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    <title>Research in Progress (RIP)</title>
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    <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>
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      <title>Research in Progress (RIP)</title>
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      <link>https://rip.trb.org/</link>
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    <item>
      <title>A Multidimensional Network-Based Approach to Modeling Urban Growth in Texas Triangle Megaregion </title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2470763</link>
      <description><![CDATA[This paper proposes a network analysis framework based on geographic information systems (GIS) to study the development of megaregions in support of urban planning and policy-making. The framework includes a new approach to model geo-shaped polygon data of census places as the Place Geo-Adjacency Network (PGAN). In particular, the integration of descriptive network analysis and degree distribution analysis supports the study of spatial connections, geospatial growth, hub effects, and expansion patterns in megaregions. To demonstrate this framework, a case study was conducted on four US megaregions to study their growth and expansion in the last 40 years since 1980. The degree distribution analysis captures the small-world property and quantifies the level of geospatial connectivity influenced by the hub effects. Policymakers can use the model as a decision support for urban planning and policy design to reduce disparities and improve connectivity in megaregion areas.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Mon, 09 Dec 2024 19:02:41 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2470763</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Estimating Daytime Population for Data-Driven Urban Planning</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2458991</link>
      <description><![CDATA[The COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent increase in remote work have changed how people move around cities and where people spend their time during the day, shifting the daytime population to different streets and neighborhoods. Accurately estimating this daytime population is essential for data-informed urban planning, as it impacts infrastructure, transportation service needs, and land use decisions. Partnering with the New York City Department of City Planning, (NYC DCP), this project aims to leverage Artificial Intelligence (AI) and computer vision to analyze video data from over 900 traffic cameras across NYC to estimate daytime population. The primary objectives include classifying cameras by street hierarchy, extracting vehicle and vulnerable road user (e.g., pedestrian) information (e.g., density) on both street level and community level, and using spatial analysis to explore the collective impact of various factors on traffic congestion and urban dynamics. This will provide timely insights for improving urban infrastructure, land use planning, and decision-making, enhancing accessibility, and reducing traffic congestion.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Thu, 21 Nov 2024 17:20:10 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2458991</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>The 15-Minute City Quantified Using Mobility Data</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2350712</link>
      <description><![CDATA[In response to social and environmental challenges faced by cities worldwide, policymakers are embracing the "15-minute city" planning model, positing that most human needs should be met within a short walk from home. The 15-minute city's popularity stems from rising congestion, air pollution, climate change, energy consumption, sprawl, and a loss of social interactions, motivating cities to aim for more livable, people-oriented spaces. This popular vision of urban living has taken many names and shapes, such as Paris's 15-Minute City, Portland's Complete 20-Minute, Charlotte's 10-Minute neighborhoods, and Melbourne's 20-Minute neighborhoods. Despite its rising popularity, there is currently no large-scale empirical evidence that can be used to measure exactly how aligned cities and neighborhoods are with the 15-minute vision and assess the distributional implications of advancing that vision. Moreover, there are rising concerns that the decentralization of economic activity and fostering of more inward-focused communities, especially in the context of sprawling and highly segregated North American cities, could exacerbate existing social divides and limit economic efficiency by disrupting the inter-neighborhood flows of people and ideas. In this project, PIs introduce a new measure to quantify local trip behavior using Global Positioning System (GPS) data from 40 million mobile devices across the US. This study defines local usage as the share of trips made within 15 minutes of walking from home. Finally, PIs will test the hypothesis that fomenting 15-minute access and usage could increase the level of segregation in the city.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Mon, 11 Mar 2024 21:32:44 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2350712</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Climate change adaptation for active transportation: What are American cities doing?</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2350708</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Climate change poses bigger threats to the health and well-being of people walking, biking, and rolling than people in a climate-controlled vehicle. Cities are increasingly asking their residents to avoid driving to mitigate climate change. But what are cities doing to adapt to climate change and create better conditions for active transportation? Research in this area is limited. This project asks research questions about municipal climate adaptation for active transportation. (1) What types of climate adaptation strategies for active transportation are included in plans created by large U.S. cities? (2) How do these strategies consider environmental injustices related to active transportation and heat and seek to address them, if at all? (3) What barriers and opportunities do U.S. cities face when planning for climate adaptation for active transportation? (4) What strategies are used to implement climate adaptation provisions for active transportation? The research team will review active transportation and climate action plans of the largest 100 cities in the U.S. (research questions 1 and 2), and interview at least 30 planners working on climate adaptation for pedestrians and cyclists (research questions 3 and 4). The findings of this study provide evidence of how planners, elected officials, and advocates can center climate change adaptation in decisions about active transportation. The proposal fits with the Center for Climate-Smart Transportation (CCST) Focus Area 1 “Promoting Climate Culture in All Levels of Transportation Decisions” by identifying novel climate adaptation strategies for active transportation and providing evidence of how cities mitigate vulnerability in their active transportation infrastructure.