Impact of Urban Setting on Activity-Travel Patterns: Comparison of Performance Indicators with Quasi-Experimental Design Data

Abstract

The interest in activity-travel patterns has gained huge momentum lately. Most studies focus on analysis of particular aspects of such patterns and examine the relationships between aspects of activity patterns and sociodemographic variables. To complement this work, a study was conducted to examine whether and how activity-travel patterns vary across spatial settings. A set of descriptors was developed, and tests were conducted to determine whether these descriptors are significantly different across 8 cities and 17 neighborhoods. The results indicate that the organization of activity-travel patterns is relatively constant across urban settings. Characteristics of urban settings have a modest impact at best on descriptors of activity-travel patterns.

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