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The objective of this study is to determine the best SARS customs strategy that can be implemented as a tool to assist the facilitation of trade and Regional integration in SADC Region because the process of integration is facing many challenges. A literature review of scholarly literature was conducted on regional integration of SADC that offered an international perspective on the experiences of other countries who have undergone similar experiences of integration and trade facilitation. With a historical background of Regional integration with the demonstration of SARS customs strategy that can be adopted to facilitate the process of trade and regional integration and, proposed future model and strategic plans to achieve the future goals. Research methodology and design was done through the combination of the four research types classification in their order of sophistication except the predictive research. These are namely exploratory, descriptive, and analytical or explanatory researches and include deductive research. The compilation of data through questionnaires was employed. The findings discussed in Chapter Five indicate that there are some gains that can be achieved by SADC members through free trade agreement. Recommendation from the study is that progression towards deeper integration requires the participation of the stakeholder and ownership at national level. The national and regional institutions require good governance.

published_or_final_version / Social Work / Master / Master of Social Work

M.A. (Social Work) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

Public transportation, although modest in the United States carrying about 2 percent trips, still serves millions of people as the main and only means of transportation. Recently released data set by Census, the 2006 American Community Survey (ACS) shows the main mode of travel for work commute is not surprisingly the automobile with over 86 percent and public transportation with nearly 5 percent users. Transit agencies strive to provide effective, convenient, and desirable transport. Because of the constant changes in our environment, being able to predict the response of riders to different network or system changes is extremely useful. Ridership can be described as a function of the amount of service supplied such as frequency, span of service, and travel time. One of the methods for estimating ridership forecasts and evaluating ridership response is to use the new state-of-art software TBEST. TBEST stands for Transit Boardings Estimation and Simulation Tool and is the third generation of such transit models sponsored by the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT). Designed for comprehensive transit network and short term transit planning, it offers great benefits to its users. TBEST is a user friendly, yet very advanced transit ridership forecasting graphical software which is interfaced with ArcGIS. This paper evaluates different sensitivity tests and compares the results to known industry used elasticities. Because the current TBEST experience is modest, the results will provide users with a general idea of the model's sensitivity and help in the process of model refinements. Sensitivity tests such as service frequency, span of service, service allocation, and travel time will be carried out in a systematic order for all six time periods as defined by TBEST. Results showed that TBEST Model is overestimating and is highly sensitive to headway changes, specifically headway decrease. The opposite effect of almost no sensitivity is shown for the in-vehicle travel times.

This research aims at developing a better understanding of commuters preferences and mode switching behaviour towards local transit for work trips. The proposed methodological approach incorporates three main stages. The first introduces a conceptual framework for modal shift maximized transit route design model that extends the use of demand models beyond forecasting transit ridership to the operational extent of transit route design. The second deals with designing and implementing a socio-psychometric COmmuting Survey for MOde Shift (COSMOS). Finally, the third stage focuses on developing econometric choice models of mode switching behaviour towards public transit. Advanced mode shift models are developed using state-of-the-art methodology of combining Revealed Preference (RP) and Stated Preference (SP) information. The results enriched our understanding of mode switching behaviour and revealed some interesting findings. Some socio-psychological variables have shown to have strong influence on mode shift and improved the models in terms of fitness and statistical significance. In an indication of the superiority of the car among other travel options, strong car use habit formation was realized for car drivers, making it hard to persuade them to switch to public transit. Further, unlike conventional choice models, the developed mode shift models showed that travel cost and in-vehicle travel time are of lower importance compared to other transit Level of Service (LOS) attributes such as waiting time, service reliability, number of transfers, transit technology, and crowding level. The results also showed that passengers are more likely to shift to rail-based modes (e.g. LRT and subway) than rubber-tyred modes (e.g. BRT). On the other hand, the availability of park-and-ride facilities as well as both schedule and real-time information provision did not appear to be significant for mode switching to public transit for work trips. This research provides evidence that mode shift is a complex process which involves socio-psychological variables beside common socio-demographic and modal attributes. The developed mode switching models present a new methodologically sound tool for evaluating the impacts of alternative transit service designs on travel behaviour. Such tool is more desirable for transit service planning than the traditional ones and can aid in precisely estimating transit ridership.

