An NCHRP report highlights the need to develop a collective appreciation for the modern demands on the nation’s multimodal transportation system. The research team considers four thematic case studies reflective of the major sectors influencing current and future transportation: agriculture, domestic energy, e-retail, and the next-generation workforce.
research
Research points to factors affecting crash rates among states
A new report from the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute highlights differences in fatal crash rates among the 50 states and D.C. These numbers can tell us a lot about what factors contribute to upwards of 30,000 to 40,000 preventable deaths each year. In a separate analysis of the data, Richard Florida reveals that car deaths are less common in denser, more urban states and in those with strong, knowledge-based economies, which leaves other states at a particular disadvantage.
Research shows advantages, use patterns for different car-sharing models
Car sharing is maturing, expanding options beyond the initial model of a station-based system structured around accessing and returning cars parked at designated location. Of particular interest is the free-floating car share model, or FFCS, which allows members to pick up and drop off a car anywhere within the service area without being tied to a designated parking location. This new choice, in use in Montreal, expands service flexibility geographically, but also broadens the member demographic, which could have additional environmental and congestion mitigation benefits.
Study confirms that 10-foot lanes make safer intersections
Side impact- and turn-related crash rates are lowest at intersections where average lane widths are between 10 and 10.5 feet, according to a study presented at the Canadian Institute of Transportation’s annual meeting last month. This challenges the long-held, but often disputed, assumption that wider lanes are safer.
Compact, connected development patterns on the rise since mid-1990s
Low density, disconnected development patterns—or sprawl—peaked in the mid-1990s, then declined by as much as 9 percent in the following decades, according to a new analysis of street patterns published by the National Academy of Sciences.
It’s not all about the mode: Race and gender bias in yielding to non-motorized road users
Two recent studies suggest that bias in driver behavior toward other road users could be contributing to enhanced stress levels for certain groups of pedestrians and bicyclists. Recent research documents a difference in drivers yielding to pedestrians based on race in Portland, OR. A second study out of the UK concludes women cyclists are more likely than men to experience “incidents” (passing too closely, verbal harassment, etc.).
New study links low-cost and free recreation facilities near work sites with active commuting
A recently released study has added further detail to our understanding of the link between commuting mode choice and workplace and environmental variables. The study linked residential proximity to transit stops and employer-provided free or reduced-price transit passes to commuters’ likelihood of choosing transit. It also linked shorter commuting distances and the availability of bike parking at workplaces to commuters’ decisions to bike or walk to work.
Insurers taken to task for ignoring drivers’ mileage when setting rates
A recently released study from the Consumer Federation of America has found that insurers rarely give low-mileage drivers much of a break on their rates despite the fact that mileage driven is one of the best predictors of insurance claims, and most consumers feel that basing rates on mileage is fair.
Major cost overruns common among megaprojects
Megaprojects, which have been in the news lately due to issues with Seattle’s Alaskan Way Viaduct replacement projects, frequently experience significant delays and cost overruns, according to researchers at Oxford University. But this outcome it is largely avoidable, they say.
Drivers more likely to ignore crosswalks at speeds above 30 mph
According to a new study published by the Transportation Research Board, drivers traveling at higher speeds are also far less likely to yield to pedestrians in crosswalks. The study, conducted in Boston, reveals that drivers are nearly four times more likely to yield for pedestrians at travel speeds around 20 miles per hour than at 40 mph.