This report presents a comprehensive set of data on urban travel demand and constitutes an update of previous editions of the Characteristics of Urban Travel Demand (CUTD), published in 1978 and 1988. This is a companion report to two other volumes: Characteristics of Urban Transportation Systems (CUTS), last updated in 1992, and Traveler Response to Transportation System Changes, updated in 2000. These three references taken together are intended to provide a ready resource for information about urban transportation system characteristics. A written survey distributed to metropolitan planning organizations (MPO) was the primary data gathering technique used for soliciting and assembling information for specific urban areas. The survey instrument, which was reviewed by the project panel, provided a comprehensive set of questions about travel parameters, including demographics, vehicle ownership, trip generation by mode and trip purpose, trip generation by characteristics or origin and destination, trip making by time of day, truck trip parameters, utilization of facilities, and parking and telecommuting. The survey instrument was designed to enable respondents to supply all available information in tables that allowed cross-classification among all parameters. Data were also compiled from highway statistics (from the Highway Performance Monitoring System database) for highway extent and usage and from the National Transit Database (NTD) for transit services and usage. In addition, the research team compiled from the work of the Texas Transportation Institute (TTI) their annual estimates of levels of service for the primary highways in each urban area. The information used by TTI is from the Highway Performance Monitoring System data sets compiled for FHWA by the states. Additional data sources such as the National Personal Travel Survey (NPTS) have been used, along with specific studies of historical trends in various urban areas. Several tables compiled by companion project B-12 have also been incorporated. These tables relate to use of particular facilities. (A)
Abstract