NSL – Netzwerk Stadt und Landschaft ETH Zürich
  • Projects
      • Projects of the Chairs
        • Prof. Dr. Bryan T. Adey | Infrastructure Management
        • Prof. Dr. Tom Avermaete | History and Theory of Urban Design
        • Prof. Dr. Kay W. Axhausen | Traffic and Transport Planning
        • Prof. Dr. Francesco Corman | Transport Systems
        • Prof. Dr. Adrienne Grêt-Regamey | Planning of Landscape and Urban Systems (PLUS)
        • Prof. Dr. David Kaufmann | Spatial Development and Urban Policy
        • Prof. Hubert Klumpner | Architecture and Urban Design
        • Dr. Anastasios Kouvelas | Traffic Engineering and Control
        • Prof. Dr. Christian Schmid | Sociology
        • Prof. Milica Topalovic | Architecture and Territorial Planning
        • EiR PD Dr. Joris Van Wezemael | Spatial Transformation Laboratories (STL)
        • Prof. em Dr. h. c. Günther Vogt | Landscape Architecture
        • ETH Wohnforum – ETH CASE
        • NSL Archive
      • NSL Colloquia – The NSL Colloquia are a bi-annual presentation of exceptional work under a rotating theme determined by the inviting professor.
      • NSL Projects
        • Future Cities Lab Global
        • Urban Potential and Strategies in Metropolitan Territories
 – The Zurich Metropolitan Region as an Example (NFP65)
        • Landscape Visualization and Modeling Lab (LVML)
      • NSL Forum: Pandemie? Mitten im Klimawandel. Was bedeutet das für die räumliche Entwicklung der Schweiz? Ein Dialog.
      • Former Chairs
    Close
  • Teaching
    • Teaching
      • Bachelor and Master Degree Programmes, Department ARCH
      • Bachelor and Master Degree Programmes, Department BAUG
      • MSc in Spatial Development and Infrastructure Systems
      • MAS/CAS Spatial Development
      • MAS Urban and Territorial Design
      • MAS in Housing
      • Doctoral Programme in Landscape and Urban Studies
      • The teaching component of the NSL seeks to impart the knowledge and skills needed to develop the standard strengths of spatial planning and their interaction as well as the ability to develop strategies for the solution of spatial problems. These are central prerequisites for a responsible and successful exercise of planning functions in the service of the public commonwealth and of private companies. Especially important in fufilling these prerequisites is the quality of university-level education: graduate and post-graduate work as well as professional development in spatial, urban and landscape planning. The ETH Zurich has offered programmes such as continuing education courses and post-graduate programmes (NDS, now MAS) since 1965. The NSL (Network City and Landscape) is responsible for these courses and programmes.
    Close
  • Publications
    • Cover NL 56NSL Newsletter – The NSL brings the experts at ETH Zurich together and also maintains a dialogue with other groups that deal with or are interested in issues relating to cities and landscapes.
    • 9783038602767_Agadir_Avermaet_VSPublications of NSL Chairs – A complete list of publications can be reached via the following link, which also includes advanced search capabilities:
      • ETH Zürich Research Collection
    • DISP_58/3_CoverdisP – The Planning Review – The interdisciplinary scientific journal covers the topics of spatial development, urban planning, landscape and environmental planning, landscape architecture, traffic planning, and regional and environmental economics, as well as special issues on specific themes.
      • Publishing in disP – The Planning Review
      • Publisher
      • Book Review Guidelines
      • Editorial Staff
      • Latest Issue
      • facebook
    Close
  • Current
  • Contact
      • en
        • de
        • fr
        • it
      • Search

    • Close

In the Search of Alternative Models for the Evaluation of Transport Projects

Travel demand models constitute a keystone of the economic evaluation of transport projects, facilitating in turn an informed decision making process. In the last decades, travel modelling has evolved along the lines of utilizing more disaggregate data, resulting to computationally cumbersome and conceptually complex models. However, it remains unclear to what extent such models have improved the quality of the evaluation process.

Driven by this, the focus of ongoing research at IVT is centered on developing an alternative simplified modelling methodology as a form of a direct demand model, where only aggregate data is needed. The model should be able to make statements about the traffic volume and speed for any location in a network, as these items are required at minimum for cost-benefit analysis (CBA).

