Trip decisions are complex and involve choosing the activity destination,the mode and subsequently the route for travel. This paper presents detailed information on the pre-planned and observed route choices for the home-to-work commute. Specifically, the study examines how people formulate their route plans and describe their attitudes and preferences for their selected route. A geographical information system (GIS) records the pre-planned route information with the route planning sequence. Observing routechoice is a difficult procedure; however, through the use of the global positioning system (GPS), one can accurately record route choice. An automated activity-trip detection algorithm processes GPS data and displays results within an internet-based prompted recall diary. The diary is used toverify trip start and end times. This combination of GPS, GIS and diary responses provide great insight into the route choice decision-making process. Twenty-four individuals from Ontario, Canada participated in answering survey questions and the collection of person-based GPS data. Results indicate a preference to minimize travel time as stated by participants indeciding what route to travel. Participants also affirmed a desire to minimize the number of stop lights/signs, as well as, avoid congestion and maximize route directness. A comparison between pre-planned and observed routes, reveals about one-fifth of participants deviated from their pre-planned route. This study demonstrates the need for qualitative and quantitative survey methods for exploring pre-planned and observed route choice patterns.
Abstract