We analyze how both fee and non-fee commute attributes affect commuters’ mode and parking decisions. Results show commuters are sensitive to the price, travel time, egress time, and search time in selecting their primary commute mode, but are not sensitive to other travel costs including the costs of fuel and maintenance. Using these results we conduct policy simulations to analyze how changes in transit prices, travel times, and parking availability affect commuters' mode and parking decisions. We find raising parking permit prices and decreasing bus travel times to be effective in reducing the number of single occupancy vehicle commuters; the closure of central parking locations, however, is found to be ineffective in discouraging commuters from driving to campus as drivers are more likely to switch parking locations than they are commute modes.

This article examines whether racial disparities exist in travel distances and travel times to grocery stores in Seattle, WA. In contrast to the findings of studies conducted in other metropolitan cities, Seattle, WA, has few food deserts. We find that disparities in travel distance and travel time to supermarkets vary with the percentage of specific racial and ethnic populations. Greater Asian populations in a census tract are associated with shorter travel distance to the grocery, low income, and low vehicle access. For the Hispanic population, a greater percentage in a census tract increases the predicted travel distances and travel times to grocery stores. Greater income in tracts with more Hispanic population is associated with a shorter distance, and those tracts with more Asian population are associated with a longer distance, possibly due to cultural differences in diet.

The exemption for groundwater wells for residential uses from the prior appropriations system, common in the western United States, has eroded in Washington State since about 2000 due to a series of legal cases. Water markets can allow the transfer of an existing water right, typically from an agricultural use, to compensate for the effect of a new residential well. But water must be legally and physically available in a way suitable to satisfy mitigation requirements. A recent court case in the Skagit basin in Northwestern Washington State has effectively halted residential development in rural areas of the basin because no suitable water rights are available to purchase for mitigation. This paper presents and examines the cost-effectiveness of various water supply mitigation strategies. We find a small-scale, distributed stream-side storage system for augmenting instream flow purchased from downstream sources is relatively cost-effective to mitigate against the effects of domestic groundwater use compared to more common alternatives. We consider transporting water to storage sites by both small-gauge pipe and by truck. Overall, trucking water to stream-side storage and release points tends to be more cost-effective to mitigate against indoor-use only given current subbasin housing densities, whereas piping for direct streamflow augmentation is more cost-effective for higher mitigation needs associated with indoor and outdoor use and higher housing densities.

Distracted driving continues to pose threats to transportation safety as it impairs driver performance and increases crash risk. In recent years, cell phone use while driving has become the primary research interest regarding distracted driving. However, the majority of this research has focused on the prevalence and risks of such behavior in passenger car drivers and few have investigated its effect on the performance of drivers of large trucks. Due to the inherent job responsibilities, truck drivers are more susceptible to use a cell phone, or other communication devices (e.g., CB radio), while driving to coordinate delivery logistics. The purpose of this study is to further understand distracted driving in the context of large trucks by identifying the factors that contribute to large truck drivers' decision to report using a cell phone while operating a commercial motor vehicle. Through survey data collected in 2017 from drivers of large trucks who either pick-up or deliver goods in the Pacific Northwest (Oregon, Washington, Idaho, British Columbia), a random parameters binary logit model is used to identify these factors. Of the 515 respondents, 234 (45%) indicated that they use a cell phone while driving. Through the random parameters binary logit model, unobserved heterogeneity is captured, and specific driver behaviors, demographic, work, temporal, and management characteristics are found to affect the likelihood of truck drivers reporting to use their cell phone while driving. Of particular interest, are carrier management characteristics and safety training. Carriers who manage fatigue by imposing schedules to make it easier to take breaks result in a decrease in probability of drivers reporting cell phone use, while carriers who restrict the number of hours worked decreased the probability of reporting cell phone use for the majority of drivers. In addition, having participated in road safety driving resulted in a decrease in probability of reporting cell phone use for the majority of drivers. Such findings have the potential to aid government agencies and commercial motor vehicle carriers in understanding the factors influencing cell phone use while driving among truck drivers. Understanding these motives can aid in the development of programs and policy initiatives that are intended to mitigate distracted driving among truck drivers. (C) 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

