Transportation Geography Dr Horner 06 04 2014 Highways paid for by gas tax We have transportation systems to facilitate life s needs w o a functioning TP cities are impossible transportation movement of people goods information etc in by means modes across the space from location to location transportation is geographical where they are function form how ppl interact and move about Unifying themes Accessibility how easy is it to reach one place or places from one another Accessibility differentials Are some places more accessible than others people Policy levers when things need to be changed Transportation is related to many contemporary problems Problem Issue 1 Congestion in some large cities est that ppl spend 100 extra hours a year in congestion a top 3 municipal issue at the city county regional governmental level survey from ppl often show this problem with ppl everywhere not always just congestion but also how the city might be set up city activities have an impact on congestion maybe not necessarily layout solutions not clear constrained resources issues with highway construction env impacts Problem Issue 2 Environmental Impacts Transportation systems are largely petroleum based green house emissions bc they produce carbon as well How are the transportation systems impacting the env How to minimize impacts Resource issues sustainability alternative sources Problem Issue 3 Globalization Connectedness of nations markets economies etc transportation physical and virtual facilities connections Now our degree of connectedness raises concerns about security Who studies geography Computers stats became more scientific Civil engineers economists planners psychologists sociologists natural resources env scientists transportationist specialist in transportation How do people study transportation Derived demand people don t just drive to do it They do it to go somewhere The value of transportation is derived from the need to do something else To travel go to work go shopping go to school medical services friends all activates that we partake in o Transportation is our way to get there Trips have an origin and destination Earliest form of transportation planning focused on predicting trips in places Known as the 4 step model Model to predict trips to places and used in order to make changes to a specific area Use the model to test it out large zones home locations are represented by these An abstraction of reality o TAZ traffic analysis zones Used to estimate travel picture in urban areas Steps o Trip generation how many trips produced o Trip distribution where do trips go o Modal Split what modes of transit do trips take o Trip Assignment what route do trips take Productions homes residential areas and attractions jobs commercial entertainment food etc o Use surveys to find out this info needed o Models Gravity model places with more productions and attractions will interact more Places closer together will interact more Transport and Spatial Structure 06 04 2014 Transportation geography sub discipline of geography that is concerned with the movements of people freight and information The nature and purpose of movements Spatial structure how things are arranged Locations Distance Fixedness Attributes Relativity closeness Dynamism interaction Node point on landscape Site about the location itself Like how many people on FSU s campus Situation more relative context what is it near both applied to different scales local regional global Dimensions of TG History Economic Transport brought many transport technologies Dev Of modern nation states Transport and economic development indirect and directly Factor in the production of goods and services Contributes to the specialization of regions Influences land value Access to healthcare welfare and cultural events Shape social interactions Social Political Nation building and unity Rules and regulations Mobility subsidized Environmental Pollutions and exploitation of natural resources Impacts Operational differences btwn passengers and freight transportation Passengers w o assistance process info make choices irrationally Freight must be manually loaded and transferred info processed through logistics managers makes choices rationally Commuting shopping recreation short trips Waste disposal medium Business tourism and migration long distance Derived Demand we don t do transportation for our own sake Activity working vacationing manufacturing o Direct o Indirect Energy Warehousing Distance vs Time Commuting taxi plane bus trucks containers Transportation costs are often measure by distance or time Not to be confused with one another Time is a relative concept distance is absolute Travel time if diff from place to place urban vs rural Representations of distance Transport distance network Transshipment o Changes modes of transportation VMT vehicle miles traveled Measurement of how much transportation consumption Breaks down through age and gender in the US Transportation routes are tied to the evolution of early civilizations How long it used to take to circumnavigate the globe World Transport System Time space Convergence time and space become one o Idea that can consume or move more in space per unit of time Mail time Transportation and communication costs are going down Gateway border function implied mode change ex Ellis Island coastal Hub no modal change not really about borders more inland central Gate way and hubs loacation More restrictive term Urban form the pattern of land uses Employment Land uses Infrastructure Commuting journey to work trip ONLY o Not to school or leisurely activities Concentric Ring Model Land use determined by land prices or rents o Didn t explain the pattern anomalies Sector and Nuclei Urban land use Models How different disctricts are laid out in a city o Sub nodes of activity Hybrid Land use Model Incorporates models of all three models o Transportation influence the way that cities grow CBD is not the only area of activity Land get cheaper as you move away from down town AS you move away from the CBD value of land use goes down Central Business district Scales of Special Organization and Transportation Global Regional Local how things play out on the different levels of a city Spatial Organization Central places in urban areas CBD Regional Center Neighborhood Center Local Center Urban Structure 5 19 14 Public Transportation Rider ship of ppl who use PT usually not a huge of people Multi modal car bus rail