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Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons™
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Articles 1 - 28 of 28
Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences
Does Transit Service Reliability Influence Ridership?, Srinivas S. Pulugurtha, Raunak Mishra, Sravya L. Jayanthi
Does Transit Service Reliability Influence Ridership?, Srinivas S. Pulugurtha, Raunak Mishra, Sravya L. Jayanthi
Mineta Transportation Institute
This research focused on analyzing the association between transit service reliability indicators and ridership. Further, the effect of road network, demographic, socioeconomic, and land use characteristics on transit service reliability was analyzed. The analysis was conducted at a bus stop level. Bus arrival/departure and ridership data from the Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS) was obtained. The road network, demographic, socioeconomic, and land use characteristics were captured within 0.25-mile and 0.50-mile buffers. Pearson correlation analysis was conducted to understand the association between road network, demographic, socioeconomic, and land use characteristics and bus transit service reliability measures. The results show that bus …
Effect Of Weather Events On Travel Time Reliability And Crash Occurrence, Sonu Mathew, Srinivas S. Pulugurtha
Effect Of Weather Events On Travel Time Reliability And Crash Occurrence, Sonu Mathew, Srinivas S. Pulugurtha
Mineta Transportation Institute
The magnitude of the effect of adverse weather conditions on road operational performance varies with the type of weather condition and the road characteristics of the road links and adjacent links. Therefore, the relationship between weather and traffic is always a concern to traffic engineers and planners, and they have extensively explored ways to integrate weather information into transportation systems. Understanding the influence of weather on operational performance and safety helps traffic engineers and planners to proactively plan and manage transportation systems. The main objective of this research is to evaluate the effect of adverse weather conditions on travel time …
Exploring The Use Of Public Transportation Among Older Adults During The Covid-19 Pandemic: A National Survey, Keertana Sureshbabu, Egbe-Etu Etu, Susan Summerville, Ankur Parmar, Gaojian Huang
Exploring The Use Of Public Transportation Among Older Adults During The Covid-19 Pandemic: A National Survey, Keertana Sureshbabu, Egbe-Etu Etu, Susan Summerville, Ankur Parmar, Gaojian Huang
Mineta Transportation Institute
Public transportation is an essential part of many older adults’ lives, but the pandemic presented new challenges for the vulnerable population. Adults aged 65 years and older experienced additional challenges, such as limited mobility options (e.g., lack of buses or trains in service due a combination of government lockdowns, fear of contracting or spreading the virus, and driver shortages in certain areas) because of the pandemic, which may have resulted in more age-related declines in perceptual, cognitive, and physical functioning. This study explores how older adults living in major metropolitan cities in the United States used and perceived public transportation …
Ai-Based Pedestrian Detection And Avoidance At Night Using An Ir Camera, Radar, And A Video Camera, Hovannes Kulhandjian
Ai-Based Pedestrian Detection And Avoidance At Night Using An Ir Camera, Radar, And A Video Camera, Hovannes Kulhandjian
Mineta Transportation Institute
In 2019, the United States experienced more than 6,500 pedestrian fatalities involving motor vehicles which resulted in a 67% rise in nighttime pedestrian fatalities and only a 10% rise in daytime pedestrian fatalities. In an effort to reduce fatalities, this research developed a pedestrian detection and alert system through the application of a visual camera, infrared camera, and radar sensors combined with machine learning. The research team designed the system concept to achieve a high level of accuracy in pedestrian detection and avoidance during both the day and at night to avoid potentially fatal accidents involving pedestrians crossing a street. …
Spatio-Temporal Analysis Of Roadside Transportation-Related Air Quality (Startraq 2021): A Characterization Of Bike Trails And Highways In The Fresno/Clovis Area, Jaymin Kwon, Yushin Ahn, Steve Chung
Spatio-Temporal Analysis Of Roadside Transportation-Related Air Quality (Startraq 2021): A Characterization Of Bike Trails And Highways In The Fresno/Clovis Area, Jaymin Kwon, Yushin Ahn, Steve Chung
