The role of land-use and related policies in reducing automobile dependence has been the subject of heated policy debate for over two decades. Previous research has shed light on the correlations between land-use and travel. Yet a crucial knowledge gap still exists in establishing causality between the two. Do changes in land-use characteristics cause behavioral changes in individuals’ decisions on what transportation means to use for travel? How does land-use as a contextual factor shape the decision process and outcome of trip frequency and travel mode choice? These questions remain largely unanswered. Attempting to fill the gap, this study applied the directed acyclic graphs method to identify the causal relationship between land-use and travel in the 9-county Dallas- Fort Worth (D-FW) metropolitan area. The logit captivity (LC) model, an extension to the conventional multinomial logit, was utilized to capture the contribution of land-use in affecting individuals’ decisions on travel mode choice. All the data for this study were obtained from the North Central Texas Council of Governments (NCTCOG). Evidence from the D-FW region confirms to a certain extent the causal effects of land-use on travel. For work trips, increases in regional accessibility, job density and share of commercial land-use reduce the use of automobiles. Higher regional accessibility, however, causes households to generate automobile trips and thus leads to the increase in vehicle miles of travel (VMT). For non-work trips, population density, job density and regional accessibility are direct causes of the choice of automobile, while only regional accessibility is causally connected to reducing automobile trips and VMT. The logit captivity model results indicate that land-use contributes to captive-driving choices for home-based work trips. Lack of land-use mix at trip origins increases the probabilities of trip-makers being captive to the automobile from 0.06% to 5.62% for driving-alone and from 0.38% to 3.55% for shared-ride.

The validity of the influence of urban form on travel behavior has been a topic of interest in travel behavior research. Empirical research shows that urban form influences travel behavior causing less travel impacts. However, according to the conventional travel impact assessment following the ITE?s (Institute of Transportation Engineers) Trip Generation Handbook, developments with higher levels of urban form measures will generate a greater travel impacts because they generate higher number of trips. The ITE Trip Generation Handbook is typically used as a guideline to estimate the number of trips generated by a development. The hypothesis made in the present research is that a development defined with higher levels of land use mix, street connectivity and residential density will generate a higher number of trips because of the greater accessibility but they will be shorter in length. Therefore, the effective distance travelled will be less even though higher numbers of trips are generated. Considering the distance travelled on a roadway will be an appropriate unit for measuring the travel impacts, the research argues that VMT (Vehicle Miles Travelled) can be a better measurement unit than the number of trips to validate the influence of urban form on travel behavior.

Thesis (M. Sc. in Transportation Technology and Policy)--University of California, Davis, 2000. / "September 2000." Includes bibliographical references (p. 147-150). Also available online via the ITS Davis website (www.its.ucdavis.edu).

Originally presented as the author's Thesis (doctoral)--Technische Universität München. / "FGV-TUM." Includes bibliographical references (p. 130-134).

In the field of travel and tourism, scholars with interest in consumer behavior studies have explored different variables and linked them with the individual's behavior. Variables such as destination image, environmental awareness, service perception, preferences, and motivations for travel are commonly used to understand and predict destination selections and travel behavior. There is also enough evidence to suggest that healthy-living is positively associated with travel behavior. If any, little empirical research has been done to explore and examine the relationship between healthy-living and travel behavior. The guidelines to healthy-living have not been introduced in the literature of travel and tourism. This study is intended to shed some light on this issue and contribute to knowledge in this area. The objective of this study was twofold: (1) to develop a healthy-living attitudinal construct, and (2) examine the relationship between healthy-living behavioral and attitudinal constructs and selected travel behavior variables. Pearson's correlation coefficient analysis was undertaken to test the relationship between healthy-living and travel behavior variables. In addition, using ANOVA, the study examined if there were differences between healthy-living (behavioral and attitudinal) and socio-demographic variables; and by using Tukey's multiple comparison test, significant differences between the different groups were revealed. Finally, multiple regression analysis was undertaken with the objective to find the degree with which healthy-living alone influences travel behavior while socio-demographic variables are constant or controlled for. The overall findings of the study revealed that there seems to be a relationship between a healthy-living lifestyle and the individual travel behavior. However, the direction and strength of this relationship shows variations with respect to different dimensions of the healthy-living construct and selected travel behavior questions. The perceived importance of the interaction between healthy-living behavior and travel also implies that certain habits and practices of individuals may correspond to certain benefits and expectations that are both valued and obtained from travel experiences and at the destination site. Such information combined with demographic information may be of great help in understanding better the behavior of travelers to destinations. This research contributes to lifestyle studies in tourism and sheds further light on the complex nature of travel behavior. / Ph. D.

Metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs) have become increasingly interested in incorporating land use patterns and design ideas into transportation problems. Many design ideas under the umbrella of the New Urbanism; yet in practice they hardly get fully implemented in the standard transportation planning procedures. This research intends to contribute to the continuing debate on land use pattern-travel connection by adding further empirical evidence from the Austin, TX region. Also, it demonstrates ways to integrate land use patterns in transportation demand analysis. The study identifies 42 mixed use districts (MXD) in the Austin region and analyzes the following aspects of travel behavior in MXDs and non-MXDs: production trip rates, frequency of produced trips, network trip length, internal rate of capture, and person-miles of travel (PMT). The study contributes to transportation planning and policy making in Central Texas by providing local empirical evidence on urban form-travel connection. The study’s method and process can be of interest to a broad audience in academia and practice. / text

Car-sharing is a membership-based mobility service that offers short-term vehicle rentals. Studies have shown that car-sharing can increase transportation sustainability by encouraging the use of public transit and reducing vehicle miles traveled. This thesis examines the potential for car-sharing in Richmond, Virginia through an attitude-based qualitative pilot study. Using the theory of planned behavior as a framework, urban and suburban residents were asked questions that measured car-sharing intention strength, mode choice habit, and life change effects. The study found that even among those with positive attitudes toward car-sharing, existing habits, lack of adequate commuting alternatives and the needs of non-driving dependents were major hindrances to shared-car use. Better facilities and interventions designed to encourage the use of transit, walking, and bicycling may play an important role in overcoming these obstacles and increasing the viability of car-sharing in Greater Richmond.

O teletrabalho é uma prática que pode ser utilizada como medida de gerenciamento da demanda por transporte urbano, uma vez que tem o potencial de reduzir a necessidade de realização de viagens através da substituição de atividades presenciais, que exigem deslocamentos, pelas virtuais, realizadas com auxílio de tecnologias da informação e comunicação. Esta pesquisa procura explorar e entender como está ocorrendo a adoção do teletrabalho por empresas em São Paulo e quais são os seus principais impactos nos padrões individuais de atividades e viagens. Para alcançar este objetivo, foi realizada uma revisão abrangente da literatura seguida por dois levantamentos de dados. O primeiro consistiu em entrevistas em profundidade com representantes do departamento de recursos humanos de dez empresas, que adotavam ou não teletrabalho. Já o segundo foi realizado com teletrabalhadores e utilizou ferramentas como questionário online, aplicativo de smartphone (para coletar dados de atividades e viagens por 7 dias) e entrevistas em profundidade. As entrevistas com representantes de empresas revelam que os potenciais benefícios para as empresas e para os funcionários são os aspectos que estão motivando a disseminação do teletrabalho, mesmo que de forma lenta. Porém, por não ser ainda uma prática comum, continuam a prevalecer algumas barreiras, principalmente relacionadas à cultura organizacional. O levantamento de dados com teletrabalhadores indica que a viagem casa-trabalho e o congestionamento em São Paulo têm sido os principais motivadores para adesão, e revela diferenças importantes no comportamento relativo a viagens dos indivíduos nos dias de teletrabalho e nos dias de trabalho convencional. Enquanto o número de atividades realizadas por outros motivos que não o trabalho e o tempo a elas dedicado são similares nos dias de teletrabalho e de trabalho convencional, o número de viagens, a distância viajada e o tempo gasto em transporte se reduzem. / Telecommuting can be considered a measure for travel demand management since it has the potential to reduce trips by replacing a face to face activity, which requires travel, by a virtual one, with the use of information and communication technologies. The objective of this research is twofold: first, to explore and understand the adoption of telecommuting by companies in São Paulo and, second, to identify and to measure the main impacts of telecommuting on individuals activity-travel patterns. To achieve this aim, a comprehensive literature review was conducted, followed by two types of data collection efforts. First, in-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted with individuals responsible for Human Resources policies in ten companies adopting telecommuting or not. Second, a sample of telecommuters was recruited to answer to an online questionnaire and to provide detailed diary data for 7 days using smartphones, after which an in-depth interview was conducted. Interviews with Human Resources personnel revealed that potential benefits for companies and employees are the drivers behind the dissemination of telecommuting, although slow. As a yet unconventional practice, barriers continue to exist, particularly related to organizational culture. Data collection and analysis of telecommuters behavior shows that the congestion faced in the home-to-work trip is the main reason for adoption of telecommuting in São Paulo. Important differences in activity and travel behavior were observed between telecommuting and non-telecommuting days. While the number of participations and the time spent in non-work activities are relatively similar for the two types of days, a reduction occurred in the number of trips, total distance and time traveled on telecommuting days.

