Twin Cities transit service improvements helping to increase transit’s appeal over time

light rail train

The Twin Cities transit system changed dramatically between 2000 and 2010: service improvements included the launch of light-rail transit and a high-frequency bus network. “The changes were implemented in response to growing demand and to provide long-term, high-quality service, increasing accessibility and mobility in the growing region,” says Jonathan Ehrlich, planning analyst with the Metropolitan Council.

According to a new study by U of M researchers, the changes are working.

“We found that the significant transit service expansions undertaken in the region have yielded a return of increased transit use,” says Yingling Fan, associate professor with the Humphrey School of Public Affairs. “Within the transit-served area of the region, residents were significantly more likely to use transit in 2010 as compared with 2000—either for a particular trip or at any point during the day.”

bus passenger

Researchers came to this conclusion after analyzing the relationship between transit service and transit use at both the trip and person level. At the trip level, researchers estimated the probability of a one-way trip including a transit leg. At the person level, they estimated the probability of a person using transit at least once during a travel day. In both cases, they measured transit service in terms of accessibility to jobs within 30 minutes of travel time.

“This approach considers how many destinations can be reached through a certain amount of transit travel rather than simply how much distance can be covered by transit in a certain amount of time,” Fan explains. “Both the person- and trip-level models confirm that transit-based job accessibility has been a significant and positive predictor of transit use in the Twin Cities region over time.”

Researchers made additional important findings on personal characteristics and transit use. For example, they found a changing relationship between vehicle access and transit use. While access to a car did make an individual less likely to use transit for a trip in both 2000 and 2010, the effect was less pronounced in 2010—meaning transit is successfully attracting more choice riders.

Also, researchers discovered that in 2010 the presence of children in a household no longer made a person less likely to use transit for a trip.

“Overall, these findings seem to indicate a broadening of transit’s appeal,” says Andrew Guthrie, research fellow on the project.

“This study shows the importance of having regional transit facilities and services that provide improved access to opportunities and services—key goals of the region's guiding development framework and transportation system plan,” says Scott McBride, MnDOT Metro district engineer.

This research is part of an extensive five-part report sponsored by the Metropolitan Council and the Minnesota Department of Transportation based on the rich set of data produced by the council’s Travel Behavior Inventory household travel survey. David Levinson, RP Braun/CTS Chair in the Department of Civil, Environmental, and Geo- Engineering, is the study’s principal investigator. Additional components of the report examine changes in walking and biking, transportation system changes, the effects of telecommuting on travel behavior, and how changing accessibility of destinations has affected travel behavior.

Subscribe

Sign up to receive our Catalyst newsletter in your inbox twice every month.

Media Contact

Michael McCarthy
612-624-3645