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Mon, 11 Mar 2024 21:29:32 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2350708</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Attitudes and Trust in Leveraging Integrated Sociotechnical Systems for Enhancing Community Adaptive Capacity – Phase IV</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/1984228</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Historically, disaster preparedness efforts have focused on hardening physical infrastructure and encouraging stockpiling of resources within individual households. More recently, community social infrastructure – shared spaces and local organizations that support community life – and strong social networks have been recognized for their importance in disaster preparedness, response, and recovery. However, despite this potential, community organizations and other forms of social infrastructure are not necessarily involved in disaster preparedness efforts, nor is the building of community social networks addressed in standard, top-down approaches to preparedness. Social capital, mobilized via social ties, and social infrastructure can serve as a kind of “backup” for physical infrastructure when it fails. As managers, shapers and regulators of public space, planners have an important role to play in strengthening the state of community social infrastructure. This study is situated in a dialogue that draws from literature in three areas: 1) the role of social ties and social capital in disaster preparedness and response; 2) the potential role of social infrastructure in disaster scenarios; and 3) the integration of urban planning and hazard mitigation planning. The primary research question explores the potential for resource matching at the local level – how can social ties and social infrastructure help to meet community members’ essential needs in a disaster scenario? To answer this question, the research team investigates patterns related to resource needs and anticipated resource-seeking behavior across three communities. Situated in Washington State, this study is focused on a potential earthquake scenario such as a magnitude 9.0 Cascadia Subduction Zone event, which would cause significant disruption to conventional modes of resource access and leave communities dependent upon local resources. The team approaches community disaster preparedness planning from a resource-matching perspective, by understanding what resources people might need and how they expect to access them in the case of a disaster. Using data gathered from a sample survey conducted in three Washington State communities, the team explores respondents’ expectations regarding where they might turn to meet essential needs in a disaster. The team finds that while preparedness with specific resources varies between communities, common trends in resource seeking can be identified, with a strong anticipated reliance on social ties and stores.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Wed, 22 Jun 2022 09:46:53 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/1984228</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Transportation Equity Curriculum Phase 2: Applied Learning Workbook</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/1874093</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Many instructors struggle to effectively integrate applied learning strategies into their courses, particularly for multi-faceted and evolving fields of practice, such as transportation equity. The Equitable Transportation Planning Curriculum for Urban Planning and Transportation Programs (Transportation Equity Curriculum), currently underway with Center for Transportation Equity, Decisions and Dollars (CTEDD) funding, will provide emerging professionals with foundational knowledge and include some service-learning components. However, the research team and Advisory Committee for this project identified a corresponding need for applied analysis and experiential learning exercises to advance student competencies. Additional research is needed to develop analytical and experiential exercises and materials that help ensure students have the necessary experience to be effective advocates for equity in their careers. This educational proposal seeks to fill that gap by producing a workbook of assignments building on the latest practices in equity analysis and applied and experiential learning strategies to expand on specific learning objectives in the Transportation Equity Curriculum. The assignments are expected to include packaged data sets and applications to equip students to evaluate the equity of transportation decisions. We will explore data sets and tools and how they can be applied or replicated to advance student competencies in relation to learning objectives of the equity curriculum. Case examples of analysis methods will be developed for different equity related issues. Examples may include topics such as the spatial equity of electric vehicle (EV) charging stations and/or bike share locations (see for example, https://apps.urban.org/features/equity-data-tool/). Emphasis will also be placed on demonstrating applied methods for curriculum topics such as public involvement, safety and accessibility analysis, and screening projects for equity impacts.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Wed, 25 Aug 2021 16:57:04 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/1874093</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Overcoming Barriers to Freight and Logistics Firm Collaboration with Urban
Planning (Project D5)</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/1861660</link>
      <description><![CDATA[This project gains on-the-ground insight into competition for curb space, what issues drivers face, and the circumstances that inform their parking choices and related behaviors. To do so, it uses data from Reddit to examine US parcel delivery driver perceptions and behavior, focusing on the following questions: 

What are some key challenges parcel delivery drivers encounter when delivering in urban areas? 

