Vol 14 No 2 (2014)
2014-04-01
Vol 14 No 2 (2014)
2014-04-01
Articles
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Currently, many initiatives are under implementation in the Netherlands to integrate the stages of policymaking, plan development, construction, and operations and maintenance in the lifecycle of the infrastructure planning process by more explicitly involving business organizations. However, generally speaking, these integration initiatives stand alone and only connect a maximum of two stages at a time. In this article we explore whether and how contemporary lifecycle integration initiatives could be combined into a more integrated approach to be better able to address infrastructure planning complexities. We provide a framework for dealing with project complexity that distinguishes internal complexity, defined as the interrelatedness between project components, and external complexity, defined as the interaction of the project with its context. After assessing public and private experiences in combining single integration initiatives in complex settings by means of two focus group discussions, we conclude that current initiatives that connect stages in the planning process are suitable for addressing internal complexity. However, external complexity proves to be more difficult to adequately tackle when combining these lifecycle integration initiatives. We therefore recommend applying a more dynamic process management approach that stimulates continuous public-private interaction throughout the stages of the planning lifecycle. This could be facilitated by introducing alliances and cross-functional public-private teams.
Currently, many initiatives are under implementation in the Netherlands to integrate the stages of policymaking, plan development, construction, and operations and maintenance in the lifecycle of the infrastructure planning process by more explicitly involving business organizations. However, generally speaking, these integration initiatives stand alone and only connect a maximum of two stages at a time. In this article we explore whether and how contemporary lifecycle integration initiatives could be combined into a more integrated approach to be better able to address infrastructure planning complexities. We provide a framework for dealing with project complexity that distinguishes internal complexity, defined as the interrelatedness between project components, and external complexity, defined as the interaction of the project with its context. After assessing public and private experiences in combining single integration initiatives in complex settings by means of two focus...
Currently, many initiatives are under implementation in the Netherlands to integrate the stages of policymaking, plan development, construction, and operations and maintenance in the lifecycle of the infrastructure planning process by more explicitly involving business organizations. However,...
Sander Lenferink, Taede Tillema, Jos Arts -
The central concern of this paper is why the traffic-increasing effect of road capacity expansion (induced traffic) is still frequently ignored when preparing decision-support material for proposed infrastructure investments. Earlier research has pointed at ignorance or technical difficulties as likely reasons. This paper offers an additional explanation. Based on an investigation of the opinions of transport modellers, consultants, transport planners and politicians concerning the usefulness, shortcomings and application of forecasting models in transport planning, this paper suggests that transport model forecasts are used in project evaluations primarily to throw light on where and when to build a proposed road infrastructure, not for assessing whether to build it. Since induced traffic is usually not differing so much between the different ‘build’-alternatives, the errors caused by omitting induced traffic in the models are accepted. This way of framing the decision problem is often associated with what has been termed the ‘predict and provide’ paradigm.
The central concern of this paper is why the traffic-increasing effect of road capacity expansion (induced traffic) is still frequently ignored when preparing decision-support material for proposed infrastructure investments. Earlier research has pointed at ignorance or technical difficulties as likely reasons. This paper offers an additional explanation. Based on an investigation of the opinions of transport modellers, consultants, transport planners and politicians concerning the usefulness, shortcomings and application of forecasting models in transport planning, this paper suggests that transport model forecasts are used in project evaluations primarily to throw light on where and when to build a proposed road infrastructure, not for assessing whether to build it. Since induced traffic is usually not differing so much between the different ‘build’-alternatives, the errors caused by omitting induced traffic in the models are accepted. This way of framing the decision...
The central concern of this paper is why the traffic-increasing effect of road capacity expansion (induced traffic) is still frequently ignored when preparing decision-support material for proposed infrastructure investments. Earlier research has pointed at ignorance or technical difficulties...
