research report

Measure M and the Potential Transformation of Mobility in Los Angeles

Publication Date

December 1, 2018

Associated Project(s)

Measure M and the Potential Transportation for Mobility in Los Angeles

Author(s)

Michael Manville

Areas of Expertise

Intelligent Transportation Systems, Emerging Technologies, & Big Data Transportation Economics, Funding, & Finance

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Abstract

Why do voters choose to raise their own taxes for public transportation? Should we expect this political willingness to finance transit to change travel behavior? This project examines those questions by analyzing Measure M, the sales tax increase that LA County voters approved by ballot in 2016. Measure M was designed to be transformative, and help make LA a more multimodal region. The paper first shows that this goal is ambitious: LA differs greatly from the American regions where transit use is more common. Then two original surveys are used to examine the reasons for Measure M’s support. The paper finds that the reasons for supporting Measure M were often partisan, and/or related to beliefs about transit’s ability to improve social problems. Supporters of Measure M exhibit little appetite for riding transit, and little interest in the complementary policies (more density, less parking, congestion charging) that would make new transit investments more effective.

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policy brief

The Equity Challenges and Outcomes of California County Transportation Sales Taxes

policy brief

Considerations for Mitigating Vehicle Miles Traveled under SB 743

Publication Date

November 1, 2018

Associated Project(s)

Implementing SB 743: An Analysis of Vehicle Miles Traveled Banking and Exchange Frameworks

Author(s)

Ethan Elkind, Ted Lamm

Areas of Expertise

Travel Behavior, Land Use, & the Built Environment

View policy brief

Abstract

Pursuant to Senate Bill 743 (Steinberg, 2013), which reformed the process for California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) review of transportation impacts to align with greenhouse gas emissions reduction goals, the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research identified vehicle miles traveled (VMT) as the key metric to measure transportation impacts of new developments under CEQA.
As a result, project developers will now have to reduce VMT to mitigate significant transportation impacts. While methods for reducing VMT impacts are well understood, implementing VMT reduction measures thatare directly linked or near to individual developments may be difficult in some situations. As a result, broader and more flexible approaches to VMT mitigation may be necessary, such as VMT mitigation “banks” or “exchanges.” In a mitigation bank, developers would commit funds instead of undertaking specific on-site mitigation projects, and then a local or regional authority could aggregate funds and deploy them to top-priority projects throughout the jurisdiction. Similarly, in amitigation exchange, developers would be permitted to select from a list of pre-approved mitigation projects throughout the jurisdiction (or propose their own), without needing to mitigate their transportation impacts on-site.
To understand how VMT banks or exchanges could be implemented in California, researchers from UC Berkeley assessed the structural and legal considerations of VMT banks and exchanges to determine which approach and scope would be most appropriate for each implementing jurisdiction (i.e., city, county, region, state). Key research findings are presented in this brief

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research report

Implementing SB 743: An Analysis of Vehicle Miles Traveled Banking and Exchange Frameworks

dissertation, thesis, or capstone

Simulation of Zero-Emissions Self-Driving Drayage Trucks in a Busy Freight Corridor

Publication Date

October 13, 2018

Associated Project(s)

Simulation of Zero-Emissions Self-Driving Drayage Trucks in a Busy Freight Corridor

Author(s)

Monica Ramirez-Ibarra

Areas of Expertise

Freight, Logistics, & Supply Chain Zero-Emission Vehicles & Low-Carbon Fuels

View dissertation, thesis, or capstone

Related Publications

policy brief

What are the Public Health and Environmental Implications of Drayage Truck Electrification Targets in California?

published journal article

Health and equity impacts from electrifying drayage trucks

research report

Transportation Plans: Their Informational Content and Use Patterns in Southern California

Publication Date

November 1, 2018

Associated Project(s)

Transportation Plans: Their Informational Content and Use Patterns in Southern California

Author(s)

