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    <title>Research in Progress (RIP)</title>
    <link>https://rip.trb.org/</link>
    <atom:link href="https://rip.trb.org/Record/RSS?s=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" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml" />
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    <language>en-us</language>
    <copyright>Copyright © 2026. National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.</copyright>
    <docs>http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss</docs>
    <managingEditor>tris-trb@nas.edu (Bill McLeod)</managingEditor>
    <webMaster>tris-trb@nas.edu (Bill McLeod)</webMaster>
    <image>
      <title>Research in Progress (RIP)</title>
      <url>https://rip.trb.org/Images/PageHeader-wTitle-RIP.jpg</url>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/</link>
    </image>
    <item>
      <title>Rural Vehicle Markets and Consumer Affordability</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2691725</link>
      <description><![CDATA[There is a need to better understand rural vehicle consumer choice and transportation affordability to inform efforts to support economic vitality in rural communities. Access to adequate vehicle choices at affordable price points may be limited in rural contexts due to the spatial location of vehicle purchase options. At the same time, access to affordable vehicle options has important implications for transportation affordability, mobility, and economic opportunity in rural areas. Prior research suggests that people living in rural areas are more vehicle dependent, and that vehicle affordability and access is related to mobility and economic opportunity. Recent research indicates that rural vehicle consumers face more limited options and higher prices for a small subset of vehicle options, however, little is known about the implications for consumer choice and vehicle affordability for the overall vehicle market. This project uses detailed vehicle data and vehicle dealership listings in Colorado, Maine, and Vermont to evaluate the relationship between vehicle options, distances people travel to purchase a vehicle, and the price paid for the vehicle in both urban and rural contexts. Findings from this research can inform policies that seek to expand access to affordable transportation options in rural communities.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Sun, 12 Apr 2026 23:55:16 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2691725</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Container-on-Barge Market Demand </title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2673252</link>
      <description><![CDATA[This project will assess the market demand and policy levers that could expand container-on-barge (COB) services along the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers. The study will identify key shippers, high-potential commodities, infrastructure needs, and incentive mechanisms to make COB competitive with trucking and rail. This work directly supports the Missouri Department of Transportation's (MoDOT’s) freight, sustainability, and economic development goals, and aligns with the Missouri State Freight Plan and the U.S. Maritime Administration's (MARAD’s) America’s Marine Highway Program.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 24 Feb 2026 15:27:46 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2673252</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Identifying Targets for Electric Vehicle Industry Improvement</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2519188</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Electric vehicle (EV) sales have increased dramatically over the last several years. While Tesla has a growing network of Supercharging stations, owners of the newer, more luxurious EVs cannot necessarily use these charging facilities and are only able to consistently access public charging stations. In general, the public perceives the Supercharger network as more reliable and consistent than most other networks. Users of public charging stations site issues with charger maintenance and rank overall charging satisfaction lower. Though, in March 2023, Tesla announced that it was planning on opening up a portion of Superchargers to the public to qualify for federal funds.

Many perceive the availability of charging facilities as inadequate and forecasts of electrical energy availability for charging may not be adequate to support a complete conversion of  internal combustion engines (ICE) cars to EV status. In order to sustain demand for electricity, one would have to upgrade the electrical grid. However, how those costs would be covered is also unclear. There are also questions about whether enough lithium is available on this planet to produce all the batteries that would be required for conversion of all ICE vehicles to electric.