This paper offers an improved process for evaluating the benefits and economic tradeoffs associated with a variety of highway pavement projects at the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT). It first analyzes the WSDOT current evaluation process and their utilization of the Highway Economic Requirement System (HERS-ST) developed by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). The assessment identifies some limitations. As a supplement, this study develops the HERS-ST Benefit Application Tool (HERS-ST-BAT) within Excel to improve the HERS-ST software and enhance the capabilities of evaluating highway project analyses. By combining HERS-ST-BAT and HERS-ST, the analyst is able to provide estimates for a variety of regional-level agency and user costs associated with pavement programs and more effectively consider different investment alternatives. Two separate pavement project case studies are selected to apply the HERS-ST-BAT. The results indicate that the improved process is generally applicable to various highway pavement projects. Other transportation agencies, especially for those without a statewide travel demand model, can incorporate this method for evaluating pavement improvement decisions.

This paper focuses on the availability of parking for freight vehicles, with a specific focus on being able to find safe and adequate parking (i.e., a designated parking location for large trucks) along a primary freight corridor in Oregon. This is achieved through the use of a truck driver survey regarding their experiences related to the availability of safe and adequate parking. The survey is geographically focused on drivers and freight activity throughout the Pacific Northwest, as to better infer on truck parking along the study corridor. The data and information collected are then utilized to estimate a binary outcome (logit) model to evaluate how different factors, obtained from the driver survey, impact the likelihood of finding safe and adequate parking from the perspective of the driver. Of 134 indicator variables, 11 factors are found to be statistically significant and provide insights into what impacts or affects the probability that a driver will encounter problems finding safe and adequate parking. Results show that drivers of less-than-truckload (LTL) shipments, weekend shipments, and older drivers have significantly fewer challenges finding safe and adequate parking. Findings from the current study can be used to better guide efforts in Oregon, and across the country, in regard to safe and adequate truck parking.

This study surveyed logging businesses in the Italian Alps to obtain a first detailed description of their current financial wellbeing, of their future intentions and of the success factors and obstacles perceived by the entrepreneurs. Answers from 322 respondents suggest a relatively stable group of enterprises, where the large majority (ca. 90%) intends to stay in business, but where investment intentions are limited (50% of the respondents). This is consistent with the self-assessed financial performance of either breaking even or of generating small profits (80% of the respondents). While equipment modernization was commonly reported as a success factor, professional skills seemed to be recognized as playing an even stronger role. There was strong agreement between respondents on the main business hurdles being related to rising costs, taxes and regulations, and unfair competition. The perspectives and information provided from this survey are discussed with the intent to help policy makers in designing successful strategies to stimulate the business growth required to reach the increasing bio-based and renewable products goals set in place throughout the world.

A new chipper-truck was developed for extending the benefits of industrial chipping to space-constrained landings, normally inaccessible to industrial operations. The new machine was taken for a European test tour, so that it could be tested under conditions considered typical of Mediterranean, Alpine, Central and Nordic Europe. The same machine and operator were used for all tests, which lasted 65 h and produced over 100 chip containers. Productivity varied between 13 and 19 tonnes of green chips per scheduled hour, inclusive of all delays. Fuel consumption ranged from 1.8 to 2.8 dm(3) of diesel per tonne of green chips. Machine utilization ranged from 68 to 89%, and it was highest in the Nordic trials, due to the use of pre-parked containers, which dramatically reduced the occurrence of interaction delays. Regional differences were only related to operational layout and organization, which set the Nordic trial apart from all others. Knife wear and screen size had a major impact on chipper performance. The same accounted for cut length. Production of small chips is only justified when the market offers premium prices for this assortment. (c) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Contractors may inflate the bid price for a construction project in order to cover the potential increased cost for various bid items. In an attempt to moderate the inflation inserted into bid prices, Departments of Transportation (DOTs) allow for fuel adjustments in the monthly payment to the contractor. The fuel price adjustment is a function of fuel usage factor values for bid items based on a 1974 national survey titled, “Fuel Usage Factors for Highway Construction.” For example, the fuel usage factor for structures is multiplied by the gallons of fuel used per $1,000 worth of work. The research reported in this paper uses a recent national survey by the authors to determine whether states, and their DOTs use this same procedure to calculate a fuel price adjustment, and if so, whether the values for the fuel usage factors are the same. In addition, the paper examines how the price of structural construction has changed over time to establish whether the current fuel usage factor for structures, based on fuel usage per dollars of construction is still applicable. A new index of construction items is developed for both a national and state model (Oregon).

