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Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

Data And Information As Our New Transport Infrastructure: An Exploration Into How The Modern Transport System Is Being Shaped By Information Communication Technology, Adam Davidson Sep 2020

Data And Information As Our New Transport Infrastructure: An Exploration Into How The Modern Transport System Is Being Shaped By Information Communication Technology, Adam Davidson

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

This dissertation is focuses on the role that data and information has in creating and altering behavior related to transportation. To do so, it lays out a theoretical model of technological transition and then follows it up with three case studies. The theoretical model provides a structure to consider how different actors in our transportation ecosystem – users, firms, policy actors – mix with technological evolution to uphold or incrementally recreate our transportation landscape. The case studies stand on their own to highlight important findings about how data and information are impacting transportation scenarios, but collectively reinforce the theoretical models. …


Corporate Structures In Transit: Comparing The Development Of Intermunicipal Transit In British Columbia And Ontario And Why Ontario Should Consider Reform, Luke Charlton Jul 2020

Corporate Structures In Transit: Comparing The Development Of Intermunicipal Transit In British Columbia And Ontario And Why Ontario Should Consider Reform, Luke Charlton

MPA Major Research Papers

This paper will argue for changes in the corporate structure of transit authorities in Ontario by contrasting their effectiveness in producing intermunicipal transit with British Columbia’s transit authorities. It is well established that transit is correlated to many benefits: socioeconomic opportunities, increased quality of life, boosting the local economy, and reducing the environmental impact of transportation. However, one area of neglect within Ontario has been the development of intermunicipal transit within Ontario outside of the Greater Toronto Area. British Columbia proves that with a centripetal authority structure (power towards the centre), transit organizations can be adaptive and cooperative. Ontario’s centrifugal …


Refugee Housing In Worcester: A Neighborhood Case Study Of Bell Hill, Tyler Seth Maren May 2020

Refugee Housing In Worcester: A Neighborhood Case Study Of Bell Hill, Tyler Seth Maren

International Development, Community and Environment (IDCE)

This paper examines refugee resettlement practices at the neighborhood level, asking what neighborhood characteristics are conducive to achieving positive integration and housing stability outcomes. Using data from a quantitative study of refugee resettlement case files from Ascentria Care Alliance as a foundation, this research takes the form of an analysis of the Bell Hill neighborhood in Worcester, MA, a major resettlement destination. Using Ascentria data, secondary data sources such as US Census data and the Worcester Assessor’s Database, and site visits, this paper constructs a profile of Bell Hill along four major dimensions: community characteristics, housing, social infrastructure, and physical …


Curb-Sided: How Technology Disrupts The American Transportation Planning Process, Mary Angelica Painter Apr 2020

Curb-Sided: How Technology Disrupts The American Transportation Planning Process, Mary Angelica Painter

Dissertations

The disruptive arrival of Uber, Lyft, and other transportation network companies (TNCs) into American cities ignited arguments on how policy-makers should regulate such entities. Policy debates started among policymakers, companies, and existing industries and interests. In attempts to persuade policy, actors adopted a variety of language and used different levels of government to achieve policy goals. In almost all cases, TNCs were able to gain favorable policy through image framing and venue shopping – the key components to Punctuated Equilibrium Theory (PET). This analysis looks at the policy process of three American cities: Chicago, IL, St. Louis, MO, and Austin, …


The Effectiveness Of The European Union’S Environmental Policies, Wendolyn Borkoski Apr 2020

The Effectiveness Of The European Union’S Environmental Policies, Wendolyn Borkoski

Undergraduate Theses and Capstone Projects

The European Union has some of the highest environmental standards in the world. However, multiple member states fail at reaching the deadlines set by the European Union (EU). This thesis examines the effectiveness of the European Union’s environmental directives on gaining compliance from member states to reach the agreed-upon standards. This is assessed by using three European Union directives from different environmental areas and analyzing their requirements. Each directive represents either a hierarchical policy, negotiated policy, or voluntary policy transfer. This study hypothesizes that the hierarchical policy, represented by EU Directive 2008/98/EC, will be more effective at gaining compliance than …


Copenhagenization: The Spread Of The Copenhagen Cycling Gospel; A Case Study In Urban Policy Mobility, Rozaliya Momot Apr 2020

Copenhagenization: The Spread Of The Copenhagen Cycling Gospel; A Case Study In Urban Policy Mobility, Rozaliya Momot

Senior Theses and Projects

Copenhagen is synonymous with biking culture, and is one of the first things people think about in relation to the Danish capital. It has become constructed as a policy model for urban planning, especially for cycling policy, and cities around the world look to it as a "best practice" example. As American cities attempt to change their transportation dynamics and encourage alternate forms of transportation, they increasingly look to cycling as a solution, and refer to Copenhagen as a model. In this thesis, I examine how this model has been packaged and exported by influential Danish consultants and public figures …