Travel Demand Modeling for the Small and Medium Sized MPOs in Illinois

Travel demand modeling (TDM) is an important tool in the transportation planning community. It helps forecast travel characteristics into the future at various planning levels such as state, region and corridor. Using TDM to evaluate different situations (changes in land use and/or transportation network) would allow the staff of Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs) to make educated decisions regarding growth and improvements to their respective regional transportation networks. Several small (50,000< population <200,000) and medium (200,000 <population <500,000) sized MPOs in the state of Illinois utilize TDM for different transportation planning purposes, most commonly, the Long Range Transportation Plan (LRTP) and Transportation Improvement Program (TIP). Some of the small and medium sized MPOs in the state of Illinois are unable to utilize TDM tools primarily due to lack of available resources and guidelines at the regional and state level. This study sought to establish the framework necessary for the development, maintenance, and application of small and medium sized MPOs’ TDMs. It is crucial for the local, regional, and state agencies to play a collaborative role in the transportation planning process. This study established a framework for developing TDMs at the MPO regional level considering their limited available resources. Special attention was given to simplicity and accuracy of the travel model development process. Extensive calibration and validation checks were recommended, as accuracy of travel forecasting is of high importance. As an important part of this study, a statewide group, the Illinois Modeling Users Group (IL-MUG) was created to support, set standards and guide the development, implementation, and maintenance of TDMs in small and medium sized MPOs in Illinois.

• Record URL:
  http://hdl.handle.net/2142/45822
• 
• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/issn/01979191
• Corporate Authors:

  University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign

  Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
  205 North Mathews Avenue
  Urbana, IL  United States  61801-2352

  Illinois Department of Transportation

  Bureau of Materials and Physical Research
  126 East Ash Street
  Springfield, IL  United States  62704-4766

  Federal Highway Administration

  1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
  Washington, DC  United States  20590
• Authors:
  • Ullah, Mohammad S
  • Molakatalla, Udit
  • Morocoima-Black, Rita
  • Mohideen, Ahmed Z
• Publication Date: 2011-9

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Digital/other
• Features: Appendices; Figures; References; Tables;
• Pagination: 123p
• Serial:
  • Civil Engineering Studies, Illinois Center for Transportation Series
  • Issue Number: 11-091
  • Publisher: University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
  • ISSN: 0197-9191

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Long range planning; Medium sized cities; Metropolitan planning organizations; Regional planning; Small cities; Traffic forecasting; Transportation planning; Travel demand
• Identifier Terms: Transportation Improvement Programs
• Geographic Terms: Illinois
• Subject Areas: Highways; Planning and Forecasting; I72: Traffic and Transport Planning;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01357343
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: FHWA-ICT-11-091, UILU-ENG-2011-2017
• Contract Numbers: ICT R27-48
• Files: TRIS, USDOT, STATEDOT
• Created Date: Nov 22 2011 4:22PM