Mineta Transportation Institute
The San Joaquin Valley is identified as an area with a high level of particulate matter (PM) in the air, reaching above the federal and state clean air standards (EPA 2019). Many of the cities in the valley are classified as the most polluted cities in the United States for both particulate matter and ozone pollution (American Lung Association, 2021). To resolve this issue, alternative forms of transportation have been considered in transportation planning. In this study, active transportation mode air quality was monitored on selected Woodward Park and Old Clovis trails and urban bike lanes. Real-time aerosol monitors, and …
Fragmented Or Aligned Climate Action: Assessing Linkages Between Regional And Local Planning Efforts To Meet Transportation Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reduction Targets, Serena E. Alexander, Ahoura Zandiatashbar, Branka Tatarevic
Fragmented Or Aligned Climate Action: Assessing Linkages Between Regional And Local Planning Efforts To Meet Transportation Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reduction Targets, Serena E. Alexander, Ahoura Zandiatashbar, Branka Tatarevic
Mineta Transportation Institute
Amid the rising climate change concerns, California enacted Senate Bill 375 (SB 375) to tackle transportation greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. SB 375 requires Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs) to develop a Sustainable Communities Strategy (SCS), a regional transportation and land use vision plan, to reduce GHG emissions. Meanwhile, a local government can develop a Climate Action Plan (CAP), a non-binding, voluntary plan to reduce GHG emissions that may align with the regional SCS. Recent progress reports indicate California is not making sufficient progress to meet SB 375 emissions reduction targets, which raises important questions: (1) Are the transportation and land use …
Damage Detection And Damage Localization In Bridges With Low-Density Instrumentations Using The Wave-Method: Application To A Shake-Table Tested Bridge, Mehran Rahmani, Xintong Ji, Sovann Reach Kiet
Damage Detection And Damage Localization In Bridges With Low-Density Instrumentations Using The Wave-Method: Application To A Shake-Table Tested Bridge, Mehran Rahmani, Xintong Ji, Sovann Reach Kiet
Mineta Transportation Institute
This study presents a major development to the wave method, a methodology used for structural identification and monitoring. The research team tested the method for use in structural damage detection and damage localization in bridges, the latter being a challenging task. The main goal was to assess capability of the improved method by applying it to a shake-table-tested prototype bridge with sparse instrumentation. The bridge was a 4-span reinforced concrete structure comprising two columns at each bent (6 columns total) and a flat slab. It was tested to failure using seven biaxial excitations at its base. Availability of a robust …
Connected Simulation For Work Zone Safety Application, Vahid Balali
Connected Simulation For Work Zone Safety Application, Vahid Balali
Mineta Transportation Institute
Every year, over 60,000 work zone crashes are reported in the United States (FHWA 2016). Such work zone crashes have resulted in over 4,400 fatal and 200,000 non-fatal injuries in the last 5 years (FHWA 2016, BLS 2014). Apart from the physical and emotional trauma, the annual cost of these injuries exceeds $4 million-representing significant wasted resources. To improve work zone safety, this research developed a system architecture for unveiling high-risk behavioral patterns among highway workers, equipment operators, and drivers within dynamic highway work zones. This research implemented the use of a connected virtual environment, which is an immersive hyper-realistic …
Developing A Feasible Business Model For Expanding The Ev Market To Lower Income Californians, Samer Sarofim, Aly Tawfik
Developing A Feasible Business Model For Expanding The Ev Market To Lower Income Californians, Samer Sarofim, Aly Tawfik
Mineta Transportation Institute
Electric vehicles (EVs) are a valuable tool in addressing the climate and energy challenges placed on our transportation systems. However, while national and international market shares of EVs have been rising with exponential rates, access to EVs of low-income populations has been significantly slower. This research developed a business model for expanding the EV market to low-income Californians. The team developed the model from qualitative data from various stakeholders, including Electric and Solar Companies, Professional and Community-Based Organizations, State Agencies, research institutions, and more, which enabled insights regarding various barriers that hinder the adoption of EVs. The team also used …
