ACCESS 45, Fall 2014
Michael Cassidy, Robert Cervero, and Donald Shoup
For over two decades ACCESS Magazine has published short, engaging summaries of transportation research conducted at the University of California. We ask our authors to write for lay readers rather than solely for professional peers, without overestimating the readers’ familiarity with the subject or underestimating their intelligence.
Adam Millard-Ball
Traffic lies at the heart of many fears about new urban development. In some cases, cities require developers to scale back housing or retail proposals to alleviate concerns about congestion. In other cases, cities widen roadways, add turn lanes, or lengthen signal cycles to accommodate projected traffic volumes.
In both instances, planners and engineers wield considerable influence through their predictions of the number of vehicle trips that a proposed development will generate.
Robert J. Schneider,
Susan L. Handy, and
Kevan Shafizadeh
California encourages developers to pursue urban infill projects in order to achieve a variety of infrastructure efficiency and environmental goals. Since they are already surrounded by established developments, infill projects provide better opportunities for walking, bicycling, and public transit, and they encourage fewer automobile trips than new suburban developments. Nevertheless, developers often meet resistance when proposing infill projects.
Michael L. Anderson and
Maximilian Auffhammer
Buying a car can be a stressful process, requiring choices based on quality, fit, and cost. When making this choice, we focus mainly on our own well-being and often ignore the negative effects our purchases may have on others. This illustrates the problem of externalities—public costs and benefits not reflected in the cost of a private choice.
Mark Jacobsen
The United States has strengthened its fuel efficiency regulations several times in recent years in an effort to reduce the environmental, economic, and energy security costs associated with gasoline. These standards encourage automakers to increase fuel efficiency by using advanced technology and by manufacturing lighter, lower-horsepower vehicles.
But are these new fuel-efficient vehicles safe?
Daniel Sperling
Contrary to popular belief, the world is awash in fossil energy, much of which can be readily converted into fuels for our cars, trucks, and planes. We are not running out of fossil fuels.
The abundance of fossil fuels means we are unlikely to see high fuel prices due to scarcity. Indeed, most analysts predict that future oil prices will not be much higher than today’s, apart from occasional peaks due, for example, to conflicts in the Middle East. Prices might even end up lower as new exploration and extraction technologies for shale oil, heavy oils, deep-sea oil, and oil sands make it cheaper and easier to extract fossil energy. Thus, we cannot depend on high oil prices to reduce transport energy use and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
Donald Shoup
Most people view parking meters as a necessary evil, or perhaps just evil. Meters can manage curb parking efficiently and provide public revenue, but they are a tough sell to voters. To change the politics of parking, cities can give price discounts at parking meters for their own residents.