Using Quantitative Methods in Equity and Demographic Analysis to Inform Transit Fare Restructuring Decisions

New York City Transit (NYCT) and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority have integrated race and income equity considerations into their extensive public outreach processes for fare changes. Responding to FTA civil rights, Title VI, and environmental justice requirements, NYCT developed two quantitative and analytical approaches for forecasting equity impacts of fare restructuring decisions, in place of more traditional origin–destination surveys. The first approach uses standard aggregate fare elasticity models to estimate diversions between different fare classes and ridership losses resulting from fare adjustments. Average fare changes by fare media type are disaggregated with historical farecard usage patterns (consumption data) by subway station and bus route and translated into demographic variables (minority or nonminority and at, below, or above poverty) on the basis of census data. Overall average fare changes are used to analyze equity impacts. A second, more experimental approach identifies user demographics by daily first swipe locations and estimates daily average fares as actually experienced by each passenger by using sequential transactions on discrete farecards. To meet ongoing requirements, methods were developed to analyze impacts separately for peak and off-peak time periods and to demonstrate equity by using statistical tests. Impact analyses results and historical ridership, revenue, and market share data collected by the MetroCard automated fare collection system all inform fare structure design processes, with particular attention devoted to distributing fare increase burdens equitably.

• Record URL:
  • https://doi.org/10.3141/2144-10
• Summary URL:
  • http://scholar.google.com/scholar_lookup?title=Using+Quantitative+Methods+in+Equity+and+Demographic+Analysis+to+Inform+Transit+Fare+Restructuring+Decisions&author=R.+Hickey&author=A.+Lu&author=A.+Reddy&publication_year=2010
• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/isbn/9780309160469
• Authors:
  • Hickey, Robert L
  • Lu, Alex
  • Reddy, Alla
• Publication Date: 2010

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Print
• Features: Figures; References; Tables;
• Pagination: pp 80-92
• Monograph Title: Transit 2010, Volume 2
• Serial:
  • Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board
  • Issue Number: 2144
  • Publisher: Transportation Research Board
  • ISSN: 0361-1981

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Automatic fare collection; Data collection; Decision making; Demographics; Economic elasticity; Equity; Fares; Income; Off peak periods; Peak periods; Public transit
• Identifier Terms: Civil Rights Act Title VI; New York City Transit Authority; New York State Metropolitan Transportation Authority
• Uncontrolled Terms: Fare increases; Fare structure
• Geographic Terms: New York (New York)
• Subject Areas: Administration and Management; Finance; Public Transportation; Society; I10: Economics and Administration;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01154835
• Record Type: Publication
• ISBN: 9780309160469
• Report/Paper Numbers: 10-0280
• Files: TRIS, TRB, ATRI
• Created Date: Apr 16 2010 11:52AM