Mode Choice Methodology in TRANSIMS

TR Number
Date
2002-09-20
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Virginia Tech
Abstract

TRANSIMS is a disaggregate, behavioral transportation planning package developed under US DOT's and EPA funding at the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL). It is an integrated system of travel forecasting models designed to give transportation planners accurate, complete information on traffic impacts, congestion, and pollution by simulating second-by-second movements of every person and every vehicle through the transportation network of a large metropolitan area. There is no built-in module for travellers' mode choices In TRANSIMS. The modes going with the shortest path are always taken. In Portland Study, a mode choice methodology implemented by a series of feedback processes is proposed. However, it uses aggregate, deterministic mode choice model. There is little solid theoretic ground for the format and coefficients of the generalized costs used in the calibration process. The accessibility to a mode, especially to Transit, was also not included in the model. In the thesis, a disaggregate and deterministic mode choice methodology in TRANSIMS is developed. The accessibility to each mode is analyzed and included in the model. The methodology is then implemented on the Blacksburg transportation planning study, namely Blacksburg_Lite. The analysis of the result is based on the indicator of mode choice, mode split between Transit and Auto. The indicator is close to that in survey data and converged fast. Therefore, this mode choice methodology could be used within TRANSIMS framework.

Description
Keywords
disaggregate, TRANSIMS, mode choice, transportation planning, behavioral
Citation
Collections