Research Project Description
Project Number: 2806
Research Project:This study examines the travel behaviors and transportation expenditures of low-income adults. Research on this topic will help policy makers to better evaluate the effect of transportation finance policies such as congestion pricing or gas tax increases on the travel behavior and economic security of low-income families. Understanding how different transportation finance regimes affect low-income families is critical to developing new transportation finance options. The project addresses the equity problem and will analyze how low-income adults have responded to rising gas prices.
Co-Principal Investigators:
Asha Weinstein Agrawal, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of Urban & Regional Planning, San Jose State University;
Evelyn Blumenberg, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Urban Planning, Institute of Transportation Studies; UCLA School of Public Affairs
Additional Team Members:
Brian Taylor, Ph.D., Professor & Chair of Urban Planning, Institute of Transportation Studies, UCLA School of Public Affairs
Charles N. Darrah, Ph.D., Professor & Chair, Department of Anthropology, San Jose State University
Institution:
Mineta Transportation Institute
Telephone Number:
(408) 924-7560
Email Address: mti@mti.sjsu.edu
Project Objective:
Using in-depth interviews, this research will examine: the travel behavior and transportation expenditures of adults living in low-income households, and how changing transportation prices affect their travel behavior and expenditures.
Project Abstract:How much do people with limited resources pay for cars, public transit, and other means of travel? How does their transportation behavior change during periods of falling employment and rising fuel prices?
Issues of equity frequently arise in policy discussions related to the rising costs of gasoline, as well as in evaluations of the desirability of adopting transportation finance instruments such as congestion pricing or gas tax increases. Despite these concerns of policymakers and advocates, relatively little information has been collected about the transportation burden of low-income families. Travel surveys do not typically include data on household transportation expenditures, while consumer expenditure surveys do not include data on travel behavior. Therefore, it is impossible to examine how low-income people trade off the costs and benefits associated with travel. Moreover, neither data source allows us to understand how low-income families make travel and expenditure decisions. Therefore, we currently lack the information necessary to make informed predictions about the effects of increasing transportation costs—whether from taxes and fees or from rising fuel prices—on households with limited resources.
To begin filling this data gap, we intend to conduct in-depth interviews with adults living in low-income households, examining the interviewees’ travel behavior and transportation expenditures, and how changing transportation prices affect both their travel behavior and expenditures. A secondary objective of the research is to explore how the travel choices of low-income adults vary by the relative supply of public transit near their homes. Therefore, the sample will include adults living in urban neighborhoods with relatively high levels of public transit service and others living in suburban neighborhoods with minimal transit service.
Fuel prices continue to rise, prompting policymakers to respond. At the same time, policymakers at almost all levels of government are discussing how best to finance our roads, highways, and transit infrastructure. Equity issues are central to many of these debates. An understanding of the transportation expenditure and travel patterns of the poor is necessary so that policy makers can select effective finance instruments, while maintaining and enhancing the mobility of those individuals who live in households with limited resources.
Milestones Dates:
Task 1: Literature Review
Task 2: Develop Methodology
Task 3: Recruit Interviews
Task 4: Conduct Interviews
Task 5: Data Analysis
Task 6: Write Final Report
Final completion date:
Total Budget: $63,512 (Includes $9,450 for MTIs costs)
Student Involvement:4 Student Assistants TBD
Technology Transfer Activities:
Upon publication, a pdf version will be available on the Mineta Transportation Institute site. The project experience and data will be available for community meetings. Authors are encouraged to submit articles based on the research to relevant journals and to present the information to end-users at conferences.
Potential Benefits of the Project:
The study will generate detailed information about the priorities and constraints that shape the travel decisions of low-income adults. The study results will generate sophisticated findings and hypotheses on various topics critical to current policy makers.
TRB Keywords:
Economic and Social Factors; Consumer Behavior; Travel Patterns; Travel Behavior; Travel Costs; Planning
Primary Subject:
Transportation prices and travel behavior
Goals:
To develop a more accurate portrayal than currently exists of the transportation expenditures of individuals living in low-income households.
Enabling Research:
Literature review; face-to-face interviews; data analysis
Modal Orientation:
Public Transportation; Highways
