Studies & Reports
Basics
The Transit Riding Habit Can Last a Lifetime, But First You Need to Get People in the Habit
While the habit formation effect is real, it is not, unfortunately, very large.
April 14, 2017
Busting the Myth of the “Scofflaw Cyclist”
According to a certain perspective that seems to hold sway among local newspaper columnists, bicyclists are reckless daredevils who flout the road rules that everyone else faithfully upholds. But the results of a massive survey published in the Journal of Transport and Land Use point to a different conclusion -- everyone breaks traffic laws, and there's nothing extraordinary about how people behave on bikes.
March 16, 2017
Win Back Transit Riders By Speeding Up Bus Boarding
One surefire way for U.S. transit agencies to improve bus service is to streamline the boarding process by enabling riders to get on at any door. In a new report, NACTO makes the case for all-door boarding and looks at how American transit agencies are moving forward on implementation.
March 1, 2017
The Unequal Toll of Pedestrian Deaths
News reports tend to blame the victims of these crashes for transgressions like "distracted walking" or crossing where they shouldn't have. But a new analysis from Smart Growth America highlights how pedestrian deaths are a systemic problem caused by the dangerous design of our streets and transportation systems.
January 10, 2017
These U.S. Cities Offer the Best Job Access to Transit Riders
How well does your city's transit system connect people to jobs? A new report from the University of Minnesota lays out how many jobs are accessible via transit in major American cities.
January 9, 2017
Study: Diagonal Intersections Are Especially Dangerous for Cyclists
This week, Cambridge, Massachusetts, unveiled plans for a "peanutabout" that will make a tricky intersection with irregular angles safe for cycling. This type of design intervention could be crucial for locations that new research suggests are especially dangerous.
December 2, 2016
How Transit Agencies Can Offer Better Paratransit Service at Lower Costs
Paratransit service for people with disabilities is a big part of what modern transit agencies do, and it's getting bigger all the time. As the population ages and more people rely on paratransit to get around, agencies need to get smart about how they provide the service -- or else rising costs will eat into their capacity to run buses and trains.
September 20, 2016
No, Uber’s Not Going to Replace Buses, But It Can Complement Them
Not a day goes by without a raft of stories about "new mobility" providers -- ride-hailing companies like Uber or car-share services like Car2Go that have tapped into recent technological advances to provide new ways to get around.
September 9, 2016
When Cities Force Developers to Widen Roads, Everyone Loses
It's a common practice for cities to make developers widen a street when they put up a new building. The thinking is that development creates car trips that must be accommodated with more asphalt.
August 23, 2016
The “Choice” vs. “Captive” Transit Rider Dichotomy Is All Wrong
The conventional wisdom about transit often divides riders into two neat categories: "choice" riders -- higher-income people with cars -- and "captive" riders -- lower-income people who must use transit because they don't own cars.
July 12, 2016