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Travel behavior
408
Book Reviews
magnitude of the inclusive value in the models for nonbusiness trips confirmed the validity of the structure chosen a priori. The sequential estimation procedure did not produce reliable results for models beyond the first stage, that is, the no-trip versus one/more-trips model. Results of the study indicated that the structure used in this study could be applied for intercity travel demand modelling. However, some limitations of the data base have been identified. It is believed that, with some modifications, the CTS data could be used for predicting intercity travel demand. Future research can identify the factors affecting intercity travel behaviour which will facilitate collection of useful data for intercity travel prediction and policy analysis. The effects of household characteristics on the multi-day time allocations and travel/activity patterns of households and their members. Townsend, Trevor Anthony, Ph.D. Northwestern University, 1987. 497 pp. Order Number DA8723720 Households generate periodic travel needs which must be satisfied. The travel/activity behaviour of individuals fulfills some mixture of household and individual needs. To understand the travel/activity behaviour of individuals it is necessary to understand how the relationships between household members influence the multi-day travel/activity patterns of individual household members. The overall objective of this research is to conceptualize and explore how household members allocate household tasks given the interdependencies within the household. The conceptualization includes the development of an integrated theory of household task allocation which postulates that households attempt to maximize their utility, a positive function of the utilities of their members, by the allocation of the household members’ time to various activities. The individual’s utility is a function of the consumption of home goods, satisfaction from activity participation and altruism towards other household members. A multi-method research design is used which allows the conceptualization to be examined from different analysis perspectives involving (i) an analytical development and structuring of the theory which shows how the interrelationships between household members and the effects of these relationships as well as the skills, habits and biases of household members can be related to the household task allocation (ii) the development and testing of hypotheses relating differences in travel/activity patterns of individuals and households to differences in the individual and household characteristics and (iii) the analysis and classification of individuals and households on the basis of their travel/ activity patterns, the relating of pattern cluster membership to individual and household characteristics and the exploration of the hierarchical relation between individual and household patterns. The empirical results confirm the theoretical expectation that household interdependency, defined by three constructs (i) efficiency (ii) companionship and (iii) altruism/ power, affects the intra-person and interperson time allocation trade-offs and the travel-activity patterns of households and their members. Factors related to travel mode choices in the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area. Karimpour, Abdolmehdi, Ph.D. University of North Texas, 1988. 90 pp. Order Number DA8817031 This study examined the factors related to travel mode choices in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metropolitan Area. Changes in population, life-style and economy of the Dallas-Fort Worth region over the last few decades demand a careful reexamination of travel demand tools and methods.
The purpose of the study was to provide an understanding of transportation modal choice in the region. Those demographic variables best predicting the choices were identified. The Home Interview Survey, a set of disaggregate data from the 1984 North Central Texas Council of Governments (NCTCOG) Regional Travel Survey, was analyzed using logistic regression. The major findings of the research indicate that about 97% of the travelers in the study area used private cars and 3% used public transit. Household income and carsvans were significant explanatory variables. The impact of househotd income and number of car-vans available upon an individual’s decision for travel mode choice were very important. The number of car-vans available in the household, and age of respondents were significant predictors in travel mod< Household members wGh incomes of $30,000 to $39,000 and those with incomes of at least $50.000 tended to use more private cars than did other income groups. Also, household members with incomes below $9,000 used more public transportation. People reporting a lower preference for cars were younger than 26 years or older than 55 years of age. Individual choice behaviour and urban commuting. Torchinsky, Raymon Lev, Ph.D. The (InilIersiry ofBritish Columbia (Canada), 1987. Supervisor: Ken G. Denike Urban commuting patterns can be viewed as the spatial manifestation of the outcome of labour market processes. Recent theoretical and empirical work investigating urban labour markets has emphasized the role of spatial wage differentials in mediating the interrelationship between labour supply and demand distributions and the dynamics of land-use change. This thesis represents an extension of such research. A simulation approach to commuting modelling, based on the explicit characterization of the interrelationship between urban location and interaction in terms of labour market processes, is developed. The solution path logic of the simulation model is designed to provide normative commuting outcomes, given the spatial pattern of labour supply and demand, under a wide range of assumptions concerning labour market processes and choice-making behaviour of market participants. An explicit characterization of the labour market, based on the specification of an endogenous behavioural assumption set, defines a model version. Thus, the model may be used to test the ability of various behavioural constructs to explain empirical commuting patterns. The justification and internal logic underlying the development of a specific model version is presented. This version is based on the assumption that the decision by a worker to apply for a job is objectively rational, given that the market environment does not provide certainty as to the outcome of an application. It is shown that such choice behaviour is analogous to the game-theoretic mixed strategy solution to noncooperative games under uncertainty. The algorithm of the operational model incorporating this approach is detailed. The model was tested on empirical commuting patterns derived from Vancouver Census data, and model results were compared with those obtained from a positive entropy-based model. Commuting predictions exhibited a level of accuracy comparable to that achieved by the calibrated entropy model. Modelling travel patterns and attitudes towards intercity transportation system for a developing country using multivariate techniques. Al-Beldawi, A. H., Phi1.D. University College of North Wales, Bangor (United Kingdom), 1988. Order Number BRDX83391 226 pp. The use of attitudinal data for investigating intercity travelers’ behaviour is seldom carried out in transportation