Using as a benchmark the traditional econometric modelling tools, two hypotheses are thoroughly tested. At first, that the spatial structure of network matters and hence ways to incorporate it into the modelling formulation should be sought. Secondly, omitting to account for the well-known interdependence between volume and speed can give rise to systematic biases. On the basis of these two hypotheses, a system of two simultaneously estimated spatial regression models is developed, making use of independent variables related to the socio-economic and network characteristics.

The National Street Network of Switzerland as a Test Field

The national street network of Switzerland (see image) is employed as a test field for the estimation of the models while a set of currently discussed transport investments and policies will be used as test cases. The quality loss will be measured by the choices, i.e. their costs and benefits potentially foregone or committed as measured with the official Swiss CBA, against those choices as supported by the existing calibrated National Personal Transport Model and the existing agent-based MATSim implementation.

The estimates will quantify the trade-offs between the chosen model formulation and the completeness of the benefits accounted for. Furthermore, the findings can also provide valuable insights on how spatial regression models can benefit existing transport modelling approaches, advancing them in a different methodological way than the prevailing one of incorporating more behavioral complexity.

Georgios Sarlas is scientific assistant at the Transport Planning research group within the Institute for Transport Planning and Systems (IVT). His main field of research is travel demand modelling. 

Image: The employed street network with the count locations

Share this...
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Linkedin
  • Email
This article has been published in the following newsletter edition:

32 | Dezember 2016: Infrastrukturen

  • The Interdisciplinary Nature of Planning Interventions on Network Infrastructure in Urban Areas
  • Singapore’s first Roundtable on Future District Energy Systems by FCL
  • In the Search of Alternative Models for the Evaluation of Transport Projects
  • Planning the Airport in Paris: From Infrastructural to Strategic Territory
  • Infrastructural Improvements Along the Hamburg–Athens Corridor: A Tool Towards Territorial Cohesion
Kurzmeldungen
  • Eine neue transalpine Eisenbahnlinie: Scuol, Landeck, Mals
  • Das Gleis lebt!
  • Scales of Power
  • Planungsplattform für Hochspannungsleitungen
  • Street Design Meets the Virtual World at the Future Cities Laboratory
Publikationen
  • Isolated intersection control for various levels of vehicle technology: Conventional, connected, and automated vehicles
  • CODE: ATHENS! Railway and City Development in Athens
  • A new rail optimisation model by integration of traffic management and train automation
  • Impact of autonomous vehicles on the accessibility in Switzerland
  • Voreingenommene Erzählungen. Architekturgeschichte als Ideengeschichte
  • Thinking the Contemporary Landscape
  • Territory – On the Development of Landscape and City

Chairs

Prof. Dr. Bryan T. Adey
Prof. Dr. Kay W. Axhausen
Prof. Dr. Tom Avermaete
Prof. Maria Conen
Prof. Dr. Francesco Corman
Dr. Jennifer Duyne Barenstein
Prof. Teresa Galí-Izard
Prof. Dr. Adrienne Grêt-Regamey
Prof. Dr. Guillaume Habert
Prof. Dr. David Kaufmann
Prof. Hubert Klumpner
Dr. Anastasios Kouvelas
Prof. Freek Persyn
Prof. Dr. Christian Schmid
Prof. Milica Topalovic
EiR PD Dr. Joris Van Wezemael
Prof. em Dr. h. c. Günther Vogt
ETH Wohnforum – ETH CASE

Contact

Address
ETH Zürich
NSL – Netzwerk Stadt und Landschaft
Stefano-Franscini-Platz 5
HIL H 44.2
8093 Zürich

NSL Director
Director: Prof. Hubert Klumpner
Deputy Director: Prof. Dr. David Kaufmann

NSL Coordination
Claudia Gebert
Telephone: +41 (0)44 633 36 33

Register for the NSL Newsletter

disP Publication Office

Editor-in-Chief
Dr. sc. techn. Martina Koll-Schretzenmayr, Spatial planner ETH/NDS,
Telephone +41 (0)44 633 29 47

Editorial Assistant
Telephone +41 (0)44 633 29 69

Mailing address
ETH Zürich
Redaktion disP
NSL – Netzwerk Stadt und Landschaft
Stefano-Franscini-Platz 5
HIL H 33.2
8093 Zürich
Fax +41 (0)44 633 12 15
E-Mail

 

NSL Archive (gta)

Research and Bequest Archive for
Swiss Landscape Architecture and Spatial Planning

Consultation Requests

Mailing address
ETH Zürich
NSL Archive (gta)
Stefano-Franscini-Platz 5
HIL C 65.2
CH-8093 Zurich