This paper proposes a method for calculating both the direct freight benefits and the larger economic impacts of transportation projects. The identified direct freight benefits included in the methodology are travel time savings, operating cost savings, and environmental impacts. These are estimated using regional travel demand models (TDM) and additional factors. Economic impacts are estimated using a regional Computable General Equilibrium (CGE) model. The total project impacts are estimated combining the outputs of the transportation model and an economic model. A Washington State highway widening project is used as a case study to demonstrate the method. The proposed method is transparent and can be used to identify freight specific benefits and generated impacts.

An examination of the effects of deregulation and the performance of the Surface Transportation Board (STB) under that deregulation usually includes an analysis of rail rates that have evolved since implementation of the Staggers Act of 1980 (Staggers Act). This paper examines the rail rate structure for agricultural commodities and compares it with rates for other commodities. Changes in agricultural rail rates are evaluated relative to shipment size and distance shipped to understand how they affect agricultural shippers. Railroads transferred costs to agricultural shippers and overrecovered fuel costs with surcharges. Shippers question the reasonableness of rail rates in the light of railroad revenue adequacy data.

Agricultural and other shippers are concerned about the sufficiency in rural areas of transportation capacity, the sufficiency of competition in the transportation system, the reliability of transportation services, and the reasonableness of rates. This paper examines the sufficiency of rail freight competition and the effects of intramodal competition on rail rates. The paper begins with a review of the importance of rail transportation for U.S. agricultural producers. Specific attention is paid to the nature of competition faced by railroads, especially since deregulation, using the analytical tool of inverse Herfindahl-Hirschman Indices (HHI), by USDA Crop Reporting Districts (CRD). As shown by the inverse HHIs, the overall level of rail competition for grains and oilseeds has generally decreased since the 1985-1992 period, even though rail competition has increased for some CRDs. In addition, revenue to variable cost ratios (R/VC) increased in most of the CRDs analyzed, and the analysis found them related to the number of railroads competing in the CRD. Competition is then analyzed relative to the revenue per ton, revenue per ton-mile, and the revenue to variable cost ratios (R/VC) associated with the level of competition for six states with the least rail-to-rail competition, and distant from water transportation, with those for four states having more rail-to-rail competition and close proximity to water transportation.

The ability to fully understand and accurately characterize freight vehicle route choices is important in helping to inform regional and state decisions. This project recommends improvements to Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) Statewide Freight Geographic Information System (GIS) Network Model to more accurately characterize freight vehicle route choice. This capability, when combined with regional and sub-national commodity flow data, will be a key attribute of an effective statewide freight modeling system. To come to these recommendations, the report describes project activities undertaken, and their outcomes, including 1) a review of commercially available routing software; 2) an evaluation of the use of statewide global positioning system (GPS) data as an input for routing analysis; and 3) the design, implementation, and evaluation of a survey of shippers, carriers, and freight forwarders within the state. The software review found that routing software assumes least cost paths while meeting user specified constraints, and it identified criteria for evaluation in the subsequent survey. The GPS data evaluation showed that significant temporal shifting occurs rather than spatial route shifting, and it revealed significant limitations in the use of GPS data for evaluating routing choices, largely because of the read rate. Among the survey results was that the first priority of shippers, carriers, and freight forwarders is to not only meet customer requirements, but to do so in the most cost-efficient way. From a latent class analysis of routing priorities, the authors discovered that distance-based classification best clusters similar routing behavior. The report includes recommendations for implementing this within the Statewide Freight GIS Network Model.