Bringing Freight Components into Statewide and Regional Travel Demand Forecasting

With most of the focus on the impact of the Panama Canal expansion centered on the upgrade of specific port facilities, there is a need for further research on the impact of increased port traffic on the megaregion level transportation system. Planning on a regional scale will be critical for effectively and efficiently capturing the economic benefits that the expansion will generate. This is not only important for the economic competitiveness of each port’s region, but for the entire nation which depends on the goods delivered at each port. Furthermore, if not properly anticipated, increased demand for freight movement on the highway system will result in added congestion and shortages in truck parking locations.

This not only impacts the “state of good repair” of the highway system, but also could negatively impact highway safety. During this period, a section for impacts of the Panama Canal expansion on freight movement has been completed with multiple scenarios and also a section for regional economic impacts has been completed analyzing the scenarios developed from the previous section in conjunction with IMPLAN regional economic multipliers. The final deliverable is under refinement and revision. The dates for project deliverables have changed and implementation is yet to occur. 

Final Report

Bringing Freight Components into Statewide and Regional Travel Demand Forecasting

Presentations: 

1. “Another Way to Think About Regional Truck Movement: GPS Tour-Based Truck Modeling Approach”, presented at the Atlanta Regional Commission's Model User Group in Atlanta, Georgia, February 27, 2015.
2. "Bringing Freight Components into Statewide and Regional Travel Demand Forecasting", presented at the Atlanta Regional Commission, August 29, 2014.
3. "Bringing Freight Components into Statewide and Regional Travel Demand Forecasting", presented to the Georgia Department of Transportation, September 18, 2014.
4. "Comparison between Trip-Based and Tour-Based Truck Travel Demand Forecasting Models in Birmingham, AL", presented at 56th Annual Transportation Research Forum in Atlanta, Georgia, March 12-14, 2015.
5. "Global Positioning System-based Truck Modeling for Regional Travel Demand Forecasting", presented at the 94th Annual Meeting of the Transportation Research Board, January 13-15, 2015.
6. "GPS-based truck modeling for Regional Travel Demand Forecasting", presented at the 2014 UTC Conference for the Southeastern Region in Atlanta, Georgia, March 24-25, 2014.
7. "Key Ideas from the 2013 Megaregions and Freight Movement Peer Exchange ", presented at the 2014 UTC Conference for the Southeastern Region in Atlanta, Georgia, March 24-25, 2014.

Project Information Forms:

1. January 2013
2. July 2013
3. January 2014
4. June 2014
5. January 2015

Publications:

1. "Global Positioning System-based Truck Modeling for Regional Travel Demand Forecasting", submitted to Transport Policy, November 29, 2014.