Recent ucits_wp items

California and USA Pricing Strategy Experiences

Fri, 4 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This white paper examines the successes and failures of road pricing strategies in California and the United States, with implications for congestion pricing across California. It evaluates nine case studies spanning feasibility studies, operational HOT lane programs, and the country's first large-scale cordon pricing zone. We address the conditions that favor pricing, barriers, outcomes, and how costs and benefits are distributed using case studies in Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco, San Mateo County, Alameda County, New York City, and Northern Virginia. We find that successful pricing programs have sustained political champions, state enabling legislation, and benefits visible to identifiable users. Revenue allocation, not toll structure, is the primary determinant of whether pricing is regressive or progressive. No pricing program reviewed was repealed after implementation. We conclude that advancing road pricing in California will require clear state leadership and supportive...

Strategies for Improving Community College Access in California

Mon, 31 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000

In California, transportation plays a key role in community college access because many community college districts have satellite campuses, have limited transportation options, and tend to not have on-campus housing. To better understand the mobility challenges students face accessing community colleges and provide potential policy strategies to overcome these challenges, the researchers interviewed local transportation agencies, community college administrators, and students at five California community colleges between September 2022 and October 2023. Participants were asked about available transportation options for community college students, typical student travel patterns, and the resources needed to support improved community college transportation access. Small group discussions with students focused on student travel patterns, mobility challenges, and opinions on potential strategies to improve access. In addition, we reviewed state legislation on student transportation...

Reduce Emissions and Improve Traffic Flow Through Collaborative Autonomy

Mon, 31 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This report explores opportunities for employing autonomous driving technology to dampen stop-and-go waves on freeways. If successful, it could reduce fuel consumption and emissions. This technology was tested in an on-road experiment with 100 vehicles over one week. Public stakeholders were engaged to assess the planning effort and feasibility of taking the technology to the next level: a pilot involving 1000+ vehicles over several months. Considerations included the possible geographical boundaries, target fleets of vehicles, and suitable facilities such as bridges or managed lanes. Flow smoothing technology may improve the user experience and operations of managed lanes or bridges, however it may require external incentives such as reduced tolls to entice the traveling public to use it. This must be matched with other goals such as verifying vehicle occupancy. It might be possible for some hybrid solution that addresses both challenges to provide a way forward. A concept of...

Advanced Air Mobility: Opportunities, Challenges, and Research needsfor the State of California (2023-2030)

Mon, 31 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Advanced air mobility (AAM) is a broad concept that enables consumers access to air mobility, goods delivery, and emergency services through an integrated and connected multimodal transportation network. AAM can provide short-range urban, suburban, and rural flights of about 50-miles and mid-range regional flights up to a several hundred miles. State law delegates responsibility for oversight in aviation primarily to the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans). This white paper presents an overview of the state of the market, such as the aircraft under development and forecast market growth and discusses factors that could facilitate the development of AAM or pose risks to its deployment or to the public, including the safety and the regulatory environment, airspace and air traffic management, security, environmental impacts, weather, infrastructure and multimodal integration, workforce and economic development, social equity, and community engagement and social acceptance....

Equity and Road Pricing: Fairness and Affordability

Thu, 27 Aug 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This white paper reconsiders the equity of road pricing by distinguishing between fairness and affordability—two concepts that are otherwise often conflated. A fair price assigns costs in proportion to the burdens a user imposes on others; an affordable price is one that users can pay without hardship. While both are important, these are distinct objectives, and treating them as interchangeable can obscure judgments about whether pricing is morally or ethically correct. Applying this framework suggests congestion pricing is more equitable than flat VMT charges because it better aligns payments with the social costs of driving. While congestion pricing may raise affordability concerns for some users, these concerns can be addressed through targeted redistribution of toll revenues. By contrast, unpriced roads and poorly targeted charges allow drivers to impose substantial external costs on others, undermining fairness even as they appear more affordable.

A Review of Pricing Strategies for Decarbonizing Transportation

Wed, 24 Jun 2026 00:00:00 +0000

California’s ability to achieve its climate and mobility goals depends on addressing the growing gap between transportation infrastructure needs and the declining effectiveness of traditional fuel tax revenues. As electric vehicle adoption rises, fuel efficiency improves, and demands for resilient, multimodal systems expand, new approaches to transportation funding and demand management are required. This paper examines a range of mobility pricing strategies—including tolling, managed lanes, congestion charges, vehicle-based fees and feebates, distance-based user charges, and parking pricing—to evaluate their potential for enhancing financial sustainability, reducing congestion, and internalizing the environmental and social costs of driving. Particular attention is given to dynamic pricing, which can flexibly manage demand for both road and parking space, and to distance-based charges that offer a more equitable and efficient alternative to fuel taxes. The analysis highlights...