Petter Næss, Jeppe Andersen, Morten Skou Nicolaisen, Arvid Strand -
This paper discusses the development of a simplified model to efficiently represent local public transportation services in a large-scale travel demand model. The California Statewide Travel Demand Model (CSTDM) is a comprehensive model system designed and developed for use in transportation policy analysis and travel demand forecasting, including representation of both long and short distance transportation covering the entire state of California. A novel hybrid system is used to represent the full range of rail and bus transit services that are available. Rail services – including all long-distance rail, commuter rail and light rail services – are represented in the standard manner, using explicit node and link networks; the relevant in-vehicle and out-ofvehicle service characteristics for journeys are determined as standard skims of these networks. On-street bus services are not represented using explicit networks; rather, the relevant in-vehicle and out-of-vehicle service characteristics are determined using functions of other transportation network variables, land use descriptors and relevant policy indicators. These functions are simplified econometric models estimated using observations of transit service obtained from Google Transit Data Feeds. The network and simplified components are integrated in order to allow transit paths with both rail and on-street bus components to be considered by the various travel choice models included in the modelling framework. This hybrid system provides a suitable representation of transit for an area of such size. This facilitates consideration of transit service policies, while obviating the need for extensive transit coding, a daunting task for a large area.
This paper discusses the development of a simplified model to efficiently represent local public transportation services in a large-scale travel demand model. The California Statewide Travel Demand Model (CSTDM) is a comprehensive model system designed and developed for use in transportation policy analysis and travel demand forecasting, including representation of both long and short distance transportation covering the entire state of California. A novel hybrid system is used to represent the full range of rail and bus transit services that are available. Rail services – including all long-distance rail, commuter rail and light rail services – are represented in the standard manner, using explicit node and link networks; the relevant in-vehicle and out-ofvehicle service characteristics for journeys are determined as standard skims of these networks. On-street bus services are not represented using explicit networks; rather, the relevant in-vehicle and out-of-vehicle service...
This paper discusses the development of a simplified model to efficiently represent local public transportation services in a large-scale travel demand model. The California Statewide Travel Demand Model (CSTDM) is a comprehensive model system designed and developed for use in transportation...
Giovanni Circella, John Douglas Hunt, Kevin John Stefan, Alan Thomas Brownlee, Michael McCoy -
Intelligent Speed Adaptation (ISA), an in-vehicle system that can either warn the driver or directly limit the vehicle’s speed when the speed limit is reached, is generally believed to have a large potential to increase road safety. However, policy makers hesitate to take policy measures that may increase ISA use. Public acceptance of ISA or policy makers’ perception of it is regarded to play an important role in this. This paper aims to increase this insight by reporting car drivers’ preferences for ISA policy measures based on stated choice experiment conducted in the Netherlands. Respondents made choices between various implementation strategies (mandatory ISA and voluntary ISA with financial incentives) given a chosen policy measure. The policy measure describes which drivers group (speed offenders, professional drivers or all drivers) is targeted and which ISA type (warning or limiting) is stimulated. The results point out that car drivers especially prefer that policy makers would impose ISA on speed offenders and to a lesser extent also on professional drivers, while they prefer a voluntary ISA for themselves. Use of voluntary ISA can be stimulated by offering financial incentives, of which purchase subsidy is preferred above annual tax cuts. Furthermore, car drivers prefer warning ISA for themselves and also for professional drivers, while they prefer limiting ISA for speed offenders. In addition, the results indicate that females and the older age group prefer ISA policy measures more than males and young drivers, but overall car drivers’ preferences seem to be rather homogeneous.
Intelligent Speed Adaptation (ISA), an in-vehicle system that can either warn the driver or directly limit the vehicle’s speed when the speed limit is reached, is generally believed to have a large potential to increase road safety. However, policy makers hesitate to take policy measures that may increase ISA use. Public acceptance of ISA or policy makers’ perception of it is regarded to play an important role in this. This paper aims to increase this insight by reporting car drivers’ preferences for ISA policy measures based on stated choice experiment conducted in the Netherlands. Respondents made choices between various implementation strategies (mandatory ISA and voluntary ISA with financial incentives) given a chosen policy measure. The policy measure describes which drivers group (speed offenders, professional drivers or all drivers) is targeted and which ISA type (warning or limiting) is stimulated. The results point out that car drivers especially prefer that policy...
