Abstract
We analyze individual travel discomfort-time tradeoffs in the Paris subway using stated choice experiments. The survey design allows to set up in a willingness-to-pay space to estimate the distributions of elasticities of values of travel time to crowd density and time multipliers. Several formulations of a generalized travel cost function are tested. Accounting for heterogeneity in preferences, the econometric models all take the form of an ordered probit with known bounds. We derive several estimates that could be used for fine-tuning of traffic simulation systems and more general transportation policy analysis.
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Notes
Crowding in PT systems can be estimated according to different metrics. Load factors correspond to the ratio between the number of users in the trains and the number of seats proposed. Because this measure does not consider the varying in-vehicle design of the rolling-stock, passenger density is generally preferred. This will be our measure of crowding in this article. Note also that, in Japan, crowding is measured through the “Japan Industrial Standard” that merges together the seat and the standing capacities of the vehicles see Kato (2014).
For instance, Haywood and Koning (2013) use the same data set to value crowding costs in a RUM framework.
d is crowd density, \(\Delta d\) is variation of crowd density.
t is travel time, \(\Delta t\) is variation of travel time.
We here recognize there is an important shortfall in the survey design. Because the showcards only represents the central part of the carriages where the doors are located, we are not able to study the value of seat-crowding, as done by Kroes et al. (2013) and Whelan and Crockett (2009) who present the whole vehicle to users.
Of course, we would have preferred a larger sample. As compared to the few existing studies, it however seems that the sample size is not that small (Li and Hensher 2011).
We used color cards to incite travelers to report their net monthly incomes.
Results are available on request.
This result may also come from different rolling-stocks. Thus line 1 carriages are larger and propose to users less places where to hold on. In crowded situations, this may increase the risks of falls and lead to more unpleasant journeys.
This is why the sample size is different as compared to the other specifications.
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de Lapparent, M., Koning, M. Analyzing time sensitivity to discomfort in the Paris subway: an interval data model approach. Transportation 43, 913–933 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11116-015-9629-7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11116-015-9629-7