Newest Resources

Roadway Costs, User Revenues and Cost Recovery Trends
This study calculates the portion of US roadway expenditures paid by user fees between 1921 and 2023. Most local road spending and a growing portion state and federal highway spending is funded by general taxes; special fuel taxes and tolls now cover less than half of roadway expenditures, and this is declining. Cost-recovery pricing is justified to increase efficiency, reduce traffic problems, and minimize the subsidies non-drivers must pay for facilities they do not use.

Traffic Speed Versus Roadway Capacity
This short report reviews research on the relationships between traffic speeds and roadway capacity (maximum vehicle volumes) and identifies the speeds that maximize traffic throughput. Because shy distances (the safe amount of separation between vehicles in traffic) increase with travel speeds, traffic capacity tends to peak at moderate speeds. Under optimal (dry, clear and level) conditions capacity typically peaks at 25-35 mph (40-60 kph) on urban arterials with cross streets and at 35-50 mph (60-80 kph) on grade-separated highways, reflecting roadway level-of-service (LOS) C to D. This indicates that moderate traffic speeds tend to maximize roadway cost efficiency and infrastructure investment value.

Off-Street Versus On-Street Parking Trade-Offs
Most municipalities require property owners to provide off-street parking to ensure adequate supply. However, since most driveways displace a public on-street parking space, there are trade-offs between on- and off-street supply, and since public parking spaces can serve more users and destinations than private parking, off-street parking mandates often reduce available supply. This study finds that in neighborhoods where households own fewer than two vehicles on average, off-street parking for single-family homes usually reduces total parking availability and driver convenience. Off-street parking also increases housing costs 10-20%, adds 350-800 square feet of impervious surface area, reduces walkability, and increases traffic problems. Reforming mandates is often justified for efficiency and fairness sake.

Parking Management: Comprehensive Implementation Guide
Typical North American communities have three to six parking spaces per vehicle, including many that are seldom used. These facilities are costly. More efficient management can significantly reduce the amount of parking needed to serve motorists’ needs, typically by 20-60%. This guide describes how to plan, evaluate and implement more than two-dozen parking management strategies. It investigates problems with current parking planning, discusses parking facility costs and potential savings from better management, evaluates the impacts and benefits of specific parking management strategies, and describes how to develop an integrated parking management program.

Evaluating Transportation Economic Development Impacts
Economic development refers to progress toward a community's economic goals such as increased employment, income, productivity, property values and tax revenues. This report examines how transportation policy and planning decisions affect economic development, methods for evaluating these impacts, and ways to incorporate economic development goals in transport decision-making. Some of these impacts tend to be overlooked or undervalued in transportation planning.

The Mobility-Productivity Paradox: Understanding the Negative Relationship Between Mobility and Economic Productivity.
This study explores a paradox: negative relationships between mobility and economic productivity. Contrary to popular perceptions, increased vehicle travel tends to reduce prosperity.This study indicates that productivity increases with more efficient transportation that reduces the vehicle travel and associated costs required for economic activities. It identifies ways that transportation agencies, business and individuals can better achieve economic goals.

Safer Than You Think! Revising the Transit Safety Narrative.
Public transportation is overall very safe (low crash risk) and secure (low crime risk). Transit travel has about a tenth the traffic casualty (death or injury) rate as automobile travel, and transit-oriented neighborhoods have about a fifth the per capita crash casualty rate as automobile-oriented areas. This report identifies practical ways to address fears and better communicate the overall safety and security of transit travel and address.

Evaluating Transportation Affordability
This article published in the ITE Journal describes why and how transportation agencies can better respond to user demands for more affordable travel options.

The New Traffic Safety Paradigm
This report examines our emerging understanding of traffic risks and new safety strategies, and the importance of more comprehensive safety analysis.

Planning for Quality of Life: Considering Community Cohesion and Related Social Goals.
Most people want their communities to be friendly, fair, affordable, healthy, comfortable and beautiful, and want these quality of life, social or livability goals to be considered in planning. Current transportation planning focuses on economic goals and sometimes environmental goals but tends to overlook and undervalue social goals such as community cohesion, equity, affordability, public fitness, personal security and public realm attractiveness. This report investigates these issues. It analyzes social goals, describes ways to evaluate them, and identifies strategies that can help achieve these goals and improve overall livability. This research indicates that better social impact analysis can help transportation agencies better respond to consumer preferences and community goals, providing more health and happiness.

Progressive Planning in Ideologically Conservative Communities.
Planners must work in ideologically diverse environments. This report discusses ways to be effective in conservative jurisdictions that are skeptical of new perspectives.