What strategies do drivers employ when parking their vehicles to make deliveries? 

What reasons do drivers cite for engaging in unauthorized or questionable parking practices?

The study uses “flexible” coding to analyze the collected comments, providing granular, qualitative understanding of driver behavior and thought processes. 
Parking is a primary challenge drivers discussed as a concern while delivering in urban areas, especially because parking difficulties extend the time required to complete routes. Drivers in the collected sample preferred to park in authorized spaces, but generally accepted the practice of unauthorized parking was necessary to expeditiously complete their routes. Such parking was motivated by lack of supply of authorized spaces, but also by need for safety and/or expedience. Drivers also opined that parking enforcement personnel rarely issued tickets or other reprimands, acknowledging that for delivery vehicles, unauthorized parking is often necessary. Finally, drivers described concerns surrounding interactions with other road users while making deliveries, especially in terms of conflict and safety. Curb management policies and freight providers’ practices alike will need to adapt in the face of the changing landscape of the curb.
To that end, this project also engaged in synthesis of extant and emerging interventions and planning initiatives that may guide the future of urban freight delivery. Specifically, this report provides a brief examination of freight demand management initiatives, curb management initiatives, and safety initiatives. It concludes by discussing how these may complement ]]></description>
      <pubDate>Fri, 25 Jun 2021 21:43:02 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/1861660</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Embracing Emerging Internet-based Traffic Big Data in Smart City Applications to Improve Transportation Systems Efficiency, Safety, and Equity</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/1756016</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Although sensor networks are available in transportation infrastructure, high-resolution spatio-temporal data is still scarce for transportation studies. Presently, smart phone users and Internet-of-things (IOT) sensors ubiquitously share their spatio-temporal information and status. These data are collected and processed by data service companies and redistributed as commercial data products. The crowd-sourced mobile sensor data are by nature superior to traditional fixed-spot sensor data in many ways, such as data quality, valid sample size, coverage, contained high-resolution spatio-temporal information, etc. In addition, there are also other Internet-based data products related to transportation, such as road (or weather) conditions, driving visibility, real-time air quality etc. While public agencies still rely on traditional traffic data sets to monitor transportation system performance, the Internet-connected traffic big data is expected to soon bring fundamental changes to transportation management and reshape many concepts. The costs of those Internet-based traffic data are also becoming affordable in comparing with the traditional approaches in traffic data collection.  
This project explores novel applications to transportation system management based on various emerging Internet-based traffic big data, especially those Internet-connected vehicle data, in enhancing system efficiency, safety, and equity. This work explores novel applications of Internet-based traffic big data to multiple areas, including facility design, congestion management, traffic performance monitoring, and transportation planning. It focuses on efficiency and equity issues by measuring the mobility and job accessibility of traditionally underserved populations.