Book Reviews
magnitude of the inclusive value in the models for nonbusiness trips confirmed the validity of the structure chosen a priori. The sequential estimation procedure did not produce reliable results for models beyond the first stage, that is, the no-trip versus one/more-trips model. Results of the study indicated that the structure used in this study could be applied for intercity travel demand modelling. However, some limitations of the data base have been identified. It is believed that, with some modifications, the CTS data could be used for predicting intercity travel demand. Future research can identify the factors affecting intercity travel behaviour which will facilitate collection of useful data for intercity travel prediction and policy analysis. The effects of household characteristics on the multi-day time allocations and travel/activity patterns of households and their members. Townsend, Trevor Anthony, Ph.D. Northwestern University, 1987. 497 pp. Order Number DA8723720 Households generate periodic travel needs which must be satisfied. The travel/activity behaviour of individuals fulfills some mixture of household and individual needs. To understand the travel/activity behaviour of individuals it is necessary to understand how the relationships between household members influence the multi-day travel/activity patterns of individual household members. The overall objective of this research is to conceptualize and explore how household members allocate household tasks given the interdependencies within the household. The conceptualization includes the development of an integrated theory of household task allocation which postulates that households attempt to maximize their utility, a positive function of the utilities of their members, by the allocation of the household members’ time to various activities. The individual’s utility is a function of the consumption of home goods, satisfaction from activity participation and altruism towards other household members. A multi-method research design is used which allows the conceptualization to be examined from different analysis perspectives involving (i) an analytical development and structuring of the theory which shows how the interrelationships between household members and the effects of these relationships as well as the skills, habits and biases of household members can be related to the household task allocation (ii) the development and testing of hypotheses relating differences in travel/activity patterns of individuals and households to differences in the individual and household characteristics and (iii) the analysis and classification of individuals and households on the basis of their travel/ activity patterns, the relating of pattern cluster membership to individual and household characteristics and the exploration of the hierarchical relation between individual and household patterns. The empirical results confirm the theoretical expectation that household interdependency, defined by three constructs (i) efficiency (ii) companionship and (iii) altruism/ power, affects the intra-person and interperson time allocation trade-offs and the travel-activity patterns of households and their members. Factors related to travel mode choices in the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area. Karimpour, Abdolmehdi, Ph.D. University of North Texas, 1988. 90 pp. Order Number DA8817031 This study examined the factors related to travel mode choices in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metropolitan Area. Changes in population, life-style and economy of the Dallas-Fort Worth region over the last few decades demand a careful reexamination of travel demand tools and methods.
The purpose of the study was to provide an understanding of transportation modal choice in the region. Those demographic variables best predicting the choices were identified. The Home Interview Survey, a set of disaggregate data from the 1984 North Central Texas Council of Governments (NCTCOG) Regional Travel Survey, was analyzed using logistic regression. The major findings of the research indicate that about 97% of the travelers in the study area used private cars and 3% used public transit. Household income and carsvans were significant explanatory variables. The impact of househotd income and number of car-vans available upon an individual’s decision for travel mode choice were very important. The number of car-vans available in the household, and age of respondents were significant predictors in travel mod< Household members wGh incomes of $30,000 to $39,000 and those with incomes of at least $50.000 tended to use more private cars than did other income groups. Also, household members with incomes below $9,000 used more public transportation. People reporting a lower preference for cars were younger than 26 years or older than 55 years of age. Individual choice behaviour and urban commuting. Torchinsky, Raymon Lev, Ph.D. The (InilIersiry ofBritish Columbia (Canada), 1987. Supervisor: Ken G. Denike Urban commuting patterns can be viewed as the spatial manifestation of the outcome of labour market processes. Recent theoretical and empirical work investigating urban labour markets has emphasized the role of spatial wage differentials in mediating the interrelationship between labour supply and demand distributions and the dynamics of land-use change. This thesis represents an extension of such research. A simulation approach to commuting modelling, based on the explicit characterization of the interrelationship between urban location and interaction in terms of labour market processes, is developed. The solution path logic of the simulation model is designed to provide normative commuting outcomes, given the spatial pattern of labour supply and demand, under a wide range of assumptions concerning labour market processes and choice-making behaviour of market participants. An explicit characterization of the labour market, based on the specification of an endogenous behavioural assumption set, defines a model version. Thus, the model may be used to test the ability of various behavioural constructs to explain empirical commuting patterns. The justification and internal logic underlying the development of a specific model version is presented. This version is based on the assumption that the decision by a worker to apply for a job is objectively rational, given that the market environment does not provide certainty as to the outcome of an application. It is shown that such choice behaviour is analogous to the game-theoretic mixed strategy solution to noncooperative games under uncertainty. The algorithm of the operational model incorporating this approach is detailed. The model was tested on empirical commuting patterns derived from Vancouver Census data, and model results were compared with those obtained from a positive entropy-based model. Commuting predictions exhibited a level of accuracy comparable to that achieved by the calibrated entropy model. Modelling travel patterns and attitudes towards intercity transportation system for a developing country using multivariate techniques. Al-Beldawi, A. H., Phi1.D. University College of North Wales, Bangor (United Kingdom), 1988. Order Number BRDX83391 226 pp. The use of attitudinal data for investigating intercity travelers’ behaviour is seldom carried out in transportation