Estimated Generation of Freight Trips Based on Land Use

The effects of land use and business size (quantified as number of employees) on freight trip generation were analyzed. Standard trip generation rates, ordinary least squares, and multiple classification analysis were applied to a New York City data set. Three land use classification codes—the City of New York zoning resolution (NYCZR), the Land-Based Classification Standards (LBCS), and the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) manual—were used. The authors developed models for NYCZR and function and activity of LBCS and used the ITE manual's trip rates. Root mean square error analysis was used to compare the performance of these models. It was found that models for NYCZR and LBCS land use classification codes provide better alternatives to ITE trip rates because they give more accurate estimates of freight trip attraction, cover a wider range of land use classifications, and are exclusively for freight trip attraction.