This research aims at developing a better understanding of commuters preferences and mode switching behaviour towards local transit for work trips. The proposed methodological approach incorporates three main stages. The first introduces a conceptual framework for modal shift maximized transit route design model that extends the use of demand models beyond forecasting transit ridership to the operational extent of transit route design. The second deals with designing and implementing a socio-psychometric COmmuting Survey for MOde Shift (COSMOS). Finally, the third stage focuses on developing econometric choice models of mode switching behaviour towards public transit. Advanced mode shift models are developed using state-of-the-art methodology of combining Revealed Preference (RP) and Stated Preference (SP) information. The results enriched our understanding of mode switching behaviour and revealed some interesting findings. Some socio-psychological variables have shown to have strong influence on mode shift and improved the models in terms of fitness and statistical significance. In an indication of the superiority of the car among other travel options, strong car use habit formation was realized for car drivers, making it hard to persuade them to switch to public transit. Further, unlike conventional choice models, the developed mode shift models showed that travel cost and in-vehicle travel time are of lower importance compared to other transit Level of Service (LOS) attributes such as waiting time, service reliability, number of transfers, transit technology, and crowding level. The results also showed that passengers are more likely to shift to rail-based modes (e.g. LRT and subway) than rubber-tyred modes (e.g. BRT). On the other hand, the availability of park-and-ride facilities as well as both schedule and real-time information provision did not appear to be significant for mode switching to public transit for work trips. This research provides evidence that mode shift is a complex process which involves socio-psychological variables beside common socio-demographic and modal attributes. The developed mode switching models present a new methodologically sound tool for evaluating the impacts of alternative transit service designs on travel behaviour. Such tool is more desirable for transit service planning than the traditional ones and can aid in precisely estimating transit ridership.

This paper addresses itself to the problem of the analysis of the decision making processes in the area of Human Resources Planning.

The primary purpose of this study was to identify and validate the components of a community recreation needs assessment framework that will accurately facilitate the leisure need data of community recreation clientele. The content of such a framework was generated by an investigation of those variables which: (1) restrain or prevent the use, or accurate use, of community recreation needs assessment, defined as restraining forces, and (2) enable or facilitate the use, or accurate use, of community recreation needs assessment, defined as enabling forces. Data collection consisted of a review of literature, in depth interviews, a postcard questionnaire, and a mailed survey. Following the analysis of respondent demographics and agency attitudes on community recreation needs assessment (CRNA), two analyses were performed to investigate the components of CRNA. The first analysis investigated the significance level of the enabling and restraining forces of the CRNA process. A t-test was run on all items for the total population, comparing the mean of each item to 2.5 which is a response of neutral. Following the t-test, a one-way analysis of variance was used to determine if any differences existed among the means of the three levels of community size for each of the variables. In the second analysis, a conceptual framework was developed to support further investigation into the mechanisms which result in meeting community needs. Based on an overall review of the literature, the enabling and restraining variables were organized into concepts, constructs, and items. Each concept and construct set was analyzed for internal consistency using Cronback's Alpha, item deleted, to produce a measure of reliability that denoted the strength of the relationships among the items of each set and allowed an assessment of the homogeneity of each set of items and constructs. An item to total score correlation of the Pearson Product Moment correlation, item deleted, was used to examine the relationship of each item to its own construct, each construct to its own concept, and each concept to the whole, and was also used to examine the relationship of each item to other constructs within its own concept, and the relationships of each construct to other concepts. Twenty-eight of 30 individuals responded to the survey questionnaire. Of the 92 restraining and enabling variables, 59 were found to be significantly greater than neutral, while none of the items were found to be significantly less than neutral. Significant differences were found to exist for seven variables at the .05 level for the three levels of community size. The analyses of the conceptual framework provided information detailing the strengths and weaknesses of the items, constructs, and concepts in relation to the reliability, validity, and relative appropriateness that each has to the CRNA process. / Ed. D. / incomplete_metadata

Management prescriptions that describe desired conditions for resources and visitor experiences have become widely accepted as an important component of public land management plans. However, very little effort is spent on evaluating and learning about this part of the planning process. This research identifies and addresses the need to explore opportunities for additional guidance on the development of management prescriptions, by (1) evaluating the current perception of the purpose of management prescriptions; (2) developing criteria and other tools to guide the development of management prescriptions based on the experiences of public land management professionals; and (3) testing an alternative method for collecting visitor preference data regarding social, resource and management conditions to inform development of management prescriptions. The first two papers report the results of a visitor preference study, using the stated choice method, conducted in Acadia National Park. The purpose of the first paper is to identify visitor preferences for tradeoffs among social, resource and related management conditions of the recreation setting. The purpose of the second paper is to identify differences among visitor preferences for social, resource and management conditions in various recreation settings. By considering the integrative nature of these attributes and the relative importance to visitors across recreation settings, the definition of management prescriptions can be better informed. To further investigate the results of the stated choice method and ensure the validity of the data, a verbal protocol assessment was applied to a sample of the stated choice survey respondents. The purpose of the third paper is to reexamine the role of management prescriptions for park management planning and investigate tools for facilitating development of management prescriptions. The study included in-depth interviews, participant observation of a three-day planning workshop and a written survey. All of the participants in the various components of the study were National Park Service land management professionals. The study resulted in a list of the purpose and criteria for management prescriptions and a related menu of desired condition topics, which will be integrated into planning guidance to aid the development of unique and effective management prescriptions for national parks. / Ph. D.