Between Dec 19, 2024 and Jan 2, 2025, datasets can be submitted to DRUM but will not be processed until after the break. Staff will not be available to answer email during this period, and will not be able to provide DOIs until after Jan 2. If you are in need of a DOI during this period, consider Dryad or OpenICPSR. Submission responses to the UDC may also be delayed during this time.

Browsing by Subject "Tolls"

Now showing 1 - 2 of 2
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    MnPASS Modeling and Pricing Algorithm Enhancement
    (Center for Transportation Studies, University of Minnesota, 2015-05) Hourdos, John; Janson, Michael; Levinson, David; Parikh, Gordon
    While High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lanes have been used for decades as a strategy for mitigating congestion, research has shown that they are not always effective. A 2001 study of the I-394 and I-35W HOV lanes in Minnesota found that the HOV lanes were on average underutilized, moving fewer people than the General-Purpose Lanes (GPL) even with the increased number of passengers per vehicle. To address the issue of underuse, in 2003 the Minnesota Legislature authorized the conversion of the I-394 HOV lanes into High-Occupancy Toll (HOT) lanes, named the MnPASS Express Lanes. The MnPASS lanes operate using a fully dynamic pricing schedule, where pricing is dictated by the level of congestion in the HOT lane. To better understand the nature of HOT lanes and the decisions of their users, this study explored the possibilities for a microscopic traffic simulation-based model of HOT lanes. Based on a series of field studies where the price of the toll was changed while observing changes in demand in the HOT lane, models describing the lane choice behavior of MnPASS users were developed and calibrated. These models interfaced with the traffic simulation software Aimsun through a number of extension modules and tested on the two MnPASS corridors of I-394 and I35W corridors in the west and south suburbs of Minneapolis, Minnesota. The integrated HOT simulation tool was also used to develop and test a number of alternative pricing strategies including a more efficient version of the current strategy.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Study of Public Acceptance of Tolling with New Capacity and Credits: Concepts of FAST Miles and FEE Lanes
    (Minnesota Department of Transportation Research Services Section, 2010-07) Lari, Adeel; Aultman, Sara
    Conversion of high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes to high-occupancy toll (HOT) lanes has become a relatively common managed lanes technique now employed in cities across the U.S. HOT lanes are created by developing a pricing system for existing HOV lanes that allow single occupancy vehicles to gain access to HOV lanes by paying a fee. Conversion of existing general purpose lanes to toll lanes or HOT lane operations, however, has not yet won public support as the perception persists that these “free” lanes have already been paid for and such conversions are a take-away. Focus groups were held in Minnesota to understand what policies, conditions, designs and operational characteristics could be considered that may satisfy concerns about general purpose lane adaptations to optional toll lanes or Flexible and Efficient Express (FEE) Lanes. FEE Lanes envision all users, except transit, paying a toll during peak-periods, with the lane reverting back to “free” operation outside of the peaks. Three configurations of FEE lanes were presented and a toll credit system was offered as a means to compensate users who may view the conversion as a take-away. Participants liked what they have already seen work, which is one priced lane on I-394 MnPASS, but were also concerned about user safety and equity. The credit system, which attempts to address user equity, was a source of confusion for many focus group participants. Although some participants seemed to like the idea of getting the credits to use FEE lanes, there were numerous concerns about logistics of credit management and distribution. These findings highlight the need for increased education and marketing about road pricing options which can assist in building support for a variety of pricing options, such as FEE lanes.