Without significant improvements to features, batteries, and support infrastructure one might wonder whether EVs will boom and then drop in popularity like bikes did in the late 19th century.  This research will examine the complete spectrum of the EV industry to identify all the issues that should be identified as targets for improvement. Problem identification will be done from several different perspectives including: potential EV buyers, EV owners, EV makers, public agencies (State DOT, City, and MPO), and engineering researchers.  One of the largest EV manufacturing facilities (Tesla) in the world is located in Austin, TX so the research team will work closely with Tesla on this part of the study. A combination of surveys and expert panels will be used to gather perceptions.  Potential solutions to improvement targets will be identified and evaluated. Evaluation will include benefit-cost analyses and alternative funding mechanisms.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Fri, 07 Mar 2025 17:01:46 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2519188</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Tailoring Alternative Project Delivery Methods to Deploy an Effective Hydrogen Fueling Infrastructure for Commercial Vehicles in Georgia</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2508956</link>
      <description><![CDATA[The major objective of this research is to assist the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) in understanding the market characteristics and laying the foundation for developing delivery approaches for the rapid integration of hydrogen fueling stations for commercial vehicles throughout GDOT’s transportation network.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Wed, 12 Feb 2025 10:01:03 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2508956</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Ride-Sourcing Demand and Supply Estimation Based on Coarse Public Data</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2472694</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Ride-sourcing platforms like Uber and Lyft have transformed urban transportation, yet their impacts on transit ridership, congestion, and emissions remain challenging to assess due to limited data access. This research addresses the lack of detailed ride-sourcing data by developing regression, gravity, and network equilibrium models to estimate trip demand and supply distribution at finer spatial resolutions. Using Massachusetts town-level data as a baseline, the project incorporates high-resolution land-use, transportation, and demographic data to predict trip patterns and driver availability. Outputs include a practical tool for government agencies and driver organizations to analyze ride-sourcing markets, improving operational decisions and supporting safety and system efficiency goals.
]]></description>
      <pubDate>Mon, 09 Dec 2024 09:57:45 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2472694</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Advanced Air Mobility to Enhance Freight Logistics and Preserve Road Condition</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2370950</link>
      <description><![CDATA[The emerging field of Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) presents myriad opportunities for disrupting traditional modes of transport, including passenger travel to cargo logistics. Moving cargo by air instead of by truck in significant volumes can preserve road condition and reduce highway crash exposure. However, its path to full-scale adoption is fraught with regulatory, market, and logistical challenges. This report presents a refined understanding of AAM's complexities and its potential for transformative impact, particularly to reduce the impacts on surface transportation degradation. The research employs data-driven methodologies, machine learning algorithms, and Geographic Information System (GIS) techniques to explore the landscape of AAM. These studies aim to reveal the crucial role of regulatory frameworks and economic progress in AAM adoption, the importance of accurate market forecasting, and the value of identifying key commodity and geographical targets for cargo drones. Additionally, this study highlights the potential of AAM in safely transporting goods to rural communities without heavy trucks traveling on highways. The successful integration of AAM into global transportation systems requires a multi-disciplinary and multi-stakeholder approach. This study highlights the need for future research to build on this work to scale and optimize AAM technologies to meet the varying needs of nations and industries worldwide.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Wed, 24 Apr 2024 14:20:14 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2370950</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Using Market Segmentation to Increase Transit Ridership: An Updated Handbook



</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2307259</link>
      <description><![CDATA[To foster long-lasting customer satisfaction and loyalty, transit agencies must understand and make decisions in accordance with customer needs and preferences. Since it can be infeasible for agencies to tailor actions at the scale of the individual, an alternative strategy is to conduct a market segmentation analysis on one or more data sources to identify sufficiently similar groups of transit riders to consider during a decision-making process.
Challenges arise in selecting the variables to consider in a segmentation analysis and the method to use. One potential approach is to use predetermined (a priori) segments, identify characteristics at the outset that might represent important differences among transit customers, and create segments based on these (for example, commuters versus noncommuters or suburban versus central-city riders). An alternative is to use market-defined (post hoc) methods, such as statistical clustering and classification methods, to identify groupings that may not be apparent from surface-level examination.
TCRP Report 36: A Handbook: Using Market Segmentation to Increase Transit Ridership, published in 1998, is the quintessential TCRP report on this topic. The purpose of this report was to introduce market segmentation, including several case studies on how to appropriately plan for and research the development of a suitable segmentation scheme and then implement findings into actionable strategies that fulfill the transit agency's goals of increasing ridership, bringing in new customers, and boosting the satisfaction levels of different groups of users. In the 25 years since the publication of the 1998 handbook, scholars in the business, social, and mathematical sciences have published new research relevant to this topic. Moreover, passive data collection and big data sources have become more widely implemented and available for profiling transit customers and that has challenged conventional thinking about typical rider segments. A targeted compendium of approaches to collecting data, extracting and describing segments, and tailoring product and service decisions to the needs and preferences of transit market segments would allow for the dissemination of information about success stories, potential pitfalls surrounding forward-thinking market segmentation practices, and how agencies might benefit from adopting certain practices under various scenarios.
OBJECTIVE:
The objective of this research is to help public transportation agencies effectively use market segmentation strategies to attract and keep transit riders. The results of this research project should be easily used by public transportation professionals, including marketing professionals, transit managers, planners, and others interested in implementing market segmentation strategies to attract and keep transit riders. 
]]></description>
      <pubDate>Wed, 13 Dec 2023 13:22:46 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2307259</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Zero Emission Heavy Duty Trucks: An Analysis of California’s Advanced Clean Fleets Regulation</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2252742</link>
      <description><![CDATA[The Port of Los Angeles, via Mayor Garcetti’s Sustainable City pLAn, has a goal of 100 percent zero-emission on-road drayage trucks by 2035. The Port’s Clean Air Action Plan is a road map to transitioning the truck fleet to zero-emission vehicles. California’s executive order N-79-20 sets a target of 100 percent zero-emission trucks (medium- and heavy-duty) in the state by 2045 and 100 percent zero-emission drayage trucks by 2035. These targets are ambitious and will position California as the national leader in zero-emission goods movement. Yet the response to recent Port requests for proposals for zero-emission vehicles has been considerably below the number needed to begin a prompt transition.

