All posts by trac

Seattle Center City Alley Infrastructure Inventory and Occupancy Study 2018

The Supply Chain and Transportation Logistics (SCTL) Center at the University of Washington conducted an alley inventory and truck load/unload occupancy study for the City of Seattle. Researchers collected data identifying the locations and infrastructure characteristics of alleys within Seattle’s One Center City planning area. The resulting alley database includes GIS coordinates for both ends of each alley, geometric and traffic attributes, and photos. The researchers developed alley management recommendations to promote safe, sustainable, and efficient goods delivery and pick-up.

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Monitoring and Documentation of SMA Project on I-90

Stone mastic (or matrix) asphalt (SMA) provides a deformation-resistant, durable surfacing material suitable for heavily trafficked roads. WSDOT does not often use SMA, but this spring it is applying SMA on I-90 in Eastern Washington. This project is documenting the construction project. Researchers are following the project from start to finish and chronicling everything related to it, from the aggregate and other materials used through the laydown of the asphalt. Documentation of the project will help WSDOT in carrying out similar SMA pavement projects in the future.

Principal Investigators:
Balasingham Muhunthan, Civil and Environmental Engineering, WSU
Haifang Wen, Civil and Environmental Engineering, WSU

Sponsor: WSDOT
WSDOT Technical Monitor: Kim Willoughby
WSDOT Project Manager: Jon Peterson
Scheduled completion: December 2019

Extending the SR 522 SPaT Challenge to Active Transportation Users

This project will give researchers hands-on experience with the connected transportation environment and interactions among pedestrians, bicycles, vehicles, and traffic signals. Specifically, this project will integrate data from traffic control system signal phase and timing (SPaT) broadcasts along SR 522 north of Seattle within an application (app) that pedestrians and bicyclists will use on their mobile devices. Pedestrians will be able to use the app to request right of way and receive information on the status of the pedestrian signal. Bicycle users will be able to indicate their presence to actuate the traffic signal. All users will also be able to send/receive better quality information on their location within a crosswalk, bicycle lane, pathway, or vehicle travel lane. The project not only has the potential to improve intersection operations but has clear implications for helping increase the safety of all non-motorized road users, particularly those with vision impairments and other disabilities.

Principal Investigator: Yinhai Wang, Civil and Environmental Engineering, UW
Sponsor: WSDOT
WSDOT Technical Monitor: Justin Belk
WSDOT Project Manager: Doug Brodin
Scheduled completion: June 2023

UPS E-Bike Delivery Pilot Test in Seattle: Analysis of Public Benefits and Costs

The City of Seattle has permitted United Parcel Service, Inc. (UPS) to pilot test a new e-bike parcel delivery system for one year.  To quantify and document the public costs and benefits of this multimodal delivery system, the Supply Chain Transportation and Logistics Center (SCTL) at the University of Washington will conduct analyses before and during the 12-month pilot test to look at the following: total changes in vehicle miles traveled (VMT)and emissions along the three affected cargo van routes, changes in the amount of time delivery vans are parked along the routes, rates of failed first delivery attempts, impacts on total VMT and emissions if UPS begins to stage drop boxes along the routes to replenish the e-bikes, and benefits or hazards created by the e-bikes for the e-bike drivers, pedestrians, other bikers, and motor traffic.  This project will provide data and evidence to help the city in developing future urban freight policies.

Principal Investigator: Anne V. Goodchild, Civil and Environmental Engineering, UW
Sponsor: City of Seattle
Scheduled completion: February 2020

Curb Allocation Change

Increasing numbers of transportation network company (TNC) trips—such as taxi, Uber, and Lyft—have led to increased demand for loading and unloading curb spots in Seattle. In this study, researchers are gathering data about passenger load zone use and local traffic impacts in a 15-block area before and after a curb allocation change in the South Lake Union area of Seattle. Two blocks of curbs along Boren Avenue currently designated for paid parking will be reallocated for passenger loading from 8:00 to 10:00 am and from 2:00 to 6:00 pm on weekdays.  Researchers will collect data by video, pavement sensors, and manually to measure passenger loading zone activity and their effects on passing traffic. They will use the collected data to evaluate curb use changes, impacts on TNC demand and operation, impacts on traffic, including traffic flow and travel times, impacts on safety, passenger and driver experience, and parking compliance. The methodology demonstrated in this evaluation should help the Seattle Department of Transportation better understand and plan for the impacts of changes in curb parking designation.