]]></description>
      <pubDate>Sat, 05 Dec 2020 18:23:25 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/1756016</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Understanding Relationships Between the Built Environment, Physical Activity, Public Health, Urban Mobility, and Traffic Congestion: Graduate Curriculum Development (Project L2)</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/1540504</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Evidence-based research from the public health profession has determined adverse factors associated with the built environment, transportation network, urban land use patterns, and travel mode choices are contributing to declining public health and rising healthcare costs in U.S. metropolitan areas. The objective of this project is to develop a multidisciplinary graduate-level course addressing the intersection between public health, transportation and the built environment. The methodology of this course will focus on establishing basis of need for and potential benefits from implementation of optimal solutions to the challenging dilemma of how the built environment impacts urban mobility, transportation infrastructure, network connectivity, sustainability, livability, and public health. Interconnections between the fields of physical activity, public health, public policy and engineering planning and design will be identified. The goal is for students with diverse backgrounds, in a variety of academic fields, to be able to evaluate urban, suburban communities, and neighborhoods to identify positive and adverse effects of the built environment on levels of physical activity and measures of public health, with an emphasis on adoption of polices and approaches for improving desirable outcomes supporting healthier communities. Currently, there is recognition of the need for physical activity, public health, and transportation professionals to work collaboratively. However, these three disparate fields have distinct methods and languages that often inhibit meaningful collaboration. To the best of our knowledge, this course will is the first of its kind. As such, it will bring together content from physical activity, public health, civil engineering, and transportation planning and community design. Anticipated result of this course will be education of professionals who will have requisite skills, knowledge, and abilities to facilitate collaborative efforts across multiple disciplines to improve physical activity, public health, built environment, and traffic congestion outcomes.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Thu, 06 Sep 2018 12:38:56 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/1540504</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Managing the Daily Operations of a Bike Sharing System Using Mobile Stations</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/1420236</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Over the last few years, bike-sharing systems have become a cost-effective, environmentally friendly alternatives for public transportation in many cities all over the world. On the one hand, the possibility of renting bicycles for short periods of time has given the users a new alternative for performing their daily commuting trips, a vibrant option of completing touristic loops, and a fast way of traversing a city in a healthy and exciting way. On the other hand, from the perspective of the city, this kind of systems have become a natural platform for reducing traffic and pollution, for promoting healthy habits within its citizens, and overall, for improving the living conditions of the city. In short, with their proven success, bike-sharing systems will continue to shape the landscape many major cities in the years to come.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Wed, 17 Aug 2016 16:01:15 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/1420236</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>USF Sustainable Cities Initiative Program Support</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/1368103</link>
      <description><![CDATA[The Office of Community Engagement and faculty in various colleges across the
University of South Florida (USF) are interested in establishing a Sustainable Cities
Initiative (SCI) program at USF. SCI brings together faculty, students, and
practitioners from multiple disciplines to engage in timely issues of importance to
communities. It does this by reaching out to communities interested in engaging
students and faculty in addressing specific locally desired projects. The program
then matches a multidisciplinary set of courses to a community-identified set of
projects over an academic year.

]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 08 Sep 2015 13:54:06 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/1368103</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Mobility and Livability: Seasonal and Built Environmental Impacts</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/1359767</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Transportation and obesity are two of this decade's largest public policy challenges, with non-motorized commuting at the nexus of the two issues. Economists and transportation planners have long been studying mode choice and predicting demand for motorized alternatives. This research represents a preliminary investigation into demand for non-motorized commute modes and the role policy may play in promoting these modes.    First, in partnership with the New England Transportation Institute (NETI), using new survey data and existing Center for Rural Studies (CRS) built environment data; team members are measuring and describing the effects of weather on both revealed and un-served travel demand in rural northern communities. Focus groups and surveys are measuring the seasonal variation in bicycle travel demand as well as the associated causes of this variation in order to recommend policies and programs that might promote year-round use. A continuing analysis of pedestrian volume data has already indicated that weather can account for 30% of volume variation.