Youngbin Yim

Willingness to pay for travel information

Abstract Improved travel information received via electronic sources can inform people about travel conditions and help them make travel decisions. The personal benefits of high quality travel information may motivate individuals to pay for information. This study analyzes travelers’ willingness to pay for better quality information received from a traveler information system offered through a public–private partnership in the San Francisco Bay Area. The data were collected in 1997 through a computer-aided telephone interview of individuals who called traveler advisory telephone system (TATS) and were willing to be interviewed ( N =511). The survey results indicate that the average number of times per month the respondents called TATS was 4.80 (TATS was a free service at the time). The average use of the system would decline if the service was not improved but a service charge was initiated. People indicated that they were more willing to pay for a customized service. The impacts of travel information, travel context and socioeconomic variables on willingness to pay for information were analyzed by estimating a random-effects negative binomial regression model of revealed and stated TATS calling frequency. The results indicate that customized travel information, longer trips, worktrips, and listening to radio traffic reports are associated with higher TATS calling frequency and with greater willingness to pay for information. Overall, the consumer response to purchasing travel information services seems cost-sensitive and future efforts can focus on commercialization of travel information, beginning with where demand for information is relatively inelastic and improvement or customization of travel information is achievable.

Does Travel Information Influence Commuter and Noncommuter Behavior?: Results from the San Francisco Bay Area TravInfo Project

Improved information received from public and private advanced traveler information systems can help travelers make more informed decisions, shorten times spent in traffic congestion, and reduce anxiety and stress. The behavioral responses of automobile and transit commuters as well as those of noncommuters to travel information received from radio, television, and telephone are analyzed. The influence of information has seldom been studied in terms of these different users. The data were collected through a computer-aided telephone interview conducted in the San Francisco Bay Area (n = 947). The study analyzes the impacts of socioeconomic, context, and information variables on individuals’ decisions to adjust travel before beginning their trips; given an adjustment, the frequency of trip changes; and the type of most recent trip changes in terms of route, departure time, or mode shifts. The statistical analysis involves estimation of probit models with and without sample selectivity and a multinomial logit model. The results of the study indicate that a sample selectivity model is more appropriate for understanding respondents’ frequency of trip changes only when members of a subset of the sample population change their trips. Travel time uncertainty and travel information received from the electronic media increase the pretrip adjustment propensity. Furthermore, information from the most widely available and accessed medium, the radio, is highly likely to result in behavioral adjustments. Noncommuters have a high receptivity to canceling their trips in response to travel information. This has important implications for congestion relief in transportation networks.

WHY WILL SOME INDIVIDUALS PAY FOR TRAVEL INFORMATION WHEN IT CAN BE FREE?: ANALYSIS OF A BAY AREA TRAVELER SURVEY

Substantial government resources are invested in the provision of dynamic travel information. This information may help travelers make better decisions, which can reduce traffic congestion and pollution. A survey of 1,000 San Francisco Bay Area residents was conducted in 1998 as part of the TravInfo field test, and the stated preference questions were analyzed. Respondents were asked whether they sought travel information and, if so, whether they were willing to pay for a hypothetical advanced traveler information system (ATIS) that provided automatic notification of unexpected congestion on their usual travel routes, estimated time of delay from unexpected congestion on their usual routes, automatic alternate route planning around congestion, and estimated travel time on their usual route and on any planned alternate routes. Overall, willingness to pay for an ATIS was higher than expected from the literature. Sixty-six percent of the respondents sought travel information, and, of these information seekers, 71 percent were willing to pay for an ATIS (average

Commuter Response to Traffic Information on an Incident

3.84 per month, or

The demand for rail feeder shuttles

0.74 per call). Statistical analysis involved estimating binary and ordered probit models with and without sample selectivity. Propensity for seeking travel information was significantly related to respondents who were female, employed, took longer trips, faced unexpected congestion, and owned a cellular telephone. Increased willingness to pay for an ATIS was related to respondents who were young and male, altered trips in response to information, and stated a greater desirability for the hypothetical ATIS. Findings suggest that a market may exist for high-quality dynamic travel information.

Integration of Automated Highway Systems into Existing California Freeways

How traffic information is obtained and how it affects travel behavior when a major freeway is congested are presented and discussed. Immediately following a major highway incident south of San Francisco that caused congestion, a telephone survey was conducted of commuters who use the affected corridor of the highway. The behavior of commuters before and during their commute at the time of the incident was determined, including obtaining traffic information and how the information influenced changes in route, mode of travel, and departure time. The results of the survey suggest that traveler behavior is largely unaffected by individual incidents of congestion. Furthermore, although a fair proportion of commuters do obtain traffic information, they do not often modify their travel behavior in response. This study is one of several that collectively will provide insight into how travel behavior changes over time and allow the authors to assess the impact of TravInfo Traveler Advisory Telephone System in the San Francisco Bay Area.

A FOCUS GROUP STUDY OF AUTOMATED HIGHWAY AND VEHICLE TECHNOLOGIES

Rail transit systems offer opportunities for travelers to avoid traffic congestion in large urban areas. This article explores the possibility of expanding access to existing rail transit systems through demand responsive shuttles. It examines demand for such an innovation in the San Francisco Bay Area where relatively good rail service already exists. Using survey data collected in a case study of one urban and one suburban neighborhood (N=800 individuals surveyed) served by the San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit agency, this article investigates the influence of several factors on peoples willingness to use, pay for, and wait for the shuttles. The results indicate that a significant percentage of the surveyed population is willing to try the shuttle. Higher willingness to use the shuttle was associated with women, younger and elderly respondents, noncommuters who travel by single occupant vehicle, and rail users who access the stations by transit. Higher willingness to pay for the shuttle was associated with suburbanites.

Travel Time Estimation on the San Francisco Bay Area Network Using Cellular Phones as Probes

Automated Highway Systems (AHS) have the potential for providing improvements over conventional freeways in terms of vehicle throughput, traffic safety, driver comfort, and environmental impacts. Although a number of AHS deployment concepts have been presented in the literature, few studies have attempted to evaluate the issues and risks associated with alternative deployment concepts.(1–3) This research is devoted to an investigation of the issues and risks associated with the integration of AHS facilities into existing California freeways, in both urban and rural environments.

Link flow evaluation using loop detector data : Traveler response to variable-message signs

Abstract The paper presents the findings of a focus group study of the automated highway system and its related technologies, specifically adaptive cruise control and collision avoidance systems, in the San Francisco Bay Area. A majority of the participants had a favorable reaction to AHS despite the fact that almost all were concerned about its safety and funding capability. Responses to the adaptive cruise control were generally positive. The focus group participants recognized the safety benefits, the convenience, and especially the stress reduction of using the automated highway system, when comparing it to the collision avoidance system.