Analysis on Business Passenger Trips, and Business Location Considering Asymmetric Round-Trip-Area within a Day

Abstract

In long range National Development Plan of Japan, several indices were used to describe the accessibility of nation-wide intercity network. Round-Trip-Area within a Day (RTA-D), defined as the set of destination area, which is accessible by one round trip in a day from given origin area is one of the frequently used indexes. This paper aims to empirically analyze the effect of its expansion on business passenger trips and on locations of business establishments. Estimation of a Logarithm Tobit model showed that RTA-D significantly affects on intercity business trips. Estimation of Wilson type disequilibria model showed that the business trip generation can be considered as potential for location of business establishments, while attracted trips mean leakage of that potential. Simulation analysis also showed that asymmetrical improvements of RTA-D results in concentration of business establishments in the origin areas, while symmetric improvements stimulates the business location in local areas.