Transportist: February 2021
I've been on leave, did anything happen in the past two months?
Welcome to the latest issue of The Transportist, especially to our new readers. As always you can follow along at the transportist.org or on Twitter.
So in personal news, my family and I were awarded Permanent Residency status in Australia (this is like the Green Card for US immigrants). So now we can buy real estate without penalty, and get some other benefits, the most important of which is the sword of Damocles is now no longer poised above our heads.
Transportist Posts
Road traffic almost back to pre-COVID levels as commuters shun public transport | Sydney Morning Herald.
What if it’s only once a week? [Following on The New, New Normal]
"... everything is being built as if the before times will be restored. That’s certainly possible, but it’s also possible we are far off on the wrong track with new infrastructure construction and real estate development.
TransportLab
Research
Aoustin, Louise, and David M Levinson. 2021. “Longing to Travel: Commute Appreciation during COVID-19.” Findings, January. [doi].
Education
Traffic Management Training - videos the University of Sydney and ARRB put together for Austroads.
The Master of Transport program at the University of Sydney is recruiting students.
The Transport Access Manual: A Guide for Measuring Connection between People and Places has now been downloaded more than 2500 times. What are you waiting for?
Talks
Findings
Wang, Haoyun, and Robert Noland. 2021. “Changes in the Pattern of Bikeshare Usage Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic.” Findings, January. https://doi.org/10.32866/001c.18728.
Aharoni, Jordan, Ron Buliung, and Raktim Mitra. 2021. “University and College Travel for Students with Mobility Impairment(s) in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area, Canada.” Findings, January. https://doi.org/10.32866/001c.18630.
Laverty, Anthony A, Rachel Aldred, and Anna Goodman. 2021. “The Impact of Introducing Low Traffic Neighbourhoods on Road Traffic Injuries.” Findings, January. https://doi.org/10.32866/001c.18330.
Aoustin, Louise, and David M Levinson. 2021. “Longing to Travel: Commute Appreciation during COVID-19.” Findings, January. https://doi.org/10.32866/001c.18523.
Rauws, Robin, and Dea van Lierop. 2020. “Returning to Public Transit after an Epidemic.” Findings, December. https://doi.org/10.32866/001c.18328.
Shi, Xiao, Anne Vernez Moudon, Brian H. Y. Lee, Qing Shen, and Xuegang (Jeff) Ban. 2020. “Factors Influencing Teleworking Productivity – a Natural Experiment during the COVID-19 Pandemic.” Findings, December. https://doi.org/10.32866/001c.18195.
Goodman, Anna, Anthony A Laverty, and Rachel Aldred. 2020. “The Impact of Introducing a Low Traffic Neighbourhood on Fire Service Emergency Response Times, in Waltham Forest London.” Findings, December. https://doi.org/10.32866/001c.18198.
Krall, Verena, Max F. Burg, Malte Schröder, and Marc Timme. 2020. “Number Fluctuations Induce Persistent Congestion.” Findings, December. https://doi.org/10.32866/001c.18154.
Adams, Thomas, and Rachel Aldred. 2020. “Cycling Injury Risk in London: Impacts of Road Characteristics and Infrastructure.” Findings, December. https://doi.org/10.32866/001c.18226.
Ravensbergen, Lea, and Bruce Newbold. 2020. “‘I Wouldn’t Want to Get on the Bus’: Older Adult Public Transit Use and Challenges during the COVID-19 Pandemic.” Findings, December. https://doi.org/10.32866/001c.18202.
Zhang, Yixue, Matthew Palm, Jonathan Scheff, Steven Farber, and Michael Widener. 2020. “Travel Survey Recruitment Through Facebook and Transit App: Lessons from COVID-19.” Findings, December. https://doi.org/10.32866/001c.18066.
Goodman, Anna, Scott Urban, and Rachel Aldred. 2020. “The Impact of Low Traffic Neighbourhoods and Other Active Travel Interventions on Vehicle Ownership: Findings from the Outer London Mini-Holland Programme.” Findings, December. https://doi.org/10.32866/001c.18200.
Other Research by Others
Boeing, Geoff (2020) Off the Grid…and Back Again? The Recent Evolution of American Street Network Planning and Design. JAPA DOI
Physical activity levels increased by smartphone apps and fitness trackers
News & Opinion
Elon Musk announces a $100M prize for “best carbon capture technology”. This seems useful compared to many things he does.
My view: The obvious answer is trees. But that is not marketable to Elon, so I suggest we re-brand trees as ArborLoop.(TM)
The Line was announced in Saudi Arabia. It’s glossy. It has a HyperLoop. It makes no sense.
My take: It’s a line because rail switches are hard for the nonsense technology they are using. But they could have designed a circle with the same radius, to bring ends of the “line” closer together by other modes. Perhaps the point in the center would have higher access. Call it a CBD.
COVID and Remote Work
Chris Herd on Remote Work
The Pandemic Gives Us a Chance to Change How We Get Around: City transportation ecosystems are suddenly getting more diverse, creating an opportunity to (finally) rethink the car.
Rail
Melbourne Airport rail line to soar high over Maribyrnong River
Automatic brake system installed on U.S. railroads ahead of [long extended] federal deadline
D.C. warns a maglev stop at Mount Vernon Square would bring disruption [This is roughly the Apple Store at the Carnegie Library outside the DC Convention Center, for TRB attendees. I think Union Station would be a better location for many reasons (less disruptive, existing station, etc.).]
Buses
Arterial Bus Rapid Transit in Twin Cities
Ride-hailing
Urban Design
Make Way for the ‘One-Minute City’: While the “15-minute city” model promotes neighborhood-level urban planning, Sweden is pursuing a hyper-local twist: a scheme to redesign every street in the nation. [The Nanosecond City anyone?]
Robots
Batteries
Did QuantumScape Just Solve a 40-Year-Old Battery Problem? Earlier this year, the startup claimed to have a revolutionary solid-state lithium-ion cell that could change EVs forever. Now it has data to prove it.
Tolling
Techno-optimism
Delivery
Space