01593810

Component

In the context of shifting trends for automobile reliance across the U.S., understanding the determinants of commuter mode choice may help improve the alignment of policies with actual travel behavior. This analysis examines the determinants of commuter mode choice for commuters living in the urban core and inner suburbs of the Washington, DC, Baltimore, MD, Philadelphia, PA, Newark, NJ, and New York, NY regions. The analysis primarily relies upon the most recent household travel surveys available for each region, which produced a combined sample of 18,832 commuters. A multinomial logistic regression modeled the likelihood of carpooling, riding public transport, or walking/biking compared to driving alone, in relation to an extensive set of explanatory factors. The analysis generally supports earlier findings in the literature. It finds the combined offering of car parking and public transport subsidies to be associated with lower odds of carpooling and walking/biking, and insignificantly differing odds of riding public transport, suggesting the effect of public transport subsidies diminishes in the presence of car parking subsidies. Predicted probabilities for driving alone are highest (89.3%) when car parking alone is subsidized, and lowest (18.8%) when public transport alone is subsidized. This study contributes to the literature on commuter mode choice as the first to use multiple regionally representative disaggregate household travel surveys alongside supplemental data from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Transportation. As policymakers assess shifting trends regarding automobile reliance, commuter benefit policies may be one area to consider for adjustments

This paper was sponsored by TRB committee ADB10 Standing Committee on Traveler Behavior and Values.

01584066

16-5537

English

20p

2016

Transportation Research Board 95th Annual Meeting

Digital/other

Figures; References; Tables

Automobile travel; Bicycling; Carpools; Commuters; Mode choice; Public transit; Travel behavior; Travel surveys; Walking

Baltimore (Maryland); New York (New York); Newark (New Jersey); Northeast Corridor; Philadelphia (Pennsylvania); Washington (District of Columbia)

Highways; Pedestrians and Bicyclists; Planning and Forecasting; Public Transportation

Transportation Research Board Annual Meeting 2016 Paper #16-5537

TRIS, TRB, ATRI

Jan 12 2016 6:24PM