a recent SSTI analysis that also cast doubt on the power of gas prices to affect travel demand. VMT growth has flattened in recent years, but that trend correlates more strongly with re-densification of urbanized areas than with fuel prices.