Robert J. Schneider

Shifts between Automobile, Bus, and Bicycle Commuting in an Urban Setting

In an urban setting, investments in bicycle and transit modes are expected to produce benefits such as reduced automobile vehicle miles traveled and reduced automobile parking demand. In reality, these benefits might be lower than expected if users simply shift between non-automobile modes. This article investigates shifts between automobile, bus, and bicycle use among students commuting to the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (UWM) in 2008 and 2012. The authors found that a significant decline in driving was associated with a significant increase in bicycle mode share, suggesting that bicycling replaced certain automobile commute trips. Analysis by distance revealed nuances in mode substitution. There were significant increases in bicycle commuting for students living between 1.0 and 9.9 miles (1.6 and 15.9 km) from campus. However, the increases in bicycling for students living between 1.0 and 1.9 miles (1.6 and 3.1 km) corresponded with decreases in bus rather than automobile commuting, suggesting bus and bicycle substitution for short commutes. There was a significant shift in long-distance commuting—greater than 10 miles (16 km)—from automobile to bus. Differentiation between primary and secondary travel modes revealed an increasing proportion of regular drivers who bicycled as their secondary commute mode between 2008 and 2012. Also, approximately two-thirds of the students who bicycled and nearly half of the students who used the bus as their primary mode used a different, secondary commute mode. Many students who already bicycled were inclined to use the bus when they were not able to bicycle, but fewer bus users tried bicycle commuting.

Methodology to Gather Multimodal Trip Generation Data in Smart-Growth Areas

This study presents a method to quantify multimodal trip generation for developments in smart-growth areas. The technique combines door counts and intercept surveys to classify trips by mode, and it has several advantages over existing methods that use automated technologies to count automobiles entering and exiting access points to developments. These advantages are particularly important in urban areas with mixed-use developments, mixed-use buildings, and a variety of parking arrangements. First, door counts quantify the total number of trips generated by all modes. Second, door counts quantify all people traveling to and from particular land uses, even if a targeted use is part of a larger, mixed-use building. Third, intercept surveys differentiate between people who are walking for an entire trip and people who are walking as a secondary mode to or from parking or transit. The method was applied at 30 smart-growth study locations in California. Multimodal person trips and vehicle trips were documented at 24 of the study locations during the morning peak hour and at 27 study locations during the afternoon peak hour. Weighted averages from these locations show that suburban-based ITE peak hour vehicle trip estimates were 2.3 times higher than actual vehicle trips in the morning and 2.4 times higher than those in the afternoon. Total person trip generation at the smart-growth study locations was similar to the total person trips estimated from ITE data; however, larger shares of person trips at the smart-growth locations were made by walking, bicycling, or public transit.

Walk or Drive between Stores? Designing Neighbourhood Shopping Districts for Pedestrian Activity

What design features are associated with people choosing to walk vs. drive between activities within shopping districts? This exploratory study used mixed-logit discrete choice modelling to analyze survey responses from 286 retail pharmacy store customers who travelled by personal automobile to one of 20 San Francisco Bay Area shopping districts, and then visited at least two activity locations within the district. The 91 customers who walked rather than drove within the shopping district tended to travel shorter distances and have several other common personal characteristics. After controlling for these factors, respondents were significantly more likely to walk when the main commercial roadway had fewer driveway crossings and a lower speed limit.

Exploratory Analysis of Driver Yielding at Low-Speed, Uncontrolled Crosswalks in Milwaukee, Wisconsin

One of the most common circumstances contributing to pedestrian crashes is drivers failing to yield to pedestrians in crosswalks. A better understanding of driver yielding behavior can help identify optimal safety treatments to improve driver yielding and prevent pedestrian injuries and fatalities. Recognizing this need, this study observed driver yielding behavior at 20 uncontrolled intersections along two-lane arterial and collector roadways with posted speed limits of 25 or 30 miles per hour in Milwaukee, Wisconsin during weekday afternoon peak travel periods in fall 2016. The naturalistic observations showed that drivers yielded 60 times out of 364 opportunities when the pedestrian wished to cross (16% driver yielding rate). Yielding rates differed between intersections, ranging from a high of 60% to a low of 0%. A binary logistic model showed that drivers were more likely to yield to pedestrians when the major roadway had a lower speed limit or less traffic; when the intersection had a shorter crossing distance or a bus stop; and when the pedestrian was White, standing in the street, or acting assertively. Finally, all else equal, intersections with no reported pedestrian crashes in the last 5 years had higher driver yielding rates than intersections with at least two reported pedestrian crashes. While this exploratory study is based on a small sample of observations, it supports several engineering, education, and enforcement strategies and provides suggestions for future studies of driver yielding behavior.

Making Strides: State of the Practice of Pedestrian Forecasting in Regional Travel Models

Much has changed in the 30 years since non-motorized modes were first included in regional travel demand models. As interest in understanding behavioral influences on walking and policies requiring estimates of walking activity increase, it is important to consider how pedestrian travel is modeled at a regional level. This paper evaluates the state of the practice of modeling walk trips among the largest 48 metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs) and assesses changes made over the last 5 years. By reviewing model documentation and responses to a survey of MPO modelers, this paper summarizes current practices, describes six pedestrian modeling frameworks, and identifies trends. Three-quarters (75%) of large MPOs now model non-motorized travel, and over two-thirds (69%) of those MPOs distinguish walking from bicycling; these percentages are up from nearly two-thirds (63%) and one-half (47%), respectively, in 2012. This change corresponds with an increase in the deployment of activity-based models, which offer the opportunity to enhance pedestrian modeling techniques. The biggest barrier to more sophisticated models remains a lack of travel survey data on walking behavior, yet some MPOs are starting to overcome this challenge by oversampling potential active travelers. Decision-makers are becoming more interested in analyzing walking and using estimates of walking activity that are output from models for various planning applications. As the practice continues to mature, the near future will likely see smaller-scale measures of the pedestrian environment, more detailed zonal and network structures, and possibly even an operational model of pedestrian route choice.

