CEP 490 Prof.

Don Miller Proposal draft Jessie Huang Getting People on the Bus Vision Statement My senior project is to explore ways to increase ridership in the City of Bellevue through examining factors that influence public transit demand. As a result, the nature of this project will be mostly research based. The literature reviews section will focus on variables that determine bus ridership, to which I will draw upon the seven variables identified by Jarrett Walker in his book Human Transit: How Clearer Thinking about Public Transit can Enrich our Communities and our Lives. In addition, I will also look at existing studies that Bellevue has completed, for instance, the Bellevue Transit Master Plan and public surveys. From there, I will be able to connections between my research and the citys public transit network and how it can be improve to provide better services for the community. More specifically, potential research questions will be, what are the variables of public transit demand? And how can they be altered to improve transit efficiency in a community? In an effort to provide better mobility and transit services, planers have looked at frequency of services, travel time, existing equipment, and other are major factors that influence travel mode. The goal of my project is to find out why many individuals have a greater preference for driving while public transportations are affordable and available in their neighborhood. Working at the City of Bellevue with two MUP students on different analysis has helped me gain a deeper understanding of Bellevues transit network as well as the publics travel behavior. To combine my volunteer experience with my research effort, my primary tasks will include conducting a literature review and drawing connections with the Transit Master Plan and surveys. Moreover, to add more analysis to the project, I plan to include my own observations from everyday commute. My personal observation will be integrated into suggestions for improvements Travel Time Analyses and identify routes that have the highest travel ratios. My next step will be to look at existing research on transpiration planning and draw examples of planning approaches that have successfully increase transit efficiency and ridership. Essentially, researching and examining the Travel Time Analysis will not only familiarize me with

the transit network of my own community, but also allow me to develop suggestions for potential improvements.

Goal and Significance As a resident in Bellevue, I rarely use the citys transit services to get around in the neighborhood simply because driving is much more efficient and it gets to your destination directly. After taking several classes on topics such as community development and sustainability, I became interested in the social and environmental impact of rapid urbanization in my own community. The contrast between public transit ridership and the number of cars on the streets shows the room for improvements and the opportunity for Bellevue to become a greener city. To encourage the use of public transit and to minimize our ecological footprint of traveling, the transit services must be improved. I see this project as a challenge to myself, learning not only about my own community, but the various mechanisms by which transportation planning are carried out. In addition, collaborations with a mentor and professional planners will give me ample opportunities to improve my communication skill as well as working in a group dynamic. I am hoping that my research will be incorporated as a part of Bellevues transit efficiency analysis as well as a personal learning of a professional field that I wish to pursue in the future.

Context/Background/History Mobility plays a key role in community development, especially in the heart of a newly developed urban area such as the City of Bellevue, where growing population and rising environmental awareness have become the major concerns for transportation planning. When Bellevue was still in the developing process, planners visioned it as a suburb that embraces a variety of retails as well as residents. As a satellite city of Seattle, Bellevue serves as a transit HUB, connecting communities on the Eastside with those of the Puget Sound. Despite being the heart of transit and businesses, Bellevue, with the design of super blocks, has low walkability and a vast majority of its residents have a greater preference for driving than using public transportations.

Literature Review There is an array of studies on transportation planning as well as public transit demand in urban areas. Seeking ways to improve personal mobility and attract more riders, transit agencies have explored the factors for transportation demand to meet the needs of their customers. Moreover, in addressing accessibility to public mass transit, related research have also focused on commuting behavior and comparison of proximity with efficiency. Because of my interest in examining the drivers that motivate individuals to choose public transportation, the focus of my literature review will lean toward to travel styles, public transit network design, and also mechanisms to bring up ridership. One of a great sources for this topic would be Human Transit: How Clearer Thinking about Public Transit can Enrich our communities and our lives by Jarrett Walker, who is an international consultant in transportation planning and has worked on several planning projects across North America. This book gives an overview on public transit system and has a detailed examination on the seven factors for transportation demand, looking at the association between people, space, and mobility.

Methodology The main objective of my project is to research mechanisms to research mechanisms that will increase bus patronage. My research will be combined with my volunteer work at the Bellevue Transportation Department and provide suggestions for improvement based on literature review and analysis. Essentially, the nature of this project is mostly research based. However, a portion of it will be analysis and conclusions drawing from research and data interpretation. Below is a breakdown of the written proportion of this project: 1. Literature Review a. Why do we need public transit? Benefits of transit in urban areas. b. Transit demand factors identified by Jarrett Walker c. Factors to be examined: i. Headway

ii. Safety iii. Real-time bus information system iv. Gas price v. Transit fare vi. Socioeconomic status with reference to the Maslow Abraham theory 2. Public Surveys (Bellevue Transit Improvement Survey) a. Identify the most important factors in Bellevue 3. Suggestions based on a. Public surveys b. Personal observations c. Additional factors that influence transit demand i. Personal values (i.e. time vs. money) with reference to Travel Time Analysis? ii. Environmental awareness iii. Optional analysis: % of riders who live within miles from bus stops vs. % of riders who do not live within miles from bus stops

References Bernick, Michael, and Robert Cervero. Transit Villages in the 21st Century. New York: McGrawHill, 1997. /z-wcorg/. Web. Chen, Ching-Fu, and Wei-Hsiang Chao. "Habitual Or Reasoned? using the Theory of Planned Behavior, Technology Acceptance Model, and Habit to Examine Switching Intentions Toward Public Transit." Transportation Research Part F: Traffic Psychology and Behaviour 14.2 (2011): 128-37. Web. de Grange, Louis, Rodrigo Troncoso, and Felipe Gonzlez. "An Empirical Evaluation of the Impact of Three Urban Transportation Policies on Transit use." Transport Policy 22.0 (2012): 11-9. Web. Levine, Jonathan, et al. "Does Accessibility Require Density Or Speed? A Comparison of Fast Versus Close in Getting Where You Want to Go in U.S. Metropolitan Regions." Journal of the American Planning Association 78.2 (2012): 157-72. Web.

McDonnell, Simon, and Moira Zellner. "Exploring the Effectiveness of Bus Rapid Transit a Prototype Agent-Based Model of Commuting Behavior." Transport Policy 18.6 (2011): 82535. Web. Meyer, Michael D. "Demand Management as an Element of Transportation Policy: Using Carrots and Sticks to Influence Travel Behavior." Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice 33.78 (1999): 575-99. Web. Sharaby, Nir, and Yoram Shiftan. "The Impact of Fare Integration on Travel Behavior and Transit Ridership." Transport Policy 21.0 (2012): 63-70. Web. Urban, Boris, and Deon P. Govender. "Empirical Evidence on Environmental Management Practices." Inzinerine Ekonomika-Engineering Economics 23.2 (2012): 209-15. Web. Walker, Jarrett,. Human Transit : How Clearer Thinking about Public Transit can Enrich our Communities and our Lives. Washington, DC: Island Press, 2012. /z-wcorg/. Web. Watkins, Kari Edison, et al. "Where is My Bus? Impact of Mobile Real-Time Information on the Perceived and Actual Wait Time of Transit Riders." Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice 45.8 (2011): 839-48. Web. Yang, Jiawen, et al. "Measuring the Structure of U.S. Metropolitan Areas, 1970-2000 Spatial Statistical Metrics and an Application to Commuting Behavior." Journal of the American Planning Association 78.2 (2012): 197-209. Web. Young-Jae Lee, and Vukan R. Vuchic. "Transit Network Design with Variable Demand." Journal of Transportation Engineering 131.1 (2005): 1-10. Web.