Analyzing The Use And Impacts Of Oakland Slow Streets And Potential Scalability Beyond Covid-19, Gordon Douglas, David Moore
Analyzing The Use And Impacts Of Oakland Slow Streets And Potential Scalability Beyond Covid-19, Gordon Douglas, David Moore
Mineta Transportation Institute
This report presents the results of a mixed-methods study of the 2020-2022 Oakland Slow Streets program. An official response to the Covid-19 pandemic, the program used signs and temporary barricades to limit thru-traffic on 21 miles of city streets to create more and safer space for walking, cycling, and outdoor recreation. Researchers collected data throughout the summer of 2021 on seven designated slow streets plus one cross street and one control street for each – a total of 21 street segments representing conditions in seven different neighborhoods across Oakland. Data collection comprised in-person passerby counts, observations and photographs of local …
Manual For Asphalt Pavement Repair And Resurfacing Preparation, Dingxin Cheng, Gary Hicks, Roger D. Smith
Manual For Asphalt Pavement Repair And Resurfacing Preparation, Dingxin Cheng, Gary Hicks, Roger D. Smith
Mineta Transportation Institute
Timely repairs of pavement defects are essential in protecting an important investment and asset that public agencies have. These repairs may be made as durable “stand-alone” repairs of isolated problems, or as part of preparations for a total resurfacing. This manual provides basic information on the planning, materials and construction aspects of common pavement repairs such as crack sealing, crack filling, and patching, as well as a broader look at other preparations needed for total resurfacing a pavement, whether the resurfacing is a surface treatment or a thin hot mix asphalt (HMA) overlay.
Blockchain And Distributed Autonomous Community Ecosystems: Opportunities To Democratize Finance And Delivery Of Transport, Housing, Urban Greening And Community Infrastructure, William Riggs, Vipul Vyas, Menka Sethi
Blockchain And Distributed Autonomous Community Ecosystems: Opportunities To Democratize Finance And Delivery Of Transport, Housing, Urban Greening And Community Infrastructure, William Riggs, Vipul Vyas, Menka Sethi
Mineta Transportation Institute
This report investigates and develops specifications for using blockchain and distributed organizations to enable decentralized delivery and finance of urban infrastructure. The project explores use cases, including: providing urban greening, street or transit infrastructure; services for street beautification, cleaning and weed or graffiti abatement; potential ways of resource allocation ADU; permitting and land allocation; and homeless housing. It establishes a general process flow for this blockchain architecture, which involves: 1) the creation of blocks (transactions); 2) sending these blocks to nodes (users) on the network for an action (mining) and then validation that that action has taken place; and 3) …
Contracting Strategies: A Different Approach To Address Long-Term Performance, Maria Calahorra-Jimenez
Contracting Strategies: A Different Approach To Address Long-Term Performance, Maria Calahorra-Jimenez
Mineta Transportation Institute
For cost-efficiency, public safety, and sustainability, improving long-term performance in highway projects is imperative for public administrations. Project delivery and procurement methods provide an opportunity to align design and construction processes with this goal. While previous studies have explored whether project delivery methods impact the long-term performance of highway projects, these studies did not focus on how core elements within project procurement relate to long-term performance. Thus, to fill this gap, this research explores how and to what extent long-term evaluation criteria are considered in design-build best-value procurement of highway projects. To this end, the team conducted content analysis on …
Evaluation Of Sustainability Determinants To Develop A Sustainability Rating System For California Infrastructure Construction Projects, Joseph Kim, Patricia Mccarthy
Evaluation Of Sustainability Determinants To Develop A Sustainability Rating System For California Infrastructure Construction Projects, Joseph Kim, Patricia Mccarthy
Mineta Transportation Institute
