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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>
    <image>
      <title>Research in Progress (RIP)</title>
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      <link>https://rip.trb.org/</link>
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    <item>
      <title>Longitudinal Analysis of Transit's Land Use Multiplier in Three Regions</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2301335</link>
      <description><![CDATA[To date much transportation research has relied on cross-sectional data, and leaders in the
field have increasingly begun to call for research on longitudinal studies to investigate the
impacts of changes in the built environment to travel outcomes over time. Handy (2017)
pointed: “I would discourage researchers from producing yet more cross-sectional studies … we need before-and-after evaluations of the impact of changes in the built environment on VMT and other aspects of travel behavior … These kinds of studies provide a much stronger assessment of the potential for compact development to reduce VMT, although they are more challenging than cross-sectional studies.” Previous research has indicated that transit expansions such as light rail can lead to a ‘transit multiplier’ effect, whereby VMT is reduced by amount greater than simply that caused by conversion of individual trips from vehicular travel to transit. Transit stations become hubs of commercial and other activity, as well as sites of greater density, and produce additional trips by modes such as walking and bicycling in the process. Very few studies have explored this effect with longitudinal data over time, and those that have were confined to single metropolitan areas, thereby lacking in external validity.
Using a quasi-experimental design and data from three metropolitan regions
(Sacramento, CA, Seattle, WA, and Salt Lake City, UT), this research will produce such a before-and-after study to quantify the changes in VMT, transit usage, and active travel for
households along light rail expansions. For these three regions, we have household travel
survey data for two points of time and each of them had opened new or extended existing
light rail transit during the two points of time. We will employ either control corridors or
propensity score matching to select households and compare their travel changes with
households along the new transit lines. The result will provide the total (direct and indirect)
effects of transit (or called multiplier) on travel. This research is essential to better understand and quantify the benefits (social, environmental, economic, and health) of expanding and improving high-quality public transit systems such as light rail.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Thu, 30 Nov 2023 16:45:42 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2301335</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Benefit-Cost Analysis of Rural CAV Deployment</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2238293</link>
      <description><![CDATA[The project aims to investigate the benefits and costs associated with connected and automated vehicle (CAV) deployment in rural areas. It involves conducting a comprehensive literature review to gather insights on the benefits and challenges of CAV deployment. Data collection and analysis will be performed to identify specific transportation challenges in rural communities. An inventory of CAV technologies suitable for rural areas will be compiled, considering their functionalities and potential benefits. The project will develop scenarios to explore different futures for CAV deployment, considering factors such as CAV penetration levels and technological advancements. Mapping CAV technology deployments to transportation challenges will be done to highlight potential solutions. A benefit-cost analysis will quantify the economic and social benefits of CAV deployment, including improved safety, mobility, accessibility and social justice, and reduced environmental impacts. The outcomes of the project will provide valuable insights into the benefits and costs of CAV deployment in rural areas, improving decision-making and aiding in the selection of appropriate strategies and policies. The project is expected to contribute to advancing knowledge on CAV deployment in rural areas and provide guidance for future planning and implementation efforts.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Fri, 01 Sep 2023 16:46:52 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2238293</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Performance Measures for Community-Centered Transportation Outcomes: A Guide</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2188141</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Transportation and its infrastructure are not ends in themselves but means for providing mobility and accessibility to important destinations. State departments of transportation (DOTs) and other infrastructure owner-operators (IOOs) work to grow, manage, or maintain networks to facilitate mobility, travel choice, and access and to build public value. This work considers broader societal goals and improves the quality of life for individuals and communities alike. There is a growing demand that DOTs consider transportation outcome performance in a wider range of dimensions. Many DOTs continue evolving toward community-centered transportation by adopting more comprehensive and outcome-oriented goals. This requires identifying measures that more effectively capture the outcomes of the systems and services delivered by state DOTs and other IOOs.