Intelligent Speed Adaptation (ISA), an in-vehicle system that can either warn the driver or directly limit the vehicle’s speed when the speed limit is reached, is generally believed to have a large potential to increase road safety. However, policy makers hesitate to take policy measures...
Eric Molin, Gertjan van den Bos -
Dynamic traffic management (DTM) is acknowledged in various policy documents as an important instrument to improve network performance. This network performance is not only a matter of accessibility, since the externalities of traffic are becoming more and more important objectives as well. Optimization of network performance using DTM measures is a specific example of a network design problem (NDP) and incorporation of externality objectives results in a multi objective network design problem (MO NDP)). Solving this problem resorts in a Pareto optimal set of solutions. A framework is presented with the non-dominated sorting algorithm (NSGAII), the Streamline dynamic traffic assignment model and several externality models, that is used to solve this MO NDP. With a numerical experiment it is shown that the Pareto optimal set provides important information for the decision making process, which would not have been available if the optimization problem was simplified by incorporation of a compensation principle in advance. However, in the end a solution has to be chosen as the best compromise. Since the Pareto optimal set can be difficult to comprehend, ranking it may be necessary to assist the decision makers. Cost benefit analysis which uses the economic compensation principle is a method that is often used for ranking the alternatives. This research shows, that travel time costs are by far the most dominant objective. Therefore other ranking methods should be considered. Differences between these methods are explained and it is illustrated that the outcomes and therefore the eventual decisions taken can be different.
Dynamic traffic management (DTM) is acknowledged in various policy documents as an important instrument to improve network performance. This network performance is not only a matter of accessibility, since the externalities of traffic are becoming more and more important objectives as well. Optimization of network performance using DTM measures is a specific example of a network design problem (NDP) and incorporation of externality objectives results in a multi objective network design problem (MO NDP)). Solving this problem resorts in a Pareto optimal set of solutions. A framework is presented with the non-dominated sorting algorithm (NSGAII), the Streamline dynamic traffic assignment model and several externality models, that is used to solve this MO NDP. With a numerical experiment it is shown that the Pareto optimal set provides important information for the decision making process, which would not have been available if the optimization problem was simplified by...
Dynamic traffic management (DTM) is acknowledged in various policy documents as an important instrument to improve network performance. This network performance is not only a matter of accessibility, since the externalities of traffic are becoming more and more important objectives as well....
Luc Wismans, Eric van Berkum, Michiel Bliemer -
Recently, the number of intermodal barge/road and rail/road terminals in Western Europe has boomed, facilitating a growth of more sustainable hinterland freight transport. But currently, the question is raised if additional intermodal terminals are still desirable, if they can operate in an economically viable way and where they should be located in the existing transport network. The goal of this research was to find optimal terminal locations from a terminal operators’ perspective, maximizing the potential transhipment volumes in Belgium, without competing with the already established terminals. The developed methodology was tested for the Belgium infrastructure network, but can be applied to any network. Different locations are selected in a meta-analysis, but local conditions such as land availability and stakeholder approval should be investigated prior to setting up new terminal initiatives. In addition, the analysis shows that the selection of optimal terminal locations is highly influenced by the inclusion of transport time, next to market price, as a selection criterion.
Recently, the number of intermodal barge/road and rail/road terminals in Western Europe has boomed, facilitating a growth of more sustainable hinterland freight transport. But currently, the question is raised if additional intermodal terminals are still desirable, if they can operate in an economically viable way and where they should be located in the existing transport network. The goal of this research was to find optimal terminal locations from a terminal operators’ perspective, maximizing the potential transhipment volumes in Belgium, without competing with the already established terminals. The developed methodology was tested for the Belgium infrastructure network, but can be applied to any network. Different locations are selected in a meta-analysis, but local conditions such as land availability and stakeholder approval should be investigated prior to setting up new terminal initiatives. In addition, the analysis shows that the selection of optimal terminal locations...
Recently, the number of intermodal barge/road and rail/road terminals in Western Europe has boomed, facilitating a growth of more sustainable hinterland freight transport. But currently, the question is raised if additional intermodal terminals are still desirable, if they can operate in an...
Dries Meers, Cathy Macharis