Congestion-Clearing Payments to Passengers

Abstract

(Caltrans), and by private grants and donations. MTI's transportation policy work is centered on three primary responsibilities: MINETA TRANSPORTATION INSTITUTE LEAD UNIVERSITY OF Mineta Consortium for Transportation Mobility Research MTI works to provide policy-oriented research for all levels of government and the p rivate sector to foster the development of optimum surface transportation systems. Research areas include: bicycle and pedestrian issues; financing public and private sector transportation improvements; intermodal connectivity and integration; safety and security of transportation systems; sustainability of transportation systems; transportation / land use / environment; and transportation planning and policy development. Certified Research Associates conduct the research. Certification requires an advanced degree, generally a Ph.D., a record of academic publications, and professional references. Research projects culminate in a peer-reviewed publication, available on TransWeb, the MTI website (http://transweb.sjsu.edu). Education The Institute supports education programs for students seeking a career in the development and operation of surface transportation systems. MTI, through San José State University, offers an AACSBaccredited Master of Science in Transportation Management and graduate certificates in Transportation Management, Transportation Security, and High-Speed Rail Management that serve to prepare the nation's transportation managers for the 21st century. With the active assistance of the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans), MTI delivers its classes over a state-of-the-art videoconference network throughout the state of California and via webcasting beyond, allowing working transportation professionals to pursue an advanced degree regardless of their location. To meet the needs of employers seeking a diverse workforce, MTI's education program promotes enrollment to under-represented groups. Information and Technology Transfer MTI utilizes a diverse array of dissemination methods and media to ensure research results reach those responsible for managing change. These methods include publication, seminars, workshops, websites, social media, webinars, and other technology transfer mechanisms. Additionally, MTI promotes the availability of completed research to professional organizations and journals and works to integrate the research findings into the graduate education program. MTI's extensive collection of transportation-related publications is integrated into San José State University's world-class Martin Luther King, Jr. Library. The contents of this report reflect the views of the authors, who are responsible for the facts and accuracy of the information presented herein. This document is disseminated in the interest of information exchange.

Converting Existing General-Purpose Lanes to High-Occupancy/Toll Lanes: An Exploratory Evaluation

“…With two HOT lanes, not only would more new carpoolers need to be paid, but the payment per carpool would also increase, since payments will need to be attractive enough to new (i.e., "marginal") solo drivers who would not have been willing to shift when lower payments are offered, as in the case of one HOT lane when only half as much traffic reduction is needed. Minett et al (2020) also derived a regression equation which calculates the impact of a daily cash payment to incentivize commuters to ride as a passenger (see Figure 6). For example, the equation estimates that a cash incentive of $1.00 daily, or 50 cents per trip, would attract about 15% of commuters to ride as a passenger "if it is easy to ride as a passenger."…”

Exploratory Evaluation of a Concept Combining Incentivized On-Demand Ridesharing with Congestion Pricing

“…Cash rewards have been used to encourage mode shifts since the 1990s ( 9 ). These include parking cash out ( 10 ), mode-shift incentives that have been used to reduce congestion in corridors for short periods of time ( 11 , 12 ), incentives to manage the level of demand for parking ( 13 ), and incentive payments to ridesharing passengers ( 14 ). However, most of these reward strategies have been applied at a local level rather than at the system level as envisioned in this paper.…”

“… Note : P3 = public-private partnership; VMT = vehicle miles traveled; na = not applicable. a Based on TRUCE model ( 21 ). b Average daily peak period traffic from Table 1 multiplied by 100 freeway miles. c Based on Reason Foundation ( 22 ). d Based on FHWA ( 23 ). e Annual trips calculated assuming an average freeway trip length of 10 mi and 250 working days per year. f Per trip cost based on rideshare program pilot in San Francisco ( 24 ) adjusted for economies of scale; and annual trips calculated assuming average trip length on freeway segment of 10 mi and 250 working days per year. g Subsidy required for 15% shift to ridesharing based on research by Minett et al ( 27 ). …”

“…Cash Payments to Rideshare Vehicle Drivers . As shown in Figure 3, Minett et al ( 27 ) found that a cash incentive of $5.00 would attract about 15% of peak period commute solo drivers to pick up a passenger, that is, shift to a rideshare vehicle driver mode. Incentive payments from the public agency to rideshare drivers are therefore set at $5.00 per trip, paid through the passenger as part of the fare.…”

“…Therefore, the remaining traffic (about 80% of traffic) will need to be reduced by 15% to reduce overall traffic by 12% (i.e., 15% of 80% is 12%). As shown in Figure 2, Minett et al ( 27 ) found that a daily cash incentive of $1.00 (equivalent to a one-way cash incentive of $ 0.50) would attract about 15% of peak period commute drivers to shift to a passenger mode if it were easy to travel as a passenger. Thus, to be attracted from solo driving to ridesharing as a passenger, out-of-pocket costs for rideshare passengers would need to be $0.50 less than the toll they would otherwise be subjected to.…”