Respiratory complications are common in patients with stroke, but the involvement of the diaphragm in this setting is not completely understood. The purpose of this study was to assess corticodiaphragmatic pathways in patients with vascular hemiplegia. Fifteen patients were studied, nine with a capsular type of hemiplegia. Seven age-matched subjects served as the control group, and eight healthy young volunteers were studied to validate the methods by comparison with the literature. Diaphragm electromyogram was recorded bilaterally, using surface electrodes. Abductor pollicis brevis electromyogram was also recorded. After having checked the integrity of peripheral conduction, corticofugal pathways were studied using cortical magnetic stimulation, a reproducible and patient-independent stimulus. Left and right conduction times to the diaphragm were symmetrical in the control subjects, the young volunteers, and the six patients with hemiplegia but without capsular lesion (16.5 to 20.1 ms). Conversely, they were markedly asymmetrical in patients with capsular hemiplegia, diaphragm response on the plegic side being abolished or markedly delayed. Although the clinical impact of these findings remains to be determined, this study confirms that "central diaphragm paralysis" can be present in stroke. It also indicates that there is no bilateral motor representation of each hemidiaphragm.

The development of bus rapid transit (BRT) systems is relatively recent in the United States; however, several systems are operating and many more are being planned. More comprehensive understanding is needed of the relationship between land use and BRT, particularly in comparison with other fixed-guideway modes. This paper describes an effort to quantify the impacts of BRT stations on the values of surrounding single-family homes. The hypothesis is that BRT stations have an impact on property value that is commensurate with rail transit projects, considering the level and permanence of services and facilities. To test that hypothesis, a hedonic regression model was used to estimate the impact of distance to a BRT station on the fair market value of single-family homes. Because many BRT systems operating in the United States may be too new to find evidence of capitalization into property values, data from East Busway, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, one of the oldest operating BRT systems in the country, was used. Decreasing marginal effects were found: moving from 101 to 100 ft from a station increases property value approximately $18.90; moving from 1,001 to 1,000 ft increases property value by approximately $2.71. The results shown in this paper are valid only for the data used in Pittsburgh's case. As more BRT systems continue to operate in the United States, this method should be applied to other cities and other types of properties to gain a better understanding of the general impacts of proximity to BRT.

Type of Report and Period Covered Sponsoring Agency Code Supplementary Notes AbstractAs bus rapid transit (BRT) grows in popularity in the United States, a better understanding of the mode's impacts on land uses and property values is needed. Economic theory suggests, and literature has shown, that people are willing to pay higher housing costs to lower their costs of transportation to areas of economic activity. Does high-quality BRT service reliably provide such access and, thereby, increase residential property values? The hypothesis is that property values are higher closer to BRT stations, reflecting a premium for the access provided by the BRT service to various goods, services, employment, education, and recreation. There has been some work on this topic outside of the U.S.; however, due to various cultural, social, and institutional differences, those experiences may not be applicable to U.S. property values. The literature includes, to date, very little work on U.S. BRT systems' impacts on property values using robust econometric techniques and/or spatial modeling. Further, because every BRT system is different, it is necessary to analyze additional case studies to provide a more robust understanding of how modern U.S. experiences with BRT services may affect surrounding property values. This research contributes to the relatively small body of literature on property value impacts of BRT in the U.S. by conducting a case study on Lane Transit District's EmX BRT service (Eugene, Oregon) using econometric modeling techniques to estimate changes in property values associated with the BRT. The analysis is based on hedonic price regression analysis, where sale prices are modeled using several property characteristics that contribute to the market or sale price. The findings of this research indicate that the EmX BRT system does positively impact surrounding single-family home sale prices. Results are statistically significant yet, as expected, relatively small in magnitude. An interesting finding is that the impact of the EmX stations on property values increased in each of the three periods examined in this study. For 2005 single-family home sales, the price increased $823 on average for every 100 meters closer to a station. In 2010, the marginal impact increased to an average of $1,056 for every 100 meters closer to a station. In 2016, every 100 meters closer to a station adds an average of $1,128 to a home's sale price. These results provide further insight into how BRT services can enhance the livability and economic development in a community, and provide policymakers and the transit industry throughout the U.S. with the best information possible to make informed transit investment decisions in their communities.

As bus rapid transit (BRT) continues to grow in popularity in the United States, a better understanding of the mode's impacts on land uses and property values continues to be needed. This research sought to quantify the impacts of access to BRT stations on the sale prices of surrounding condominiums located along Washington Street in Boston, Massachusetts, where Phase 1 of the Silver Line BRT began operating in 2002. The hypothesis that the BRT stations had an impact on market value similar to light rail transit projects (considering the level and permanence of the investment) was tested with a hedonic regression methodology for estimating the impact of access to BRT stations on sale prices of condominium units. A key result was that, for condominium sales in 2007 or 2009, the BRT premium was approximately 7.6%. For condominium sales in 2000 and 2001, before the opening of the Silver Line, no sales premium existed for proximity to the corridor. These results suggest that access to high-quality transit service, not necessarily the mode itself, induces this premium. Although this study is specific to the Boston Silver Line Washington Street corridor, further research into the impacts of BRT is encouraged as a means to provide policy makers and the transit industry with the best information possible for making optimal transit investment decisions in their communities.

No abstract