| Summary: | Thesis (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering, 2005. === Includes bibliographical references (p. 115-117). === A framework for analyzing drive-access transit at a regional level is developed in this research. This framework is intended primarily for in-house use by regional transit agencies, yet has implications for the regional community at large. This framework serves as a tool for understanding and communicating what drive-access transit is, its significance to the regional transportation system, and the behavior of regional drive-access transit users. This framework emphasizes the utilization of GIS technology for both the analysis and communication of information relating to drive-access transit. It also focuses scholarly attention on drive-access transit in general and on kiss-and-ride in particular. The framework is applied to the Boston Metropolitan Region as a primary case study. Data from a variety of regional sources are utilized. GIS technology is used to visualize drive-access transit's regional significance in terms of total ridership, mode share, and drive-access transit facilities' utilization rates. A sub-mode choice model and a station choice model are developed for both rapid transit and commuter rail drive-access transit users. These models depend on the CTPS Emme/2 network model and the MIT Boston Regional TransCAD network model for the rapid transit and commuter rail models, respectively. The MIT Boston Regional TransCAD network model is intended to support on-going research, beyond the scope of this thesis, as part of the collaborative MBTA/MIT transit research effort. As a result of the application of the analytical framework, key findings and specific recommendations related to drive-access transit are reported for the Boston Metropolitan Region. === (cont.) Key findings include: · approximately 46 percent of the region's population lives beyond normal walking distance of transit services; * drive-access transit accounts for 69 percent of overall commuter rail ridership and 18 percent of overall rapid transit ridership; * drive-access transit accounts for 31 percent of rapid transit ridership in the 50 outermost rapid transit stations; * the MBTA has a significant investment in station parking facilities, parking fees represent an increasingly important part of the MBTA's operating budget, and parking fees in the region evidence no spatial correlation; * 71 percent of regional parking facilities reached 85 percent of capacity, many of them filling hours prior to the departure of the last morning peak train; * commuter rail station choice is dependent on access distance, parking capacities, and transit fares, with travelers willing to drive an extra mile if it results in savings of more than $0.90 on their transit fare; * rapid transit station choice is dependent on access distance, parking capacities, and transit trip distances, with travelers willing to drive an extra mile if it results in transit trip reduction of more than 3.3 miles; * sub-mode choice for both commuter rail and rapid transit users depends on access distance, automobile availability, and the number of vehicles owned per capita. Recommendations included: * Making drive-access transit and particularly kiss-and-ride a regional transportation priority. * Utilizing the developed models temporarily for modeling proposed services and policy implications until better data can be collected for a more complete model estimation process. === (cont.) * Promote drive-access transit, especially kiss-and-ride and carpooling to parking stations, through targeting responsive demographic markets, and through incentives such as reduced transit fares, parking fees, or preferential parking treatment. This research is an important initial step in assessing drive-access transit and its regional transportation role. === by James Barrett Sorensen. === S.M.
|
|---|
