SnogBlogy

Part IV: Appendices - National Evaluation of SafeTrip-21: Networked Traveler - Transit/Smart Parking

Screenshot of the PATH2Go user registration survey.

Geo-fencing Test Itinerary – Set 1.
StepIndividualScenario TestedMode of TransportationTransit RouteTrip Instructions for ApplicationStart AddressEnd Address
1Driver & Passenger4DrivingAPlan trip A prior to departing start address.Doubletree – Berkeley Marina 200 Marina Blvd, Berkeley, CADowntown SF 4th St and King St
1Passenger4WalkingAUpon arrival at end address, exit car and walk to transit station.
2Passenger6Riding transitABoard Caltrain – San Francisco to San Jose/Gilroy and ride one stop to 22nd Street.San Francisco Caltrain stop22nd St Caltrain stop
2Driver-Driving-Depart Caltrain station and drive to 22nd St & Penn Ave. Pick up passenger.Downtown SF
4th St and King St
Downtown SF
22nd St and Pennsylvania Ave
3Driver & Passenger4DrivingBPlan trip B prior to departing start address. Take Penn Ave south towards Cesar Chavez St. Take a left on Cesar Chavez St. Take a right on 3rd St. Arrive at Marin St.Downtown SF
22nd St and Pennsylvania Ave
Downtown SF
3rd St and Marin St
3Passenger4WalkingBUpon arrival at end address, exit car and walk to transit stop. Return to car without boarding.
4Driver & Passenger5, 6DrivingBAfter identifying SF Muni light rail, attempt to follow the route of the train/bus. Drive on 3rd St following the route of the train/bus.Downtown SF
3rd St and Marin St
Downtown SF
4th St and King St
5Driver & Passenger1DrivingCDo not plan a trip before departing start address. Take 4th St away from the water to Townsend St. Upon arriving, plan trip C.Downtown SF
4th St and King St
Downtown SF
4th St and Townsend St
5Passenger4, 5WalkingCUpon arrival at end address, exit car and walk to transit stop. Return to car without boarding.
6Driver & Passenger5, 6DrivingCAfter identifying SF Muni bus, attempt to follow the route of the train/bus. Drive on Townsend St toward 3rd St.Downtown SF
4th St and Townsend St
Downtown SF
4th St and King St
Geo-fencing Test Itinerary – Set 2.
StepIndividualScenario TestedMode of TransportationTransit RouteTrip Instructions for ApplicationStart AddressEnd Address
7Driver & Passenger1DrivingDDo not plan a trip before departing start address. From US-101 S, take exit 404B to Willow Rd. Turn left onto Middlefield Rd. Turn right at University Ave. Turn right toward Mitchell Ln. Take second left onto Mitchell Ln.Any location.Downtown SF
4th St and King St
7Passenger4, 5WalkingDUpon arrival at end address, exit car, plan trip D, and walk to VTA 522 BRT stop.
8Driver & Passenger5, 6DrivingDAfter identifying VTA 522 BRT, attempt to follow the route of the bus. Exit transit center on Palm Dr. Take a left onto the entrance ramp to El Camino Real. Drive on El Camino Real toward California Ave while following bus.Palo Alto, CA –
Palo Alto Transit Center
Palo Alto –
El Camino Real and Showers Dr
9Passenger4, 5WalkingEExit car upon arrival at El Camino &Showers stop. Plan trip E and identify VTA 22 bus stop. Return to car.--
10Driver & Passenger5, 6DrivingEAfter identifying a VTA 22 bus, attempt to follow the route of the bus. Drive east on El Camino Real towards Hollenbeck Ave.Mountain View, CA –El Camino Real and Showers DrMountain View, CA –El Camino Real and Hollenbeck Ave
11Driver & Passenger4DrivingFPlan trip F prior to departing start address.Mountain View, CA –El Camino Real and Hollenbeck AveMountain View, CA –Mountain View VTA Station
11Passenger4, 5WalkingFUpon arrival at Mountain View VTA Station, exit car and walk to station.
Geo-fencing Test Itinerary – Set 3.
StepIndividualScenario TestedMode of TransportationTransit RouteTrip Instructions for ApplicationStart AddressEnd Address
12Driver & Passenger4DrivingGPlan trip G prior to departing start address. Take US-101Any location.Milbrae, CA—Milbrae Transit Center
12Passenger4, 5WalkingGUpon arrival at Milbrae Transit Center, exit car and walk to BART station.
13Passenger4, 5WalkingHBefore departing Milbrae Transit Center. Plan trip H and identify SamTrans 391 bus stop. Return to car.
14Driver & Passenger5, 6DrivingHAfter identifying a SamTrans 391 North bus, attempt to follow the route of the bus. Drive along El Camino Real following bus.Milbrae, CA –Milbrae Transit CenterSan Bruno, CA –San Bruno BART station