This study evaluates the important sustainability determinants that affect factors’ success in meeting their sustainability goals when conducting infrastructure construction projects in California. The study implemented the online survey method to evaluate the sustainability characteristics that infrastructure industry professionals currently are aware of under the current situation in California. A data set of 25 validated survey responses is used for statistical data analysis using analysis of variables, Kruskal-Wallis tests, and two sample t-tests. The analysis results showed that the median response values for the six major sustainability categories do not show any significant difference. The results also showed that no …
Evaluation Of Polymer Binder Technisoil G5® In Concrete Mixture, Shadi Saadeh, Pritam Katawal
Evaluation Of Polymer Binder Technisoil G5® In Concrete Mixture, Shadi Saadeh, Pritam Katawal
Mineta Transportation Institute
Plastic is everywhere, and with its increasing use in so many everyday materials, the production and demand of plastic has skyrocketed. Unfortunately, this has resulted in the accumulation of a mammoth amount of plastic waste and adverse effects on the environment. To optimize the huge amount of materials required by the pavement industry each year and reuse recycled plastics, the use of reclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP) has been common practice. This research studied the use of a binder completely made from recycled waste plastic named Technisoil G5® and compared it with performance grade PG 70-22 mix containing virgin aggregates and …
Risk Factors Associated With Crash Injury Severity Involving Trucks, Srinivas S. Pulugurtha, Sarvani Duvvuri, Sonu Mathew
Risk Factors Associated With Crash Injury Severity Involving Trucks, Srinivas S. Pulugurtha, Sarvani Duvvuri, Sonu Mathew
Mineta Transportation Institute
Nearly 499,000 motor vehicle crashes involving trucks were reported across the United States in 2018, out of which 22% resulted in fatalities and injuries. Given the growing economy and demand for trucking in the future, it is crucial to identify the risk factors to understand where, when, and why the likelihood of getting involved in a severe or moderate injury crash with a truck is higher. This research, therefore, focuses on capturing and exploring risk factors associated with surrounding land use and demographic characteristics in addition to crash, driver, and on-network characteristics by modeling injury severity of crashes involving trucks. …
Impact Of Dedicated Bus Lanes On Intersection Operations And Travel Time Model Development, Stephen Arhin, Babin Manandhar, Kevin Obike, Melissa Anderson
Impact Of Dedicated Bus Lanes On Intersection Operations And Travel Time Model Development, Stephen Arhin, Babin Manandhar, Kevin Obike, Melissa Anderson
Mineta Transportation Institute
Over the years, public transit agencies have been trying to improve their operations by continuously evaluating best practices to better serve patrons. Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) oversees the transit bus operations in the Washington Metropolitan Area (District of Columbia, some parts of Maryland and Virginia). One practice attempted by WMATA to improve bus travel time and transit reliability has been the implementation of designated bus lanes (DBLs). The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) implemented a bus priority program on selected corridors in the District of Columbia leading to the installation of red-painted DBLs on corridors of H Street, …
Investigating The Resilience Of Accessibility To Emergency And Lifesaving Facilities Under Natural Hazards, Chih-Hao Wang, Na Chen
Investigating The Resilience Of Accessibility To Emergency And Lifesaving Facilities Under Natural Hazards, Chih-Hao Wang, Na Chen
Mineta Transportation Institute
Studying accessibility, including the resilience of city transportation networks, is critical to understand how these networks influence individuals’ mobility and lives. This study developed an analytical research framework to examine the resilience of accessibility to emergency and lifesaving facilities under the threats of natural hazards such as earthquakes and wildfires. With a cumulative-opportunity approach, the authors measured accessibility by counting emergency and lifesaving facilities (including parks, schools, hospitals, roads, and fire stations) that can be reached by driving at the census tract level in San Fernando Valley, CA. With the calculated accessibility, the authors run simulations to collect data showing …
Examining The Effects Of A Bike And E-Bike Lending Program On Commuting Behavior, Dillon T. Fitch, Zeyu Gao, Lucy Noble, Terry Mac
