Abstract
It is required to evaluate transportation policy from various aspects in modern society where there exist various types of habits toward transportation. This study proposes a combined mode and route choice equilibrium model considering heterogeneity in mode choices in order to measure the influence of inherent mode preferences and cost sensitivities on network flows. Specifically, the proposed model is formulated as an equilibrium problem where travelers are grouped into four classes according to above two criteria. These groups can hence reflect the proportion of mode captive users, and users who might not have a strong preference but vary in their sensitivity to e.g. fare changes or petrol price changes. The assignment of users choosing public transport considers further the possibility of hyperpaths, that is users might choose a bus from a set of lines and choose whichever line comes first.
Subsequently, the proposed model is applied to a toy network and the performance of the model is evaluated. Furthermore, sensitivity analysis is carried out in this study. Results illustrate how the change in class composition effects mode and route choice in the whole network. We find that a change in class composition affects the overall mode choice ratio without changing the network level of service. This indicates that reducing the bus captive population may increase the bus ridership of that class.