<p>In our daily use of the transportation system, we are faced with several road construction work zones. These construction work zones change how road users interact with the transportation system due to the changes that occur in the system such as increased travel times, increased delay times and vehicle stopped times. A microscopic traffic simulation was developed to depict the changes that occur in the transportation system. The impacts of the changes in the transportation system on the human travel behavior was investigated using ordered probit and logit models using five independent variables; age, gender, driving experience, annual mileage and percentage of non-work trips. Finally, a business impact assessment framework was developed to assess the impact of the road construction work zones on various businesses categories such as grocery stores, pharmacy, liquor stores and fast foods. Traffic simulation results showed that the introduction of work zones in the road network introduces an increase in delay times, vehicle stopped times, and travel times. Also, the change in average travel times, delay times and vehicle stopped times differed from road link to link. The observed average changes saw an increase as high as 318 seconds per vehicle, 237 seconds per vehicle and 242 seconds per vehicle for travel time, delay time and vehicle stopped time, respectively, for the morning peak period. An average increase as high as 1607 seconds per vehicle, 258 seconds per vehicle and 265 seconds per vehicle was observed for travel time, delay time and vehicle stopped time, respectively, for the afternoon peak period. The statistical model results indicated that, on a work trip, a high driving experience, high annual mileage, and high percentage of non-work trips makes an individual more likely to change their route. The results also showed gender difference in route choice behavior. Concerning business impacts, businesses in the work zone were impacted differently with grocery and pharmacy stores having the highest and lowest total loss in revenue, respectively.</p>

Taiwanese Travel Behaviors and Intention of Minsu Inn Consumption Abstract Amid the lifestyle trend which increasingly emphasizes leisure and travel, the questions of ¡§what are most important underlying motivation of travel in Taiwanese consumers?¡¨ ¡§what are the characteristics in Taiwanese travelers during vacations?¡¨ and ¡§how much are their intention to try to stay in the currently popular mingsu inns?¡¨ are worthy studying. Focusing on these issues, the study has integrated theories and literature of travel behaviors, proposed a theoretical model for travel behavior study on Taiwanese people, and hereby developed a scale to assessing travel motivations of Taiwanese people and established a model for empirical study in intention of mingsu inns consumption. The mainly participants of the study include professionals and technicians in Taiwan. The sample size is 445. The main results are summarized as follows: (1) Five main factors underlying Taiwanese travel are refreshment, family fusion, knowledge extension, socialization, and self-improvement. (2) The main sources of travel information are family members, media coverage, agency promotion, friends and relatives, and non-profit organization. There is a statistically significant and positive correlation between knowledge extension and agency promotion information source. (3) Major considerations in vacation planning include board and room, transportations, activities, itinerary, Nature access, and shopping. No significant correlation was found between motivations of travel and consideration about itinerary and shopping (4) Many positive and significant correlation were found between any vacation motivations of travel and intention of minsu inns consumption. (5) Negative and significant correlation between age and length of overseas travel was found, while the relationship between age and travel length significantly positive.