Jae Hong Kim, Tanjeeb Ahmed, Victor Paitimusa

Areas of Expertise

Travel Behavior, Land Use, & the Built Environment

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Abstract

While a large amount of effort has been devoted to making and updating local transportation plans, little is known about the informational contents of these plans and their use patterns. This project attempted to identify key informational contents of Californian cities’ transportation plans and to investigate how various stakeholders can use the plan contents through (i) a plan content analysis of a sample of general plans (recently adopted by eight municipalities in Orange County, California) and (ii) a plan use survey and follow-up analysis of survey responses. All plans that were analyzed were found to convey a variety of information about their visions, goals, policies, and implementation strategies, but the plan content analysis revealed substantial variation in the way cities composed their general plans and integrated them with other plans/players. Compared to land use elements, circulation elements tended to focus more on their connections with other agencies (external consistency) than on internal consistency. The plan use survey yielded a low response rate which may indicate limited use of plans in the field. However, a majority of the survey responses were positive about the usefulness and usability of general plans. In particular, the survey participants reported that they found the plans comprehensive, visionary, and well-organized, while relatively lower scores were obtained for two evaluation criteria: ‘[the plan] clearly explains what actions will be taken and when’ and ‘[the plan] is relevant to my everyday life and/or work’. Furthermore, some respondents reported that they used general plans not for their professional duties but for other (non-conventional) purposes, suggesting that plan contents could be used for a variety of decision-making processes.

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policy brief

General Plan Content Related to Transportation and Land Use Varies Significantly Across Cities in Orange County

policy brief

Ridehail Travel & Use in Los Angeles

Publication Date

October 1, 2018

Associated Project(s)

Ridehail Revolution: Ridehail Travel and Equity in Los Angeles

Areas of Expertise

Public Transit, Shared Mobility, & Active Transportation

View policy brief

Related Publications

policy brief

Discrimination in Ridehail and Taxi Services

dissertation, thesis, or capstone

Ridehail Revolution: Ridehail Travel and Equity in Los Angeles

research report

Implementing SB 743: An Analysis of Vehicle Miles Traveled Banking and Exchange Frameworks

Publication Date

October 1, 2018

Associated Project(s)

Implementing SB 743: An Analysis of Vehicle Miles Traveled Banking and Exchange Frameworks

Author(s)

Eric Prather, Ethan Elkind, Ted Lamm

Areas of Expertise

Travel Behavior, Land Use, & the Built Environment

View research report

Abstract

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policy brief

Considerations for Mitigating Vehicle Miles Traveled under SB 743

research report

A Comparison of Zero-Emission Highway Trucking Technologies

Publication Date

October 1, 2018

Associated Project(s)

A Comparison of Zero-Emission Highway Trucking Technologies

Author(s)

Andrew Burke, Hengbing Zhao, Lewis Fulton, Miguel Jaller, Qian Wang

Areas of Expertise

Freight, Logistics, & Supply Chain Zero-Emission Vehicles & Low-Carbon Fuels

View research report

Abstract

Zero-emission long-haul trucking technologies are being developed that can play a critical role in achieving California’s climate change goals and virtually eliminate air pollution from these vehicles. Hydrogen fuel-cell electric, catenary electric, and dynamic inductive charging technologies are being demonstrated in small-scale projects worldwide. In this study, these three zero-emission truck technologies were reviewed in detail, and vehicle and infrastructure challenges and costs for each of the technologies were assessed. In the near- to mid-term, electrifying the entire California state highway system or deploying large hydrogen stations at many statewide truck stops would require very large capital costs, on the order of billions of dollars, even though, at least initially, there will likely be relatively few zero-emission long-haul trucks in use. Considering technology readiness, energy efficiency, and capital cost, the most feasible approach for zero-emission technologies for long-haul trucks may be to deploy local or regional catenary systems. Dynamic inductive charge systems could be introduced, though with perhaps more disruption as roadways are prepared for this service. Hydrogen fuel cell trucks will benefit from some scalability but will require large hydrogen refueling stations along highways. The initial “up-front” investment in infrastructure for hydrogen trucks appears somewhat lower than for the other two options but the cost of providing hydrogen to vehicles will be high, especially if provided using electrolysis. In the longer term, all three of the technologies could become economically competitive with diesel trucking, though this depends on many factors and uncertainties.

policy brief

Public-Private Partnerships Show Promise for Shifting Export of California Produce from Truck to Rail

Publication Date

September 1, 2018

Associated Project(s)

Encouraging Mode Shift from Truck to Rail for California Produce

Author(s)

Josh Seeherman, Jae Esther Jung, Juan Caicedo, Mark Hansen

Areas of Expertise

Freight, Logistics, & Supply Chain Travel Behavior, Land Use, & the Built Environment