Principal Investigator: Anne V. Goodchild, Civil and Environmental Engineering, UW

Sponsors:
Challenge Seattle
Seattle Department of Transportation
King County Metro
Sound Transit

Scheduled completion: June 2019

I-35 FRATIS Impacts Assessment

This project evaluated the impacts of roadway performance information delivery efforts on freight operations in Texas. A freight advanced traveler information system (FRATIS) was deployed in the form of the I-35 Traveler Information during Construction (TIDC) system in Dallas, Texas, in association with major reconstruction work on I-35. The evaluation focused on the impacts of delivering the TIDC information to trucking companies. Both participating trucking companies reported receiving benefit from the construction delay information.

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QUEWZ Work Zone Software: Literature Search and Methodology Review

QUEWZ is a computer analysis tool for planning and scheduling freeway work zone lane closures. It analyzes traffic conditions on a freeway segment with and without a lane closure in place and provides estimates of the additional road user costs and of the queuing that will result from a work zone lane closure. The calculated road user costs include travel time, vehicle operating costs, and excess emissions. Through a literature search and methodology review, this project will collect information about the computation methods used by QUEWZ and will determine how key QUEWZ formulas and algorithms are derived, including assumptions used and field data sets that were inputs to the process. The researchers will describe how key formulas of QUEWZ compare to equations found in other tools commonly used by agencies to provide similar functionality. They will also determine whether and how WSDOT staff can potentially tune or update QUEWZ methods to produce more current and Washington-specific estimations for road user costs associated with work zone delays.

Principal Investigator: Mark E. Hallenbeck, Washington State Transportation Center, UW
Sponsor: WSDOT
WSDOT Technical Monitor: Natarajan Janarthanan
WSDOT Project Manager: Doug Brodin
Scheduled completion: December 2018

Effect of Energy Benchmarking and Disclosure in Office Building Marketability—The Cases of Washington, D.C., and San Francisco

Recent legislation adopted by an increasing number of cities across the U.S. has mandated that buildings of a certain size (depending on the city) disclose their energy use to the city (through LEED and/or Energy Star evaluation), which the city then makes public. Researchers are already analyzing the effects that such legislation has on energy use among buildings. However, no study has specifically evaluated these trends in relationship to the real estate performance of a building. This study will assess the potential links between the market performance of sustainable assets before and after implementation of the disclosure policies, given market cycles, and before and after a building has achieved the Energy Star label and/or LEED certification. Because of their ability to provide good amounts of data and populations with a relatively high sensitivity to sustainability practices, the study will focus on Washington, D.C., and San Francisco.

Principal Investigators:
Sofia Dermisi, Real Estate and Urban Design and Planning, UW
Hyun Woo “Chris” Lee, Construction Management, UW
Youngjun Choe, Industrial Systems and Engineering, UW

Sponsors:
The Real Estate Institute
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

Scheduled completion:  April 2019

Bio-Based Renewable Additives for Anti-Icing Applications (Phase II)

Maintenance agencies are constantly seeking an alternative to chloride-based deicing salts, one with maximum anti-icing efficiency and minimum drawbacks. This project developed a high-performance “green” anti-icer, based on grape skins and other agricultural wastes, that can minimize the harmful impacts of traditional chloride-based salts.

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Characterization of Under-Served Population Perceptions and Mobility Needs in Connected-Vehicle and Smarter City Environments—Phase 6

Residents of smaller and low-density communities, as well as the elderly and disabled, have few alternatives to private car travel. While new on-demand mobility services, connected vehicle technologies, and smarter city initiatives are reshaping travel in cities, those in smaller towns and rural areas, those without smart phones and communication network access, and lower-income travelers lacking a variety of additional resources are at risk of being left behind. The goal of this outreach effort is to better understand and characterize under-served populations’ perceptions of mobility needs in urban and rural environments of the Pacific Northwest and to inform those communities about the opportunities for mobility improvement that a smart city could provide. This project will identify and work with representatives from different mobility under-served groups in Idaho, Oregon, Washington, and Alaska and will develop interactive materials to inform and educate the under-served groups about the potential improved mobility opportunities in connected-vehicle and smarter city environments. They will also collect data from the participants on their mobility challenges, perceptions, and experiences and map those data within a GIS database. They will then use the data to help identify smart city implications and potential solutions.

Principal Investigators:
Ahmed Abdel-Rahim, University of Idaho
David Hurwitz, Oregon State University
Eric Jessup, Civil and Environmental Engineering, WSU
Jeff Ban, Civil and Environmental Engineering, UW
Billy Connor, University of Alaska Fairbanks

Sponsor: PacTrans
Scheduled completion: March 2023