Andre Carrel

Quantified Traveler: Travel Feedback Meets the Cloud to Change Behavior

We describe the design and evaluation of a system named Quantified Traveler (QT). QT is a computational travel feedback system. Travel feedback is an established programmatic method whereby travelers record travel in diaries, and meet with a counselor who guides the user to alternate mode or trip decisions that are more sustainable or otherwise beneficial to society, while still meeting the subjects mobility needs. QT is a computation surrogate for the counselor. Since counselor costs can limit the size of travel feedback programs, a system such as QT at the low costs of cloud computing could dramatically increase scale, and thereby sustainable travel. QT uses an application (app) on the phone to collect travel data, a server in the cloud to process it into travel diaries, and then a personalized carbon, exercise, time, and cost footprint. The subject is able to see all of this information on the Web. We evaluate the system with 135 subjects to learn whether subjects will let us use their personal phones and data plans to build travel diaries, whether they actually use the website to look at their travel information, whether the design creates pro-environmental shifts in psychological variables measured by entry and exit surveys, and finally whether the revealed travel behavior records reduced driving. Before-and-after statistical analysis and the results from a structural equation model suggest that the results are a qualified success.

Passengers' Perception of and Behavioral Adaptation to Unreliability in Public Transportation

Reliability is regularly cited by users of public transportation as one of the most important qualities of service. However, it is not yet well understood how transit riders are affected by unreliability, particularly in the long term. To gain a better understanding of the importance of reliability, a survey focusing on users of San Franciscos public transportation system in California was developed to investigate the link between peoples past experiences of unreliability and the adaptation strategies that they used. Respondents were asked to rate the importance of a number of reliability aspects; the aspects found to be most important were the absence of a gap at a transfer stop and the ability to walk up to a stop and leave within 10 min. Users also reported that they considered reliability when planning trips. Common strategies for handling unreliability were using services and routes deemed more reliable and using real-time information. In addition, an ordinal logit model linking past experiences of unreliability to a reduction in transit use was estimated. The most significant negative experiences that drove a reduction in transit use were delays perceived to be the fault of the transit agency, long waits at transfer points, and being prevented from boarding because of crowding. These results have implications in transit planning: passengers may prefer more frequent service with occasional crowding over less frequent buses that are larger and less crowded. In addition, the growing use of real-time information services will continue to affect how people view transit service and perhaps even intensify the unattractiveness of infrequent service.

Decision Factors in Service Control on High-Frequency Metro Line: Importance in Service Delivery

Service control—the task of implementing the timetable in daily operations on a metro line—plays a key role in service delivery, because it influences the quality of the service provided to passengers. Shortfalls of previous research on the role and importance of service control have been noted. A framework intended to remedy some of these shortfalls is proposed. An important element of this framework is the description of the full decision environment in which service control takes place. On the basis of insights gained from extended visits to a control center, the reliability of the system is found to depend on many endogenous factors. These factors were not previously recognized in a comprehensive manner by either researchers or practitioners. Aside from the objectives of maintaining adequate levels of service from an operations perspective and minimizing the impact of schedule deviations on passengers, the management of crew and rolling stock, safety, and infrastructure capacity are major considerations in service control decisions. Given the uncertain environment in which service control operates, a strong preference was observed among controllers for manageable and robust control strategies. An example is discussed in which service controllers react to two similar disruptions with different recovery strategies, mainly because of crew management considerations. This research demonstrates the importance of a comprehensive understanding of the objectives and constraints faced by service controllers in daily operations.

In Pursuit of the Happy Transit Rider: Dissecting Satisfaction Using Daily Surveys and Tracking Data

This paper demonstrates the power and value of connecting satisfaction surveys from public transportation passengers to smartphone tracking data and automatic vehicle location (AVL) data. The high resolution of the smartphone location data allows travel times to be dissected into their individual components, and the connection with AVL data provides objective information on personal-level experiences of the respondents. Analyses show how these data can provide a quantitative understanding of the relationship between planned and provisioned service, and customer satisfaction. In-vehicle travel time data from 2,403 trips made by 529 unique participants could be obtained, along with origin wait time data for 779 of the trips and transfer time data for 188 trips. The addition of unreliability to the measurement of travel times, which is enabled by the highly detailed tracking data, shows that the relationship between passenger satisfaction and experienced travel times may be more nuanced than has previously been acknowledged. Ordinal logit model estimation results show a strong sensitivity of passenger satisfaction toward in-vehicle delays, and show that delays on board metro trains are perceived as more onerous than delays on board buses. This study also reveals the importance of obtaining a general measurement of satisfaction with transit service when repeated satisfaction measurements are conducted with respect to individual experiences. A baseline satisfaction level and a variable component as a function of experiences can be observed in the model results. Furthermore, the survey data include a measure of subjective well-being, which is a relatively new element in travel surveys. Insights are presented on the importance of this potential new covariate for future survey designs.

A framework for evaluating operations control on a metro line: integrating multiple perspectives and automatically collected train and passenger movement data

Transit operations control, the task of implementing the operations plan in daily operations on a metro line, plays a key role in service delivery because it determines the quality of the service experienced by passengers. Yet, it is one of the most poorly understood aspects of rail transit operations. Faced with a disruption or infeasibility, dispatchers typically choose between several response strategies. However, to date, it has been very difficult to evaluate the positive and negative effects of individual control strategies with respect to operations and passenger travel times under real-world conditions. This paper proposes a framework for the study of rail operations control decisions that integrates automatically collected service and passenger demand data, which are increasingly available and accessible to transit agencies. The framework supports a multiperspective analysis methodology that can inform operational policies and plans, and help operations control decision-makers choose the most appropriate strategies to manage service. By using automatically collected data, taking into consideration the operations control decision environment, and acknowledging that the reliability of the resulting service depends on many factors endogenous to it, this paper takes a distinctly different approach from previous studies, which have relied heavily on modeling, assumed simple operating contexts, and did not consider the full range of available data. Two real-world applications of the framework, where control decisions are evaluated in terms of their operational and passenger impacts, are presented. The methodology is found to be versatile and valuable in providing insights that could not have been gained otherwise. Although the framework is applied to the London Underground, its logic, structure, and procedures are applicable and transferable to other metro systems recognizing that certain specifics would need to be tailored to the available data.

Policies to Address Conflicts Between Passenger and Freight Rail Service in the U.S.

A renewed interest in expanding passenger service on rail in the US faces challenges and opportunities in that most of the railroads are privately owned. Up to this point railroad network capacity has kept up with demand relatively well. However, signs of strain are apparent looking into the future as freight volumes increase with globalization and conflicts with passenger trains increase with the addition of more intercity and commuter lines. Case studies were conducted to understand the relationship between passenger and freight operations in the US and to identify areas of conflict and opportunities for improvement. Common conflicts arise from differing objectives and include cost sharing, safety, liability and infrastructure needs. Currently, public agencies and railroad companies deal with these conflicts through an outdated regulatory framework that in many cases does not serve the interests of either party; improvements here are possible. Additionally, a greater use of hybrid agreements where government agencies fund capacity improvements for passenger and freight operations simultaneously may offer the best approach for dealing with these conflicts and adapting the rail network to meet demands into the future.Copyright