Examining The Effects Of A Bike And E-Bike Lending Program On Commuting Behavior, Dillon T. Fitch, Zeyu Gao, Lucy Noble, Terry Mac
Mineta Transportation Institute
In 2015, Google added a new transportation demand management (TDM) program to increase bike commuting to their two main campuses in Mountain View and Sunnyvale, California. An initial survey of employees indicated that bike ownership and worry about maintenance were primary bicycling barriers. With this information, Google began a program that loaned high-quality electric-assisted and conventional bicycles for a period of six months at no cost to interested employees. This research evaluates the effectiveness of the program at changing travel behavior to the corporate campuses by using self-reported and smartphone-integrated travel data. The lending program at Google represents one of, …
Examining The Effects Of Precision Scheduled Railroading On Intercity Passenger And High-Speed Rail Service, John G. Green, Francis J. Miller
Examining The Effects Of Precision Scheduled Railroading On Intercity Passenger And High-Speed Rail Service, John G. Green, Francis J. Miller
Mineta Transportation Institute
More than just scheduling terminal-to-terminal trips for trains, “Precision Scheduled Railroading” (PSR) creates entire point-to-point trip plans for individual railroad shipments. Since precision execution was first put into practice, the benefits to shipment arrival reliability and to freight railroads’ profitability have been demonstrated by its use in several Class One freight railroads. However, the effects of the PSR operating strategy on passenger railway operations in shared freight/passenger corridors has not been studied in detail. This research examines the effects of PSR railroad operations on passenger railways, including measuring “Host Railroad Minutes of Delay per 10,000 Train-Miles” and “On-Time Performance” of …
Optimizing Multimodal Transportation Access To Support Commuting Among Low-Income Transit Riders With Social Distancing, Shailesh Chandra, Vivek Mishra
Optimizing Multimodal Transportation Access To Support Commuting Among Low-Income Transit Riders With Social Distancing, Shailesh Chandra, Vivek Mishra
Mineta Transportation Institute
During the COVID-19 pandemic, LA Metro has encouraged social distancing among passengers—especially at stations of high-demand routes—and has increased fixed-route transit (FRT) services. However, potential impacts of social distancing on the performance of FRT services remain mostly unknown. This research evaluates the accessibility of FRT buses with social distancing using the ridership data collected on four FRT routes: 105, 108, 111, and 115 of the LA Metro's A Line stations located in low-income neighborhoods. This research shows that social distancing of six feet can impact FRT's accessibility to destination stations, and maximum accessibility is achieved only for a certain number …
Congestion Costs And Scheduling Preferences Of Car Commuters In California: Estimates Using Big Data, Jinwon Kim, Jucheol Moon
Congestion Costs And Scheduling Preferences Of Car Commuters In California: Estimates Using Big Data, Jinwon Kim, Jucheol Moon
Mineta Transportation Institute
On average, California car commuters waste 4–5 minutes per morning commute due to congestion. Multiplied across all California car commuters, those few minutes entail a yearly total of approximately 2.3 billion hours of time wasted, costing 6 billion dollars. The objective of this study is to quantify congestion costs and determine how commuters adapt to the level of congestion they face (i.e., commuters’ scheduling utility functions). To that end, this research developed a model of trip scheduling under congestion to construct California commuters’ travel-time profiles, i.e., the menu of travel times that each individual would likely face according to alternate …
Comprehensive Performance Assessment Of Passive Crowdsourcing For Counting Pedestrians And Bikes, Wen Cheng, Yongping Zhang, Edward Clay
Comprehensive Performance Assessment Of Passive Crowdsourcing For Counting Pedestrians And Bikes, Wen Cheng, Yongping Zhang, Edward Clay
Mineta Transportation Institute
Individuals who walk and cycle experience a variety of health and economic benefits while simultaneously benefiting their local environments and communities. It is essential to correctly obtain pedestrian and bicyclist counts for better design and planning of active transportation-related facilities. In recent years, crowdsourcing has seen a rise in popularity due to the multiple advantages relative to traditional methods. Nevertheless, crowdsourced data have been applied in fewer studies, and their reliability and performance relative to other conventional methods are rarely documented. To this end, this research examines the consistency between crowdsourced and traditionally collected count data. Additionally, the research aims …