Exploration of Pedestrian Assertiveness and Its Association with Driver Yielding Behavior at Uncontrolled Crosswalks

Improving driver yielding to pedestrians at crosswalks may help prevent pedestrian fatalities, which have increased over the last decade in the United States. The level of assertiveness exhibited by pedestrians when they arrive at a crosswalk may have a significant impact on driver yielding behavior, but assertiveness is not defined clearly or studied thoroughly in the literature. This study defined three levels of pedestrian assertiveness and collected naturalistic video data at two uncontrolled crosswalks in Madison and Milwaukee, Wisconsin to explore the relationship between pedestrian assertiveness and driver yielding behavior. Driver yielding rates were 71% for pedestrians exhibiting Level 1 (high), 30% for Level 2 (moderate), and 3% for Level 3 (low) assertiveness. The pedestrian assertiveness definitions were also used to assess the potential impact of a high-visibility enforcement (HVE) program in the communities where the study took place. Observations taken after the HVE program showed a significantly higher rate of driver yielding to pedestrians exhibiting a moderate level of assertiveness. This result is promising, since a moderate level of assertiveness may be reasonable for pedestrians to adopt, especially if supported by educational messages for pedestrians to clearly indicate their intent to cross within a crosswalk. This exploratory study provides a framework for future analysis and highlights the need for additional research on the relationship between pedestrian assertiveness and driver yielding behavior.

Comparison of Pedestrian Count Expansion Methods: Land Use Groups versus Empirical Clusters

Expansion factors based on the trends in long-term count data are useful tools for estimating daily, weekly, or annual volumes from short-term counts, but it is unclear how to differentiate locations by activity pattern. This paper compares two approaches to developing factor groups for hour-to-week pedestrian count expansion factors. The land use (LU) classification approach assumes that surrounding LUs affect the pedestrian activity at a location, and it is easy to apply to short-term count locations based on identifiable attributes of the site. The empirical clustering (EC) approach uses statistical methods to match locations based on the actual counts, which may produce more accurate volume estimates, but presents a challenge for determining which factor group to apply to a location. We found that both the LU and EC approaches provided better weekly pedestrian volume estimates than the single factor approach of taking the average of all locations. Further, the differences between LU and EC estimation errors were modest, so it may be beneficial to use the intuitive and practical LU approach. LU groupings can also be modified with insights from the EC results, thus improving estimates while maintaining the ease of application. Ideal times for short-term counts are during peak activity periods, as they generally produce estimates with fewer errors than off-peak periods. Weekly volume estimated from longer-duration counts (e.g., 12u2009h) is generally more accurate than estimates from shorter-duration counts (e.g., 2u2009h). Practitioners can follow this guidance to improve the quality of weekly pedestrian volume estimates.

Walking: connecting sustainable transport with health

become an integral part of the daily travel. Most bicycles trips were social and recreational. Finally, American bicycle manufactures prioritised looks and weight over practicality. Given these three factors, bicycles were susceptible to a rapid decline. In Europe and elsewhere, manufacturers designed bicycles for daily use and the decline was not as quick as in the US. While very few bicyclists gave up their two-wheelers for cars, there are important connections between the two. Friss argues that bicycles laid the groundwork for the development of laws and regulations for private transportation and the early lobbying efforts improved streets. Additionally, much of the early appeal of bicycles for adventure and social differentiation among the wealthy was mirrored with early automobiles. Finally, part of the bicycle economy made the same shift. Manufacturers and mechanics began tinkering with producing automobiles. The ideas developed to support the bicycle economy, annual changes to models, magazines, advertising, social clubs and annual showcases, were transferred to the new auto industry. Reading Friss’ book, I was struck that the lessons about technological change and cities are no less relevant today. First, what seems ubiquitous today, may be quickly gone. And second, “the 1890s was one of those rare moments in history when a single, new piece of technology seemed to offer the chance for a complete reconceptualization of urban life” (p 4). Many have said similar things about autonomous vehicles, ride sharing, drones, dockless bicycle sharing, to name a few of the recent technologies that have given such breathless pronouncements. Time will tell whether these new technologies change the form of streets, the regulation of vehicles, and social relations in a meaningful way.

Assessing Health Promotion Interventions: Limitations of Traditional Research Methods in Community-Based Studies:

Most low-income Americans fail to meet physical activity recommendations. Inactivity and poor diet contribute to obesity, a risk factor for multiple chronic diseases. Health promotion activities have the potential to improve health outcomes for low-income populations. Measuring the effectiveness of these activities, however, can be challenging in community settings. A “Biking for Health” study tested the impact of a bicycling intervention on overweight or obese low-income Latino and African American adults to reduce barriers to cycling and increase physical activity and fitness. A randomized controlled trial was conducted in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in summer 2015. A 12-week bicycling intervention was implemented at two sites with low-income, overweight, or obese Latino and African American adults. We found that randomized controlled trial methodology was suboptimal for use in this small pilot study and that it negatively affected participation. More discussion is needed about the effectiveness of using traditional research methods in community settings to assess the effectiveness of health promotion interventions. Modifications or alternative methods may yield better results. The aim of this article is to discuss the effectiveness and feasibility of using traditional research methods to assess health promotion interventions in community-based settings.

“Complete Streets” Policies and Eliminating Pedestrian Fatalities

The author discusses the Complete Streets policies to help prevent pedestrian fatalities. He mentions the adoption of the policy in Florida in 1984, the decreasing fatality rate, and the techniques in road design that have facilitated this decrease.