In response to discussions with the LABC, the research team proposes a three-part study to quantify the size of the zero-emission truck market, the potential economic benefits and costs of transitioning to zero-emission trucks, and the environmental and health benefits of such a transition.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Thu, 21 Sep 2023 19:26:56 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2252742</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Synthesis of Information Related to Airport Practices. Topic S03-17. Airport Centric Advanced Air Mobility Market Study</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/1897247</link>
      <description><![CDATA[ACRP Synthesis 130: Airport-Centric Advanced Air Mobility Market Study, from TRB's Airport Cooperative Research Program, is designed to help airports and other stakeholders as they plan for AAM. Many of the initial use cases for advanced air mobility (AAM) will be integrated into existing airports of all sizes, including airport ground access, connecting passenger service between regional and hub airports, and cargo operations.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 14 Dec 2021 14:20:53 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/1897247</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Guidelines for Accommodating Peer-to-Peer Car Sharing at Airports</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/1872914</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Peer-to-peer (P2P) car sharing companies allow individuals to make their personal vehicles available for rent by others through an app. P2P car sharing continues to grow across the United States, but there is limited information on the nature of this activity at airports and how it affects revenue, operations, safety, and facilities.  Research is needed to help airports understand the P2P car sharing market and develop a playbook to accommodate this emerging activity.
 
OBJECTIVE: The objective of this research is to help airports understand P2P car sharing and develop a playbook to accommodate and manage P2P activity. ]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 17 Aug 2021 22:35:51 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/1872914</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Assessing the Impacts of Autonomous Connected Electric and Shared (ACES) Mobility on Travel Demand</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/1860943</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Built upon previous effort (BDV29 TWO 977-47), this project aims to incorporate the derived behavior insights and market assessment into the demand analysis and planning process to determine the impacts of ACES on mobility and travel demand.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Mon, 21 Jun 2021 10:59:56 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/1860943</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Techno-Market Analysis of US Biorefinery Supply Chains from Feedstock to Alternative Jet Fuels</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/1549413</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Cont.. and UT is responsible for generating the feedstock availability database for further analysis by the project team.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Fri, 21 Sep 2018 18:24:46 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/1549413</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Suborbital Commercial Transportation Industry Analyses</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/1537207</link>
      <description><![CDATA[This proposal focuses on the suborbital commercial transportation industry including categories of tourism, payloads, and launch sites and spaceports. Analyses of new and existing industries utilize the academic framework of "Five Forces that Shape Industry Competition" developed by Michael E. Porter (1980). An additional analysis will be performed utilizing another of Dr. Porter™s (1990) frameworks, the "Diamond Model." This model examines the advantage a nation, specifically here, the US, may have within a specific industry while looking at factor conditions, demand conditions, related and supporting industries, firm strategy, structure and rivalry, government, and chance.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Wed, 22 Aug 2018 13:03:04 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/1537207</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>An Airport-Centric Study of the Urban Air Mobility Market</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/1528524</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Urban air mobility (UAM) is a new and rapidly evolving market, broadly characterized as the local, on-demand movement of people and goods by air using a range of piloted, semi-autonomous, and fully autonomous systems. UAM will affect the airport industry, yet there is little airport-specific research on the topic. Airports need to understand and anticipate the impacts and opportunities of the UAM market, including anticipated market growth, vehicle types and uses, operations and management, community and environmental impacts, regulatory changes, financial implications, and other issues.
The objective of this research is to produce a report that assesses the potential impacts of Urban Air Mobility (UAM) on airports of different sizes and having different levels of activity. The report should include, at a minimum: 
(1) A discussion of the UAM market, including technologies, regulatory environment, use cases (e.g., passenger, cargo, and air ambulance), activity projections, and financial viability;
(2) A discussion of potential short- and long-term UAM impacts and opportunities for the airport industry;
(3) Tools (e.g., matrices, Venn diagrams, flow charts, decision trees) to provide insight into how an individual airport's unique characteristics and local socioeconomic conditions could define a potential range of impacts and opportunities from UAM;
(4) Planning considerations for airports to prepare for the range of identified impacts and opportunities for the following subjects:
(a) Passenger, cargo, and aircraft activity;
(b) Operations and maintenance;
(c) Short-term and long-term airside, terminal, and landside facility requirements;
(d) Financing, including revenue generation;
(e) Safety and security;
(f) Community (e.g., noise, environmental, and compatible land use);
(g) Stakeholders (e.g., tenants and business partners); and
(h) Opportunities for business development.
(5) Case study examples (a) describing current and emerging uses of UAM at airports and (b) illustrating how airports could apply the tools and considerations above; and
(6) List of resources and contacts to help airports learn more about and engage in UAM. 
    





STATUS



Research is complete.  Publication of results expected in the summer of 2022.
]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 31 Jul 2018 19:57:25 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/1528524</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Role in the Techno-market Analysis of U.S. Biorefinery Supply Chains from Feedstock to Alternative Jet Fuels</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/1501431</link>
      <description><![CDATA[No abstract provided.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 06 Feb 2018 14:40:25 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/1501431</guid>
    </item>
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