01553114

Component

https://doi.org/10.3141/2533-17

The need for veterans’ transportation is growing rapidly because of the increasing number of older veterans as well as the many injured servicemen and -women returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. Thirty percent of veterans live in rural areas that often present transportation challenges. Many veterans in rural areas must travel extremely long distances to receive medical care, and veterans living in rural areas are reported to be in poorer health than veterans living in urban areas. The objective of this study was to identify veterans with mobility needs living in rural Minnesota, Montana, and North Dakota and to quantify the cost of feasible transportation options for meeting veterans’ mobility needs. This study included a survey of veterans and a simulation of their health care transportation costs. Online and paper surveys were distributed to veterans throughout Minnesota, Montana, and North Dakota. More than 80% of respondents classified themselves as disabled with nearly three-fourths of these indicating that their veteran disability rating was greater than 30%. The most common disability reported by survey respondents was having a mobility impairment, followed by hearing impairment and mental health issues. When a coordination effort between U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) health care centers and rural public transit agencies was simulated with @Risk risk analysis software, results varied by state and region because of varying operating costs and fare recovery rates. Overall, most simulations indicated that a coordination effort between VA health care centers and rural public transit agencies would be feasible if estimated ridership levels could be attained.

01590197

15-2818

English

pp 149–155

2015

Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board

9780309369381

Print

Figures (7) ; Maps; References (13) ; Tables (1)

Feasibility analysis; Medical trips; Military personnel; Mobility; Needs assessment; Persons with disabilities; Rural transit; Transportation disadvantaged persons

Minnesota; Montana; North Dakota

Planning and Forecasting; Public Transportation; Society; I72: Traffic and Transport Planning

TRIS, TRB, ATRI

Dec 30 2014 12:57PM

• Analytical Five-Phase Bus Rapid Transit Traffic Flow Model
• Cost–Benefit Analysis of Rural and Small Urban Transit in the United States
• Effects of Multimodal Operations on Urban Roadways
• Evaluation of Bus Reliability Measures and Development of a New Composite Indicator
• Exploring Multiplier Effects Generated by Bus Lane Combinations
• How Land Use Affects Station Access Behaviors of Bus Rapid Transit Passengers in Bangkok, Thailand
• Integrated Real-Time Transit Signal Priority Control for High-Frequency Segregated Transit Services
• Measuring Bus Stops Toward a Sustainable Urban Environment
• Method for Assessing Bus Delay in Mixed Traffic to Identify Transit Priority Improvement Locations in Cambridge, Massachusetts
• Modeling Bus Travel Time Reliability with Supply and Demand Data from Automatic Vehicle Location and Smart Card Systems
• Modeling Diesel and Hybrid Bus Fuel Consumption with Virginia Tech Comprehensive Power-Based Fuel Consumption Model: Model Enhancements and Calibration Issues
• Optimal Synchronized Transfers in Schedule-Based Public Transport Networks Using Online Operational Tactics
• Queue Jump Lane, Transit Signal Priority, and Stop Location Evaluation of Transit Preferential Treatments Using Microsimulation
• Understanding Platform Overcrowding at Bus Rapid Transit Stations
• Visioning the Bus System of the Future: Stakeholders’ Perspective
• Worker Attitude Toward Bus Rapid Transit: Considering Dhaka, Bangladesh