View policy brief

Abstract

California is one of the largest producers of perishable produce in the world; producing about 25 million tons of fruits and vegetables each year. This sector supports a large transportation industry that handles the exports of these goods. Starting from the 1950’s, the export of produce has gradually shifted modes from rail to trucks. Currently, only 3% of California’s produce is being exported by rail. However, this share has begun to increase due to efforts in private industry to monetize this space, with total rail tonnage exceeding one million for the first time in decades starting in 2012. See Figure 1. Much of this increase is due to the modest success of companies in the San Joaquin Valley aggregating crop exports onto rail unit trains. While utilizing trucking may be cheaper for growers, shippers, and buyers, it has generated a number of negative externalities, including impacts to the environment, public health and public roads (e.g., pavement damage). Encouraging a shift from transporting produce by trucks to rail could help reduce these negative externalities.

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research report

Encouraging Mode Shift from Truck to Rail for California Produce

research report

Encouraging Mode Shift from Truck to Rail for California Produce

Publication Date

September 1, 2018

Associated Project(s)

Encouraging Mode Shift from Truck to Rail for California Produce

Author(s)

Jae Esther Jung, Josh Seeherman, Juan Caicedo, Mark Hansen

Areas of Expertise

Freight, Logistics, & Supply Chain Travel Behavior, Land Use, & the Built Environment

View research report

Abstract

California is one of the largest producers of perishable produce in the world. This sector supports a large transportation industry that handles the exports of these goods. Starting from the 1950s, the export of produce has gradually shifted modes from rail to truck. This project builds on the initial work from the “Rail and the California Economy” project by examining the potential of shifting the movement of perishable produce in California from truck to rail. The final report provides a review of the state of the California rail system in terms of perishable produce transport and where there have been recent increases in rail modal share; analyzes and discusses the societal costs of trucking; outlines how PPPs (public-private-partnerships) relate to rail and provides examples of rail PPP in California such as the highly successful Colton Crossing project; and proposes a location in Monterey County where government support through a PPP could result in lasting beneficial changes. In summary, although rail is currently a very small player in the transport of California perishable produce exports, increasing its modal share would be beneficial to the citizens of the state by reducing the number of negative externalities. Public entities should consider different ways, such as PPP, to encourage this growth. In areas where the private sector has already invested significant money, some modal shifts for certain crops have already occurred.

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policy brief

Public-Private Partnerships Show Promise for Shifting Export of California Produce from Truck to Rail

published journal article

Traffic management and networking for autonomous vehicular highway systems

Publication Date

August 30, 2018

Associated Project(s)

Infrastructure-to-vehicle Communications for Autonomous Vehicle Systems

Areas of Expertise

Intelligent Transportation Systems, Emerging Technologies, & Big Data

View published journal article

Abstract

We develop traffic management and data networking mechanisms and study their integrated design for an autonomous transportation system. The traffic management model involves a multi-lane multi-segment highway. Ramp managers regulate the admission of vehicles into the highway and their routing to designated lanes. Vehicles moving across each lane are organized into platoons. A Platoon Leader (PL) is elected in each platoon and is used to manage its members and their communications with the infrastructure and with vehicles in other platoons. We develop new methods that are employed to determine the structural formations of platoons and their mobility processes in each lane, aiming to maximize the realized flow rate under vehicular end-to-end delay constraints. We set a limit on the vehicular on-ramp queueing delay and on the (per unit distance) transit time incurred along the highway. We make use of the platoon formations to develop new Vehicle-to-Vehicle (V2V) wireless networking cross-layer schemes that are used to disseminate messages among vehicles traveling within a specified neighborhood. For this purpose, we develop algorithms that configure a hierarchical networking architecture for the autonomous system. Certain platoon leaders are dynamically assigned to act as Backbone Nodes (BNs). The latter are interconnected by communications links to form a Backbone Network (Bnet). Each BN serves as an access point for its Access Network (Anet), which consists of its mobile clients. We study the delay-throughput performance behavior of the network system and determine the optimal setting of its parameters, assuming both TDMA and IEEE 802.11p-oriented wireless channel sharing (MAC) schemes. Integrating these traffic management and data networking mechanisms, we demonstrate the performance tradeoffs available to the system designer and manager when aiming to synthesize an autonomous transportation system operation that achieves targeted vehicular flow rates and transit delays while also setting the data communications network system to meet targeted message throughput and delay objectives.

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policy brief