PRESS RELEASE – August 30, 2010

– FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE –

UC Berkeley researchers launch high-tech transit study in Bay Area commute hot-spot

By Ann Brody Guy | August 31, 2010

BERKELEY – A new pilot project by transportation researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, seeks to determine whether commuters will use transit more often if they are provided with accessible, current and information-rich transit, parking and traffic options before they start their journeys. The field test takes place along the US 101 corridor between San Jose and San Francisco, one of the busiest commute routes in the Bay Area, and provides a comparison of real-time traffic, bus and Caltrain information for custom-selected routes. (Above: The pre-trip planner compares modes. Photo by Jay Sullivan, PATH)

The pilot, called the Networked Traveler, formally launched today, Tuesday, August 31, with an invitation for the public to use the free online trip planner at www.networkedtraveler.org and/or download the mobile phone application, called PATH2Go. The technology allows travelers between San Francisco and San Jose to select the best commute option based on personalized priorities of cost-efficiency, time-efficiency or a low-carbon footprint. The mobile application is also available in the mobile apps section of www.511.org.

Researchers said that the study's multi-agency cooperation was key to attaining real-time, region-wide data for multiple modes of transportation. "Commuters can compare driving, Caltrain and the bus based on the up-to-the minute status of traffic and transit," said Liping Zhang, the lead developer on the project, which is being conducted at the California Partners for Advanced Transit and Highways (PATH), a research center at the UC Berkeley Institute of Transportation Studies. Zhang said Networked Traveler aggregates information from a variety of sources – including live next-train and next-bus information from Caltrain, SamTrans, San Francisco Municipal Railway (Muni), BART, the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) 522 bus rapid transit line, and real-time traffic conditions from traffic.com and SpeedInfo. "Smart parking" – instrumentation that counts and transmits the number of available spots – displays current parking availability at the Millbrae, Redwood City, Menlo Park and Palo Alto Caltrain stations.

Networked Traveler has two main features: a trip planner for multimodal pre-trip planning, and, for people who already know their routes, a menu of transit agencies for quick access to next-bus/next train information. There are also a series of alerts to help transit riders navigate their trips. For driver safety, "geofencing" technology is used to block the cell phone application while a driver is in a moving automobile.

The trip planner functions much like Google's trip planner, with a simple screen where users enter a starting point and a destination. But the results show comparative routes for different modes of transport, including a color-coding system that enables a quick visual comparison. "Blue shows the time people can spend working or relaxing on transit, and green shows actual CO2-emission savings over driving, Zhang said, noting that the selection of brown to indicate driving was not arbitrary. "Are we sending a message that transit is greener? Absolutely." (Above: Clicking on the Caltrain icon on a trip map yields parking availability and next-train information.)

For shorter trips, entering an urban segment into the trip planner will yield a bicycle or walking option with estimated times that users can compare to transit and driving. Zhang concedes that sometimes driving will be the best option – for example, when traffic is clear and a traveler is in a hurry. "The larger goal of the Networked Traveler project is to allow travelers to make informed choices," Zhang said. The comparisons also include cost estimates.

The transit routes menu on both the website and phone application provides live next-bus/next-train information that includes BART, SamTrans, Muni, Caltrain and VTA (route 522 only; researchers expect to expand live VTA data system-wide beginning in the fall).

Commuters who register their GPS-activated smart phones at www.networkedtraveler.org can opt to receive a number of in-transit screen alerts – with audio and vibrate options – telling them where the nearest stop is, and, after they are already in transit, how many minutes are left on their trip and when their destination is approaching. Zhang said these features were designed to aid regular commuters who may be absorbed in work or music, as well as people with hearing and vision disabilities and those traveling in unfamiliar territory.

