This paper develops and applies a practical method to estimate the benefits of improved reliability of road networks. We present a general methodology to estimate the scheduling costs due to travel time variability for car travel. In contrast to existing practical methods, we explicitly consider the effect of travel time variability on departure time choices. We focus on situations when only mean delays are known, which is typically the case when standard transport models are used. We first show how travel time variability can be predicted from mean delays. We then estimate the scheduling costs of travellers, taking into account their optimal departure time choice given the estimated travel time variability. We illustrate the methodology for air passengers traveling by car to Amsterdam Schiphol Airport. We find that on average planned improvements in network reliability only lead to a small reduction in access costs per trip in absolute terms, mainly because most air passengers drive to the airport outside peak hours, when travel time variability tends to be low. However, in relative terms the reduction in access costs due to the improvements in network reliability is substantial. In our case we find that for every 1 Euro reduction in travel time costs, there is an additional cost reduction of 0.7 Euro due to lower travel time variability, and hence lower scheduling costs. Ignoring the benefits from improved reliability may therefore lead to a severe underestimation of the total benefits of infrastructure improvements.

Cette thèse aborde la question de la fiabilité du temps de transport. L’étude de la fiabilité du temps de transport trouve ses sources dans le fait que, dans bien des situations, le temps de transport n’est pas certain, mais aléatoire. De nombreux évènements peuvent en effet modifier le temps de transport prévu par les opérateurs ou espéré par les usagers. Par ailleurs, lors de l’évaluation socioéconomique de projets d’investissement en infrastructure de transport, il peut exister un arbitrage entre gain de temps et gain de fiabilité. Or, comme la fiabilité est encore à l’heure actuelle, difficilement intégrable dans ce type d’évaluation, ces projets d’investissement voient leur rentabilité collective sous-estimée conduisant à leurs reports. Il émerge ainsi trois problématiques majeures relatives à l’étude de la fiabilité du temps de transport : sa mesure, sa valorisation monétaire (i.e. la disposition à payer des individus pour améliorer la fiabilité du temps de transport) et enfin, sa prise en compte dans les analyses coûts-avantages. Un premier chapitre permet d’adapter les mesures usuelles de la fiabilité du temps de transport appliquées dans le cadre du transport routier, aux modes de transport collectif (fer et aérien plus particulièrement). Nous proposons également une nouvelle mesure de la fiabilité, le Delay-at-Risk (DaR) inspiré de la littérature financière. Le DaR est une transposition de la mesure de la Value-at-Risk (V aR) à l’économie des transports. Cette mesure est plus utile du point de vue des usagers pour la planification des trajets avec correspondance que les autres mesures. Le deuxième chapitre a pour principal objectif de déterminer la disposition à payer des individus pour améliorer la fiabilité du temps de transport. Nous proposons un cadre théorique inspiré de la théorie de la décision en univers risqué à partir duquel nous définissons la préférence des individus à l’égard de la fiabilité (i.e. reliabilityproneness) ainsi que la prudence. Nous développons des nouvelles mesures de la fiabilité du temps de transport, exprimées comme des primes de risque : la reliability-premium et la V OR. La reliability-premium détermine le temps de transport maximum supplémentaire qu’un individu est prêt à accepter pour supprimer l’intégralité du risque sur le temps de transport. La V OR, quant à elle, se définit comme la disposition maximale à payer d’un individu pour supprimer l’intégralité du risque sur le temps de transport. Par ailleurs, nous établissons également les conséquences sur la valeur du temps (V TTS) et de la fiabilité (V OR), de la prise en considération de l’attitude à l’égard du risque sur le temps de transport des usagers (aversion et prudence). Le dernier chapitre de cette thèse a pour objet d’intégrer la fiabilité dans les évaluations socioéconomiques de projet d’investissement et plus particulièrement dans la détermination du surplus des usagers. Nous mettonsen exergue un effet de diffusion des gains de fiabilité par rapport aux gains de temps. Ainsi, nous proposons des recommandations quant à l’arbitrage entre les projets générateurs de gain de temps et de gain de fiabilité en fonction des valeurs monétaires du temps (V TTS) et de la fiabilité (V OR). / This thesis deals with the issue of travel time reliability. The study of travel time reliability emerges from the fact that in many situations, travel time is random. Many events can change the travel time forecasted by operators or expected by users. Moreover, a tradeoff may exist between time and reliability benefits when evaluating socio economic appraisal of transport infrastructure. However, since reliability is still difficult to integrate in this type of evaluation, investment projects’ collective profitability is underestimated and often postponed. Thus, three main issues of travel time reliability analysis emerge: measurement, monetary valuation and implication for cost benefit analysis. This thesis is organized in three chapters. The first chapter adapts the measure of travel time reliability typically used in the road transport context to the collective modes (rail and air, in particular). We also develop a new reliability measure: the Delay-at-Risk (DaR). DaR is an implementation of the Value-at-Risk (V aR) measure into the transport economic framework. The DaR seem to be relevant and understandable information for the users, especially to plan their travel and avoid missing their connections. The main objective of the second chapter is to define the users’ willingness to pay to improve travel time reliability. We present a theoretical framework based on decision theory under risk. We introduce the concept of reliability-proneness (i.e. travel time risk aversion) and prudence. We develop new measures of travel time reliability expressed as risk premium: the reliability-premium and V OR. The reliability-premium is the maximum amount of additional travel time that an individual is willing to accept to escape all the risk of travel time. The V OR is defined as the maximum monetary amount that an individual is willing to pay to escape all the risk of travel time. Furthermore, we also establish the link with attitudes towards risks of travel time (aversion and prudence) and the impact of the value of travel time (V TTS) and the value of reliability (V OR). The final chapter of this thesis integrates reliability in investments project’s socioeconomic appraisal. More particularly, it allows to determine users’ surplus valuation. We highlight a diffusion effect of reliability benefits with regard to travel time benefits. Thus, we propose recommendations regarding the tradeoff between projects that generate time benefits compared with reliability benefits, according to the monetary values of travel time(V TTS) and reliability (V OR).