Inventorying San Francisco Bay Area Parking Spaces: Technical Report Describing Objectives, Methods, And Results, Mikhail Chester, Alysha Helmrich, Rui Li
Inventorying San Francisco Bay Area Parking Spaces: Technical Report Describing Objectives, Methods, And Results, Mikhail Chester, Alysha Helmrich, Rui Li
Mineta Transportation Institute
The San Francisco Bay Area is one of the most progressive transportation regions in the deployment of high-capacity transit and use of policies to encourage active transportation. Yet like many other metro regions, there remains a dearth of knowledge on the abundance and location of parking infrastructure supply. Parking infrastructure remains one of the least catalogued infrastructure but is perhaps the most spatially dominating set of assets. This research estimates the extent and location of parking supply, including on-street and off-street spaces for the nine-county Bay Area. This parking space inventory is the most detailed assessment of parking infrastructure produced …
A Geographical Contribution On Interurban Passenger Rail Transportation In The United States, Matthieu Schorung
A Geographical Contribution On Interurban Passenger Rail Transportation In The United States, Matthieu Schorung
Mineta Transportation Institute
Why does the rail infrastructure of the United States lag behind those of many other developed countries? Where is U.S. high-speed rail? This research approaches this in a dilemma by exploring Amtrak’s traditional rail services and high-speed rail projects in the nation to understand the workings of public rail transportation policies, what they contain, and how they are developed and pursued by the different stakeholders. This research utilizes case studies and a multiscale approach to analyze the territorialization of intercity rail transportation policies. The analysis demonstrates the emergence of a bottom-up approach to projects, notably apparent in the California HSR …
Are Santa Clara County Cities Prepared For A Zero-Emission Light Duty Vehicle Future? A Program Evaluation, Benjamin Edelberg
Are Santa Clara County Cities Prepared For A Zero-Emission Light Duty Vehicle Future? A Program Evaluation, Benjamin Edelberg
Master's Projects
This research built on the work of Chi-Pei Fang who explored this issue in “Ability of the Bay Area Cities to Accommodate Plug-in Electric Vehicles: A Process Evaluation” (Fang, 2021). Fang recommended that follow-on projects focus on an individual city. This paper moved in that direction, but instead of focusing on a specific city in the California Bay Area, it focused on Santa Clara County (SCC) and the cities within. Additionally, this paper broadened the focus to include all zero-emissions vehicles (ZEVs), a category which not only includes electric vehicles (EVs) but also hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs).
The Disproportionate Impact Of Covid-19 On The Housing Stability Of Hispanic/Latino Renters In California, Cyndi Valdez
The Disproportionate Impact Of Covid-19 On The Housing Stability Of Hispanic/Latino Renters In California, Cyndi Valdez
Master's Projects
How and why did the COVID-19 pandemic impact the housing stability of Hispanic/Latino renters in California? How were communities, such as those in Santa Cruz County, affected by Shelter in Place Orders? What measures were taken to help alleviate the financial burdens caused by the pandemic?
Ending Homelessness In Santa Clara County: A Program Evaluation Of Homefirst Services’ Rapid Re-Housing Program Using Client Feedback, Karen Gomez
Master's Projects
This research was designed to evaluate whether HomeFirst Services’ RRH Program has proven to be more effective than traditional approaches in eliminating homelessness for its participants in Santa Clara County, California. Research was based on the Program Satisfaction Survey conducted at the end of the participants’ program enrollment in comparison with data collected for clients in other HomeFirst Services programs. The research question that is being answered from this survey is whether or not the HomeFirst Services RRH Program is fulfilling the clients’ needs. This questionnaire has been able to help HomeFirst Services understand the factors that help satisfy program …