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Thu, 02 Jul 2015 01:01:18 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/1359767</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Rethinking Residential Parking Policies in New York City based on Behavioral Responses from Developers and Residents</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/1264262</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Research of urban parking policies has tended to center on the impact of policy interventions in central business districts and commercial areas, overlooking parking policies that affect a resident's home, where most journeys begin. In particular, research has overlooked the relationships between residential parking policies, development and travel behavior. This research proposes to study the impact of residential parking policies, and explores developer behavior with respect to parking requirements and residence-based auto ownership and travel behavior in New York City. Residential parking policies can generally be broken into two types: off-street parking regulation, which requires developers of new construction to provide a minimum number of off-street parking spaces as a ratio of units constructed, and curbside parking regulations, which include residential permit parking, restrictions for street cleaning and parking supply levels up to the spatial limit of the curb. In New York City, the Department of City Planning (DCP) determines off-street regulation and defines these minimums while also specifying certain waivers for some smaller developments. Curbside regulations, in contrast, are determined by the New York City Department of Transportation (NYCDOT), although enabling legislation is required by the New York State legislature for residential parking permits. The proposed research evaluates these policies from two perspectives: 1. How developers respond to the off-street minimum parking requirements in terms of the quantity and type of parking provided; 2. How residents respond to off-street parking supplies in terms of their car ownership, mode choice, and vehicle miles traveled. The goal is to understand the performance of current residential parking policies, and, if warranted, suggest improvements with the objective of reducing auto dependence, road congestion, carbon emissions and other externalities of urban auto travel. The research methodology is qualitative and quantitative involving focus groups and a survey of developers and a household survey of residents. The developer focus groups and survey will explore the nuances of parking decisions in the development process and how developers respond to parking minimum and maximum requirements. The resident survey focuses on individual and household travel decisions controlling for availability of parking as the main object of study.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Fri, 04 Oct 2013 01:01:11 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/1264262</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Assessing the Relationship between Transportation Mode Choice and Transportation Land Consumption</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/1250486</link>
      <description><![CDATA[The goal of this study is to develop models relating mode choice to the amount of land used for transportation in a city. With the increased emphasis being placed on building transit oriented developments in Connecticut and across the country, there is an immediate need to improve our knowledge relating to the efficient use of land in dense urban places and how this land allocation is affected by mode choice in our transportation system. The wider importance of this work stems from the fact that there is growing consensus that compact, dense urban areas are some of most sustainable places, particularly from the perspective of the transportation, energy and climate impacts. Our proposed research is grounded in the fact that there is also growing evidence to suggest that such compact, dense urban zones are difficult, if not impossible, to create in the face of high levels of car use. However, this evidence is largely based on qualitative observation, as there is currently no realistic model for quantifying the complex interrelationship between car use level and land consumption. This research aims to remedy this gap in our knowledge by building on both the empirical work that we have done at University of Connecticut and the theoretical models that were developed at University of Pennsylvania. The model resulting from this project will add needed rigor for urban planning by providing tools for quantifying the economic, social and environmental advantages and costs associated various types of transportation systems and understanding the extent to which mix of modes support the building of sustainable urban places.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Wed, 15 May 2013 01:00:59 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/1250486</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Central Valley Sustainable Cities Project</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/1236258</link>
      <description><![CDATA[The idea of sustainability continues to draw considerable attention from local government officials, planners, and stakeholders. To better understand the consequences of this phenomenon, the Sustainable Cities project has developed an environmental policy sustainability index for one hundred incorporated cities in California's Central Valley. The project seeks to understand why cities adopt more sustainable policies, the consequences of those policies, and how to encourage further action by local governments. The index builds substantially on Paul Portney's (2003) Taking Sustainable Cities Seriously and Bowman's (2005) subsequent empirical analysis, in particular borrowing their categories and lists of sustainability policies. However, these previous analyses focused on metropolitan regions throughout the US and did not have the regional variance in types of cities seen in the Central Valley. The quantitative findings to date suggest that sustainability is largely an urban phenomenon--cities that score high on the index are larger, more populous, financially independent, socio-economically advantaged, more Democratic, and have higher stores of intellectual capital. While the quantitative results are interesting, many details about the political and economic dynamics underlying the emergence of these policies in specific cities, or anything about their effectiveness is known. Thus, we are requesting seed grant money to conduct qualitative case studies of "leaders" and "laggards" from the sustainability index in order to gain a more detailed understanding of the constraints and opportunities for local government sustainability. The case studies will look at the links among different kinds of sustainability policies, including transportation. Furthermore, a general audience publication will be distributed reporting the results of this project to stakeholders throughout the Central Valley in order to help inform local government decision-making. The publication will include both the quantitative and qualitative results from the case-studies.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Thu, 03 Jan 2013 15:43:51 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/1236258</guid>
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