![]() ![]() The 2008 survey gathered information from 3,077 interested respondents who stated that they were willing to take a follow-up survey. Without accurate estimates of travelers’ maximum willingness to pay (WTP) through improved surveys, the scarce transportation funds might not get allocated to the most needed, or most efficient projects. In this era of tight state and federal resources, all desired projects simply cannot be funded. Careful SP survey design and interpretation of behavior becomes increasingly important as more projects look at MLs as a critical source of revenue, but where officials must estimate potential revenue prior to construction. This comparison provides a unique opportunity to better understand how travelers answer survey questions and how their actions in 2010 conformed to their answers in the 2008 study, and it also provides an opportunity to learn how to design stated preference (SP) surveys to better reflect actual travel behavior. To accomplish the comparison, we conducted a follow-up survey of Katy Freeway travelers in 2010. Once the lanes were actually open to paying SOVs in 2010, it was of interest to find out how much actual users of the new MLs were actually willing to pay-and to compare that to their 2008 survey responses. The 2008 travelers were asked about their prospective or intended travel on the forthcoming MLs in both typical travel scenarios and unusual (urgent or hurried) circumstances. A survey was conducted in 2008 (see 1 or 2 for details on the survey), just as the new high occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes opened on the Katy Freeway, but prior to them allowing single occupant vehicles (SOVs) on the lanes for a toll or fee. The research performed here helps to better understand the travelers who are using a new freeway system with managed lanes, specifically, the new Katy Freeway (I-10) MLs (see FIGURE 1) in the Houston Texas urban area. This seems particularly true in the highly populated state of Texas, where there are 14 MLs being currently planned. The advantages that MLs offer are now well known to transportation officials and the public, and the use of MLs is gaining in popularity. This provides an innovative financing mechanism to widen congested urban freeway corridors-where congestion relief is most needed. MLs also offer a revenue stream to help (1) finance their construction, and (2) pay for their on-going operation and management. The tolls are also frequently reduced or eliminated for vehicles engaged in carpooling, thereby encouraging ride-sharing, which can further reduce congestion and induce possible environmental benefits related to reduced auto emissions. Thus, the efficient toll rate varies by time of day: it increases during periods of peak demand and drops during off-peak periods. The toll rate is set to be large enough to ensure congestion does not occur on the MLs. lanes (MLs) are often newly constructed toll lanes set in the middle of an existing freeway. ![]()
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