Neighborhoods, cars, and commuting in New York City: A discrete choice approach

Cities around the world are trying out a multitude of transportation policy and investment alternatives with the aim of reducing car-induced externalities. However, without a solid understanding of how people make their transportation and residential location choices, it is hard to tell which of these policies and investments are really doing the job and which are wasting precious city resources. The focus of this paper is the determinants of car ownership and car use for commuting. Using survey data from 1997 to 1998 collected in New York City, this paper uses discrete choice econometrics to estimate a model of the choices of car ownership and commute mode while also modeling the related choice of residential location. The main story told by this analysis is that New Yorkers are more sensitive to changes in travel time than they are to changes in travel cost. The model predicts that the most effective ways to reduce both auto ownership and car commuting involve changing the relative travel times for cars and transit, making transit trips faster by increasing both the frequency and the speed of service and making auto trips slower - perhaps simply by allowing traffic congestion. Population density also appears to have a substantial effect on car ownership in New York.

• Record URL:
  • http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6VG7-4V4622M-1/2/b3c6f62d47c8a4a6589744544661f7b3
• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/issn/09658564
• Supplemental Notes:
  • Abstract reprinted with permission from Elsevier
• Authors:
  • Salon, Deborah
• Publication Date: 2009-2

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Print
• Features: References; Tables;
• Pagination: pp 180-196
• Serial:
  • Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice
  • Volume: 43
  • Issue Number: 2
  • Publisher: Elsevier
  • ISSN: 0965-8564
  • Serial URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/09658564

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Automobile ownership; Automobile travel; Automobiles; Commuting; Econometrics; Mode choice; Neighborhoods; Public transit; Transportation policy; Travel costs; Travel time
• Uncontrolled Terms: Discrete choice; Residential choice; Transportation investment
• Geographic Terms: New York (New York)
• Subject Areas: Highways; Planning and Forecasting; Public Transportation; Society;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01122550
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS, ATRI
• Created Date: Feb 23 2009 7:42AM