There is a foundation of strong infrastructure- and auto-oriented performance measures, such as travel time reliability, pavement quality, or bridge health. These measures have been promulgated into federal regulation, and reporting cycles have been established for DOTs. However, measuring less conventional outcomes closely tied to diverse societal goals is an emerging practice. Research is needed to develop emerging measures into mature practices for consideration by DOTs and other IOOs around the nation and to improve measurement, integration, and incorporation of important policy goals into investment decision-making. 

The objective of this research is to develop a guide to help state DOTs identify and implement nontraditional measures related to transportation performance with tactical strategies or methods for data collection and analysis.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 30 May 2023 20:31:15 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2188141</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Multi-Modal Optimization </title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/1938501</link>
      <description><![CDATA[The objective of this project is to develop the multi-modal optimization model, which will operate at a planning level and generate an optimal design for a multi-modal on-demand transit system given the input demand and constraints. Optimization models provide a means of providing the best possible outcome as measured by an objective, subject to a set of constraints. 
The starting point for this model was developed for a NSF-funded project - Socially Aware Mobility (SAM) project – that seeks to design coordinated microtransit systems in large, congested cities. These systems combine on-demand transit that serve low-density regions with high-occupancy vehicles (buses or trains) traveling along high-density corridors.  
These systems combine on-demand transit (cars or vans) that serves low-density regions with high-occupancy vehicles (buses or trains) traveling along high-density corridors. The scheduling and dispatching of vehicles is coordinated holistically and optimized to achieve socially desirable outcomes such as mitigating congestion, decreasing cost, improving accessibility, and providing the service efficiently.  
The models are being simultaneously developed in a collaboration with staff from SFCTA and MTC in San Francisco, and with WFRC and UTA in Salt Lake City. These external collaborators join weekly meetings to inform of local situations, supply data, and learn of the project’s progress and purposes.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Wed, 06 Apr 2022 15:07:24 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/1938501</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Estimating Benefits of Closing Gaps in Active Transportation Networks



</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/1842753</link>
      <description><![CDATA[NCHRP Research Report 1149: Estimating Benefits of Closing Gaps in Active Transportation Networks: A Guide presents methods and strategies to quantify the benefits of closing  gaps in active transportation networks. The guide provides case studies, gap closure benefit quantification, and practitioner vetting and usability testing to support its findings. It was developed through a scan of applied methods, interviews, practical experience, and original research. The findings will prove useful to practitioners at state departments of transportation (DOTs) as well as regional and local governments.

Active transportation users include pedestrians, bicyclists, e-bike users, and those who use personal conveyances. For active transportation users, these modes not only address mobility and accessibility needs but also increase levels of physical exercise, improve access to transit, and reduce out-of-pocket travel costs. For communities, the benefits from active transportation include more mobility opportunities, healthy and active lifestyles, and local and regional development opportunities. The presence of any gaps in the network reduces the accessibility of valued destinations for system users.

Under NCHRP Project 08-149, “Estimating Benefits of Closing Gaps in Active Transportation Networks,” Alta Planning + Design was tasked to develop a guide for state DOTs and other transportation agencies to help them estimate the benefits of closing gaps in active transportation networks. The research summarized methods of identifying gaps, produced a gap typology reflecting varying user groups and contexts, developed a methodology that estimates the economic, health, and social benefits of closing gaps, provided effective approaches to prioritizing gaps for long-range planning, programming and/or project devel opment activities, and crafted recommendations on how to effectively communicate the value of closing gaps to transportation decision-makers, local governments, communities, and other stakeholders.