The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) is sponsoring the pilot with the aim of developing tools that will reduce traffic congestion and alleviate traveler stress. "Prior research performed at PATH shows that informed travelers are likely to be safer and more efficient travelers," said Greg Larson, the Networked Traveler project manager at the Caltrans Division of Research and Innovation. "Broadcasting information about the options travelers have available to them empowers them to decide on the best route, mode and time of travel, which also helps to balance demand across these three dimensions."

Larson added that the Networked Traveler project does provide help for drivers already on the road. Message signs along US 101 display current travel times and available parking at the Caltrain stations. "We are encouraging the public to consider using transit, even after they have begun their trip," Larson said.

Project partners include the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC), San Mateo County Transit District (SamTrans), Caltrain, VTA, NAVTEQ, ParkingCarma and SpeedInfo. (Above: The PATH2Go mobile application gives transit riders real-time information while they are enroute.)

Phones that currently support the Networked Traveler's PATH2Go mobile application include the iPhone, Android, Palm Treo and Treo Pro, LG Incite, Samsung Omnia and Intrepid, and the HTC Touch Fuze, Touch Cruise, Touch Diamond, Tilt 2, Imagio, Pure, Touch Pro. An up-to-date list of supported phones are available on the Mobile Apps page of the Networked Traveler website.

Sign-up is required to receive the PATH2Go mobile application, so that the research team can contact participants for surveys and feedback. The study will not save cell phone numbers or associate the numbers with user names.

The field test is slated to continue for several months. To learn which information is most likely to influence traveler behavior, researchers will study how and when people use the services and which services people find most helpful.

Berkeley's Liping Zhang emphasized that the study is testing a hypothesis, not a product. "We will use surveys, evaluations, and website metrics to determine whether high-value comparative information can improve mobility, decrease traveler stress and ultimately, help to decrease congestion on the roadways."

Contact:

Liping Zhang: 510-665-3660, lpzhang@path.berkeley.edu
Wei-Bin Zhang: 510-665-3515, wbzhang@path.berkeley.edu
Greg Larson, Caltrans: Contact Traci Ruth, Caltrans District 4, 510-286-6120, traci_ruth@dot.ca.gov

High-resolution photos and b-roll available for download:

http://www.path.berkeley.edu/path2go/pressphotos/

DateActivityNotes
July 29, 2010Targeted MarketingPATH2Go applications advertised on MTC's 511 website (www.511.org). Displayed on homepage for 4-5 weeks.
August 8, 2010Media CoverageMass Transit blog – http://www.masstransitmag.com/interactive/2010/08/05/there%E2%80%99s-an-app-for-that/
August 31, 2010Targeted MarketingPress release launched by UC Berkeley Institute of Transportation Studies (ITS) – http://its.berkeley.edu/about
August 31, 2010Media CoverageUC Berkeley News Center – http://newscenter.berkeley.edu
August 31, 2010Media CoverageTransportation Communications Newsletter – blog post – http://transport-communications.blogspot.com/2010/08/tuesday-august-31-2010.html
September 1, 2010Targeted marketingDistribution of flyers at transit stations – the PATH team handed out flyers 2 times or more per week from the beginning of September into early October.
September 1, 2010Media CoverageTraffic Technology Today blog – http://www.traffictechnologytoday.com/news.php?NewsID=24390
September 2, 2010Media CoverageUC Berkeley – Daily Californian web article (Student-run Newspaper) – http://www.dailycal.org/article/110191/uc_berkeley_researchers_launch_new_trip-planning_p
September 2, 2010Media CoverageThe Transit Wire blog – http://www.thetransitwire.com/2010/09/02/researchers-to-test-impacts-of-traveler-info/
September 3, 2010Media CoverageAASHTO Journal Online – Weekly Transportation Report – http://www.aashtojournal.org/Pages/090310california.aspx
September 6, 2010Test Launch DateAndroid application released into Google Android Marketplace – http://www.android.com/market/#app=basesign.alltie
September 15, 2010Targeted MarketingTweet on caltrain Twitter Account – 4,997 followers as of 11/17/2010 – http://twitter.com/#!/caltrain
October 7, 2010Media CoverageSF Examiner article – Local Section of Web – http://www.sfexaminer.com/local/Muni-working-on-app-for-smart-phone-users-104469069.html

Depiction of a flyer highlighting UC Berkeley's field test of the PATH2Go application and soliciting for volunteers to participate.
Source: PATH

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Valentine Belue

Update: 2024-05-18