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Carolina Transportation Program. TRAVELER RESPONSE TO NEW DYNAMIC INFORMATION SOURCES ANALYZING CORRIDOR AND AREA-WIDE BEHAVIORAL SURVEYS. Youngbin Yim California PATH Program University of California at Berkeley Asad J. Khattak Department of City and Regional Planning
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Carolina Transportation Program TRAVELER RESPONSE TO NEW DYNAMIC INFORMATION SOURCES ANALYZING CORRIDOR AND AREA-WIDE BEHAVIORAL SURVEYS Youngbin Yim California PATH Program University of California at Berkeley Asad J. Khattak Department of City and Regional Planning University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill Jeremy Raw Department of City and Regional Planning University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill
Objective • Goals of study • Framework for analysis • Empirical evidence for ATIS • Policy implications • TravInfo Bay Area ATIS • US DOT funded field project • PATH is TravInfo evaluator
Background • Travel information traditionally free of charge • Current TravInfo service fairly limited • Aversion to change • Switching to routes/info sources; paying for info • Gaps in ATIS • Content and quality of information is insufficient • Use of new information sources • Paucity of revealed preference data • Few attempts to understand access and use of new dynamic travel information
Travel Decisions • Types of travel decision • Gather Information • Trip Destination(s), Mode, Route, Departure Time
Decision Process • Inform • Static: Travel network, memory/experience • Dynamic: Network state, destinations, modes • Decide • Attitudes, socioeconomics, attributes (time/money) • Preferences and situational factors (trip destination) • Evaluate • Benefits: Time savings and anxiety reduction • Inform future decisions • Learn / change preferences
Dataset Description • Surveys: • Innovative contact methods • Questions on new info sources & response • Stated preference WTP questions • Responses from • Whole population (BA) • Use new info sources (TATS & ISP) • People in high-benefit incident situations (Target)
Who wants information? • Travel information is popular
Where do people get their travel info? • New information sources increasingly important • 19% use TV (BA1 & BA2) • 18%-19% use telephone (BA1 & BA 2) • 1% 4% use Internet (BA1 to BA2) • Ownership of cell-phone has far outpaced increase in cell-phone access to TravInfo • Over 50% of BA2 respondents had cell phones • 2% used them for get en route travel info
What info is desired (by those who seek it~70%)? • Current traffic conditions • Radio/TV, updated every minute • Detailed info about alternate routes around congestion • Including travel time • In-car navigation system with maps displaying fastest route • Estimates of delay time on usual route • Estimates of travel time on usual route and alternate routes • Information about travel conditions at specific locations • Accessible by phone or internet • Detailed info about transit alternatives to avoid congestion • Including schedules and stops • Automatic notification of congestion via pager or cell phone
What about non-users (~30%)? • Not relevant or obstacles to decision change • Bad info about alternatives (inaccurate, imprecise, irrelevant) • Lack of alternatives (worse than primary, or not available)
What people do with info? • Types of Decision Changes—“Decide” (for those who change ~ 33% in BA) • Route (most common) • Travel Time (common) • Mode (less common)
Why do people want dynamic information? • Key benefits—“evaluate” (BA1 N = 431; BA2 N = 658) • Distinct markets
What will people pay for information? • How many will pay? • Responses from 658 willing to acquire info (N=1000; BA2) • 17% Prefer paying monthly • 56% Prefer paying per-call • 22% Would not use if had to pay • 5% No response/Don’t know • How much? • Average $3.84 per month • Average $0.74 per call • More willing to pay for & use customized info (TATS & BA)
Conclusions • New source use significant • Trip planning & anxiety reduction • New info resources are not used to full capacity • Changing decisions based on dynamic info • Several Markets • Presently non-users of dynamic info • People who will use, but do not seek, info • People who actively seek info • People who will pay for info • Attributes of information • Subjective: Relevant? Saves time? Facilitates planning? • Objective: Accessible? Correct? On time?
Policy Implications • Better marketing • Educate public, advertise advantages • Improve system based on user feedback • Improve information quality • Personalized system • Route times with alternatives • Increased accuracy and content • Future steps • More study of traveler behavior in presence of information • Pilot personalized ATIS, perhaps fee-based