Accelerating Transportation Innovation in California

Thu, 28 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The Mobility 10x Summit convened more than 200 leaders from state agencies, regional governments, academia, and industry to accelerate California’s transition toward a more resilient, equitable, and sustainable transportation system. As the capstone event of the Resilient and Innovative Mobility Initiative (RIMI)—a four‐year UC ITS research effort launched in 2021—the summit synthesized extensive research and practitioner insights across ten priority transportation topics, ranging from public transit to automation and carbon-neutraltransportation to equity, safety, and resilience.Across the opening and closing plenary discussions and nine breakout sessions, participants examined the structural challenges facing California’s transportation system: declining gas tax revenues, climate‐driven infrastructure damage, uneven public transit ridership recovery, inequitable access to mobility options, and rapid technological change. These challenges are converging at a moment when California...

"Stop” and Think about It: How the Different Interpretations of What Counts as a “Major Transit Stop" in California Make a Difference

Fri, 6 Mar 2026 00:00:00 +0000

“Major transit stop”: how these three words are defined determines what can be built where, throughout much of California. In order to address housing supply constraints, the state legislature has enacted a number of laws that streamline approval and remove zoning constraints in areas close to high-quality transit. But what, exactly, is a “major transit stop”? Planners, developers, and elected officials construe the sparse definition in state law in many ways — though genuine interpretive disagreement, due to modeling and data constraints, and/or in order to serve political goals of encouraging or stymying development. Differences in interpreting the definition of “major transit stop” collectively make a big difference in what areas are covered by state zoning incentives. A maximal approach to defining “major transit stop” grows the eligible area by over three times more than a minimal approach. The area within half a mile of a major transit stop has generally increased over time....

Vehicle Weight Safety Study Academic Report

Mon, 2 Mar 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The Vehicle Weight Safety Study provides supporting analysis for the California Transportation Commission’s study on therelationship between vehicle weight and road user injury and roadway degradation required by Assembly Bill (AB) 251, which was signed by the Governor in October 2023. To inform the work of the CTC, this report summarizes trends of road user injuries and fatalities in California and potential factors contributing to these trends (Chapter 2); summarizes trends in vehicle weight, size, and height for registered vehicles in California (Chapter 3); documents the landscape of policy solutions focused on vehicle size that might address California’s road user injuries and fatality challenge (Chapter 4); analyzes the impact of potential weight-based fees on consumer vehicle purchasing behavior (Chapter 5); and, analyzes the relationship between shifts in passenger vehicle weight and degradation of road infrastructure (Chapter 6).

Mobility 10X: Accelerating Transportation Innovation in California

Fri, 30 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The magazine features 10 stories that highlight the breadth and impact of RIMI’s work across the UC ITS campuses— Berkeley, Davis, Irvine, and UCLA. It also draws on related research funded through the UC ITS SB1 program, established by California’s Road Repair and Accountability Act of 2017, along with additional studies by UC ITS scholars and the broader research literature. Together, these efforts demonstrate how targeted research can achieve a 10x impact— shaping policy, influencing practice, and scaling solutions to California’s complex transportation challenges, from decarbonization to bolstering public transit and road safety. For policymakers, planners, and agency leaders, this magazine provides a roadmap for translating research into long-lasting, system-level improvements.

Coordinated Operation of Shared Micro-mobility for a Sustainable City Transportation System

Fri, 17 Oct 2025 00:00:00 +0000

At present day, there are little to no policies around the use and implementation of micro-mobility in many cities. At the national level, there are no specific guidelines that outline how micro-mobility parameters should be implemented in a city. The National Transportation Board has left it up to metropolitan districts to decide on how to gauge the decision to install micro-mobility systems in their cities. However, best practice guidelines have been identified by the National Association of City Transportation Officials (NACTO) and the U.S. Department of Transportation Federal HighwayAdministration (FHWA).The U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) provides a Shared Mobility Primer as a practical guide for local governments and public agencies as they seek to implement emerging services or manage existing shared services. The FHWA suggests to public agencies that the government should be consulted in the process of integrating shared mobility....

Electric Vehicle Charge Management Strategies to Benefit the California Electricity Grid

Tue, 11 Mar 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Recent studies suggest that there could be significant value to electric vehicle (EV) drivers and power companies from incorporating EVs into the state’s electrical power grids, known as Vehicle-Grid Integration (VGI). However, the benefits could be highly variable depending on the location of the utility territory, vehicle type and battery capacity, the relevant timeframe, and whether the connection involves only managed charging or includes bidirectional charging permitting vehicle to grid (V2G) power transfer, and other factors. Various studies conducted to date generally conclude that the opportunities for V2G could have two to three times the value of managed (or “smart”) charging. However, there are considerable additional complications for grid integration, including variable and site-specific implementation costs. Some savings such as deferring distribution system upgrades can be very significant but are also site-specific and depend on the level of curren and projected...