In addition to the guide, the following materials can be found on the National Academies 
Press website (nationalacademies.org/publications) by searching for NCHRP Research Report 1149: Estimating Benefits of Closing Gaps in Active Transportation Networks: A Guide: Web-Only Document 426: Developing a Guide for Estimating Benefits of Closing Gaps in Active Transportation Networks, which is the research agency’s report documenting the development of the guide and the entire research effort. The following materials can also be found on the webpage for this publication: Web-Only Document 426 Appendix A (Phase I Report); Web-Only Document 426 Appendix B (Phase III Report); and a stand-alone Implementation Plan.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Thu, 25 Mar 2021 21:09:54 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/1842753</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Towards Sustainable Pavements: Engineered Agricultural Waste for Alleviation of Thermal Cracking, Phase 1</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/1231932</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Cold winter temperatures that are typical for the Kansas' continental climate are likely to produce detrimental shrinkage cracking of pavements. Thermally induced contraction of pavements is restrained either by the friction of the sub-grade and/or by the reinforcing steel. The pavement cracks if the restraint produces sufficiently large tensile stresses. The cracks are usually parallel to each other and they appear at a regular spacing, thus exhibiting a particular length scale. They form across the entire width of pavements, thus negatively affecting the ride quality. In addition, cracks also facilitate infiltration of water into sub-grade soils, which causes a rapid deterioration of the pavement structure. Frequent and costly repairs of cracked pavements necessitate the engineering solution, which will increase the resilience of pavements while bringing along a number of sustainability benefits.  Kansas is strategically located in the midst of Great Plains, one of the largest wheat growing regions in the world. The abundant wheat straw has traditionally been burned off the fields or tilled back into the soil in preparation for the next planting season. These disposal methods contribute to air pollution and global warming. Ron Madl, director of the Kansas State University Wheat Research Center described the benefits of the straw removal as follows: "Straw removal increases soil temperature in spring, improves soil drying rate, is helpful to low-till or no-till farming, decreases combine operating costs and diminishes the risk of disease and insect transfer into the next season".  The use of renewable materials such as wheat straw to reinforce pavements is likely to bring a number of multiple sustainability benefits including: 1) economic, 2) environmental, and 3) social benefits. Economic benefits are due to a decreased maintenance costs. Environmental benefits are due to the use of benign renewable materials, decreased pollution and decreased global warming that are otherwise caused by frequent repairs of thermal cracks and non-sustainable agricultural practices. Social benefits are in that the proposed beneficial use of wheat straw provides additional income to farmers that will be pumped back into the economy. In addition, significantly decreased maintenance operations lessen traffic disruptions, thus providing better connectivity to rural population. Overall, the engineering use of agricultural waste is likely to give a boost to the rural economy.  To this end, and in the spirit of the theme of the KS-UTC: "Sustainability and Safety of Rural Transportation Systems and Infrastructure", we propose to conduct an investigation about he feasibility of use of wheat straw for alleviation of thermal cracking of pavements.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Thu, 03 Jan 2013 14:28:49 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/1231932</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Strategic Management System with Performance Measures for Rhode Island Department of Transportation</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/1231909</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Performance measures have been incorporated almost universally by government and the private sector to monitor the effectiveness of operational strategies and to evaluate the success of achieving agency targets. A system of performance measures which flow from a sound strategy with strategic initiatives and goals have a variety of benefits. They provide accountability as well as feedback on the effectiveness of long-term strategies, and can drive improvement in processes for the delivery of transportation services. Performance measures in planning are used in reporting trends, conditions, and outcomes resulting from improvements to the transportation system. The ability to measure performance of key functional areas is essential to evaluating the organizational benefits of these functions. In the context of government, those functions that can demonstrate greater societal benefits garner political support and the corresponding budgetary support. However, those governmental functions that can't demonstrate and demonstrate their benefits to society have problems justifying their existence and budgetary support. Therefore, it is important that metrics be developed to measure the performance of governmental functions with links to financial benefits to society. In doing so, a function can easily justify its existence and can quantify increased budgetary support.  The aim of the project is to develop a Mission, Vision, Shared values, Agency level Strategy with selected strategic initiatives and key performance indicators that are consistent with the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) Strategic Plan and that of the State of Rhode Island.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Thu, 03 Jan 2013 14:28:24 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/1231909</guid>
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