Today’s logistics practices are moving from inventory-based push supply chains to replenishment-based pull supply chains, leading to a lower and less centralized inventory, smaller shipment sizes, and more just-in-time deliveries. As a result, industries are now demanding greater reliability in freight transportation. Delays and uncertainty in freight transportation translate directly into additional inventory, higher manufacturing costs, less economic competitiveness for businesses, and higher costs of goods that are being passed on to the consumers. Given the growing demand in freight transportation, the emerging needs to better understand freight behavior for better policy and investment decisions, and the increasing role of reliability in freight transportation, this research aims at providing a) better understanding of how the freight system users value travel time reliability in their transportation decisions, and b) advanced methods in quantifying the user’s willingness to pay for the improvement of transportation related attributes, particularly travel time reliability. To understand how the freight industry values travel time reliability in their transportation decisions, and particularly the presence of user heterogeneity, this research designed and conducted a stated preference (SP) survey for freight users in road transportation. Based on the feedback received during the pilot stage, reliability was measured as the standard deviation of travel time and presented as a frequency of on-time and late delivery in the choice scenarios. The survey collected 1,226 responses from 159 firms in Florida between January and May 2016 via online and paper methods. Various modeling approaches were explored to estimate the willingness to pay (WTP) measures among freight users, including multinomial logit (MNL) and mixed logit model. Market segmentation and interaction modeling techniques were employed to investigate preference variations among user groups, commodity groups, product type, and various other shipment characteristics, including shipping distance and weight. In general, across all groups in the sample, values of $37.00 per shipment-hour ($1.53 per ton-hour) for travel time savings and $55.00 per shipment-hour ($3.81 per ton- hour) for improvements of reliability were found in this research. Furthermore, while investigating the effects of shipping characteristics on the user’s preference in WTP, the results suggested that shipping distance and weight were the two most important variables. The results of the study help advance the understanding of the impact of the performance of transportation systems on freight transportation, which will lead to policy and investment decisions that better serve the needs of the freight community.

Cette thèse aborde la question de la fiabilité du temps de transport. L’étude de la fiabilité du temps de transport trouve ses sources dans le fait que, dans biens des situations, le temps de transport n’est pas certain, mais aléatoire. De nombreux évènements peuvent en effet modifier le temps de transport prévu par les opérateurs ou espéré par les usagers. Par ailleurs, lors de l’évaluation socioéconomique de projets d’investissement en infrastructure de transport, il peut exister un arbitrage entre gain de temps et gain de fiabilité. Or, comme la fiabilité est encore à l’heure actuelle, difficilement intégrable dans ce type d’évaluation, ces projets d’investissement voient leur rentabilité collective sous-estimée conduisant à leurs reports. Il émerge ainsi trois problématiques majeures relatives à l’étude de la fiabilité du temps de transport : sa mesure, sa valorisation monétaire (i.e. la disposition à payer des individus pour améliorer la fiabilité du temps de transport) et enfin, sa prise en compte dans les analyses coûts-avantages. Un premier chapitre permet d’adapter les mesures usuelles de la fiabilité du temps de transport appliquées dans le cadre du transport routier, aux modes de transport collectif (fer et aérien plus particulièrement). Nous proposons également une nouvelle mesure de la fiabilité, le Delay-at-Risk (DaR) inspiré de la littérature financière. Le DaR est une transposition de la mesure de la Value-at-Risk (V aR) à l’économie des transports. Cette mesure est plus utile du point de vue des usagers pour la planification des trajets avec correspondance que les autres mesures. Le deuxième chapitre a pour principal objectif de déterminer la disposition à payer des individus pour améliorer la fiabilité du temps de transport. Nous proposons un cadre théorique inspiré de la théorie de la décision en univers risqué à partir duquel nous définissons la préférence des individus à l’égard de la fiabilité (i.e. reliabilityproneness) ainsi que la prudence. Nous développons des nouvelles mesures de la fiabilité du temps de transport, exprimées comme des primes de risque : la reliability-premium et la V OR. La reliability-premium détermine le temps de transport maximum supplémentaire qu’un individu est prêt à accepter pour supprimer l’intégralité du risque sur le temps de transport. La V OR, quant à elle, se définit comme la disposition maximale à payer d’un individu pour supprimer l’intégralité du risque sur le temps de transport. Par ailleurs, nous établissons également les conséquences sur la valeur du temps (V TTS) et de la fiabilité (V OR), de la prise en considération de l’attitude à l’égard du risque sur