Charging Infrastructure Decisions by Heavy-duty Vehicle Fleet Operators: An Exploratory Analysis

Sat, 25 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Insufficient charging/fueling infrastructure poses a major challenge to achieving U.S. policy goals for transitioning the heavy-duty vehicle (HDV) sector to zero-emission vehicles. Addressing the infrastructure needs of HDV fleet operators, who are key demand-side stakeholders, is crucial for developing effective solutions and strategies. This study investigates these needs through a fleet survey of California’s drayage sector, focusing on battery electric trucks. Key aspects examined include preferences for charging locations, access types, charging duration, time-of-day for charging, and innovative solutions like Truck-as-a-Service. Analyzing responses from 53 companies with varying fleet sizes, annual revenues, and operational characteristics, the study employed a comprehensive exploratory approach, utilizing descriptive analysis, thematic analysis, and hypothesis testing. Findings reveal that while most fleets preferred on-site...

Small and Large Fleet Perceptions on Zero-emission Trucks and Policies

Sat, 25 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Given that small fleets (defined as those with 20 or fewer vehicles) represent a considerable portion of the heavy-duty vehicle (HDV) sector, understanding their perspectives, along with those of large fleets, on zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs) and related policies is crucial for achieving the U.S. HDV sector’s ZEV transition goals. However, research focusing on small fleets or comparing both segments has been limited. Focusing on California’s drayage sector with stringent ZEV transition targets, this study investigates the awareness and perceptions of small and large fleet operators on ZEV technologies and policies established to promote ZEV adoption. Using a fleet survey, we obtained 71 responses from both small and large fleets. We employed a comprehensive exploratory approach, utilizing descriptive analysis, hypothesis testing, and thematic analysis. Findings reveal that both segments generally rated their ZEV knowledge as close to...

A Choice Experiment Survey of Drayage Fleet Operator Preferences for Zero-Emission Trucks

Sat, 25 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Many U.S. states are supporting the transition of the heavy-duty vehicle (HDV) sector to zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs), with California leading the way through its policy and regulatory initiatives. Within various HDV fleet segments, California’s drayage fleets face stringent targets, requiring all vehicles newly registered in the Truck Regulation Upload, Compliance, and Reporting System to be ZEVs starting January 2024, and all drayage trucks in operation to be zero-emission by 2035. Understanding fleet operator behavior and perspectives is crucial for achieving these goals; however, it remains a critical knowledge gap. This study investigates the preferences and influencing factors for ZEVs among drayage fleet operators in California. We conducted a stated preference choice experiment survey, developed based on previous qualitative studies and literature reviews. With participation from 71 fleets of various sizes and alternative fuel...

A Blueprint for Improving Automated Driving System Safety

Fri, 12 Jul 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Vehicle automation represents a new safety frontier that may necessitate a repositioning of our safety oversight systems. This white paper serves as a primer on the technical and legal landscape of automated driving system (ADS) safety. It introduces the latest AI and machine learning techniques that enable ADS functionality. The paper also explores the definitions of safety from the perspectives of standards-setting organizations, federal and state regulations, and legal disciplines. The paper identifies key policy options building on topics raised in the White House’s Blueprint for an AI Bill of Rights, outlining a Blueprint for ADS safety. The analysis concludes that potential ADS safety reforms might include either reform of the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS), or a more holistic risk analysis “safety case” approach. The analysis also looks at caselaw on liability in robotics, as well as judicial activity on consumer and commercial privacy, recognizing that...

A Comparison of Time-use for Telecommuters, Potential Telecommuters, and Commuters during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Wed, 10 Jul 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Throughout the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, changes in daily activity-travel routines and time-use behavior, including the widespread adoption of telecommuting, have been manifold. This study considers how telecommuters have responded to the changes in activity-travel scheduling and time allocation. In particular, we consider how workers utilized time during the pandemic by comparing workers who telecommuted with workers who continued to commute. Commuters were segmented into those who worked in telecommutable jobs (potential telecommuters) and those who did not (commuters). Our empirical analysis suggested that telecommuters exhibited distinct activity participation and time use patterns from the commuter groups. It also supported the basic hypothesis that telecommuters were more engaged with in-home versus out-of-home activity compared to potential telecommuters and commuters. In terms of activity time-use, telecommuters spent less time on work activity but more time on caring...