le temps de transport des usagers (aversion et prudence). Le dernier chapitre de cette thèse a pour objet d’intégrer la fiabilité dans les évaluations socioéconomiques de projet d’investissement et plus particulièrement dans la détermination du surplus des usagers. Nous mettons en exergue un effet de diffusion des gains de fiabilité par rapport aux gains de temps. Ainsi, nous proposons des recommandations quant à l’arbitrage entre les projets générateurs de gain de temps et de gain de fiabilité en fonction des valeurs monétaires du temps (V TTS) et de la fiabilité (V OR). / This thesis deals with the issue of travel time reliability. The study of travel time reliability emerges from the fact that in many situations, travel time is random. Many events can change the travel time forecasted by operators or expected by users. Moreover, a tradeoff may exist between time and reliability benefits when evaluating socio economic appraisal of transport infrastructure. However, since reliability is still difficult to integrate in this type of evaluation, investment projects’ collective profitability is underestimated and often postponed. Thus, three main issues of travel time reliability analysis emerge: measurement, monetary valuation and implication for cost benefit analysis. This thesis is organized in three chapters. The first chapter adapts the measure of travel time reliability typically used in the road transport context to the collective modes (rail and air, in particular). We also develop a new reliability measure: the Delay-at-Risk (DaR). DaR is an implementation of the Value-at-Risk (V aR) measure into the transport economic framework. The DaR seem to be relevant and understandable information for the users, especially to plan their travel and avoid missing their connections. The main objective of the second chapter is to define the users’ willingness to pay to improve travel time reliability. We present a theoretical framework based on decision theory under risk. We introduce the concept of reliability-proneness (i.e. travel time risk aversion) and prudence. We develop new measures of travel time reliability expressed as risk premium: the reliability-premium and V OR. The reliability-premium is the maximum amount of additional travel time that an individual is willing to accept to escape all the risk of travel time. The V OR is defined as the maximum monetary amount that an individual is willing to pay to escape all the risk of travel time. Furthermore, we also establish the link with attitudes towards risks of travel time (aversion and prudence) and the impact of the value of travel time (V TTS) and the value of reliability (V OR). The final chapter of this thesis integrates reliability in investments project’s socioeconomic appraisal. More particularly, it allows to determine users’ surplus valuation. We highlight a diffusion effect of reliability benefits with regard to travel time benefits. Thus, we propose recommendations regarding the tradeoff between projects that generate time benefits compared with reliability benefits, according to the monetary values of travel time (V TTS) and reliability (V OR).

Managed lane refers to the application of various operational and design strategies on highway facilities to improve system efficiency and mobility by proactively allocating traffic capacity to different lanes. One of the key elements to understand the behavior changes and underlying causalities in user responses to managed lanes is to examine the value of time (VOT) and value of reliability (VOR). The breadth of this dissertation encompasses two major dimensions of VOT and VOR estimation – distributions or variations across different users and under different circumstances; and influences of unobserved attitudinal characteristics on roadway pricing valuation. To understand travelers’ choice behavior regarding the usage of managed lanes, combined revealed preference (RP) and stated preference (SP) data were used in this study. Mixed logit modeling was applied as the state of the art methodology to capture heterogeneity in users’ choice behavior. The model revealed an average value of $10.68 per hour for VOT and $13.91 per hour for VOR, which are reasonable considering the average household income in the region, and are well within the ranges found in the literature. In terms of user heterogeneity, the mixed logit model was further enhanced by adding interaction effects of variables, which helped recognize and quantify potential sources of heterogeneity in user sensitivities to time, reliability, and cost. The findings indicated that travelers were likely to exhibit higher willingness to pay when they were female, younger (years), older (>54 years), had higher income (> 50 K), driving alone, and traveled on weekdays. Attitudinal aspects are rarely incorporated into roadway pricing analysis. The study herein presents an effort to explore the role of attitudinal factors in drivers’ propensity toward using managed lanes. Model results boded for a significant contribution of attitudinal parameters in the model, both in terms of coefficients and model performance. This study provides a robust approach to quantify user heterogeneity in VOT and VOR and capture the impacts of attitudinal attributes in pricing valuation. The results of this study contribute to a better understanding on what attributes lead to higher or lower VOT and VOR and to what extent.