Center for Activity Systems Analysis

The process of activity scheduling is crucial to the understanding of travel behavior changes. A new computer program, REACT!,has been developed to collect household activity scheduling data for this purpose. The program is implemented as a stand-alone program with Internet connectivity for remote data transmission. It also contains a GIS for location identification and a special feature that traces the decisions in the scheduling process. A pilot study was conducted in Irvine, California, to evaluate the program performance. Preliminary analysis validated the program's capability of guiding participants to complete data entry tasks on their own, thus achieving the objective of reducing the cost and human resource associated with such a computerized survey. Other positive results regarding objectives of reducing instrumental biases and expanding program capabilities were also obtained. Areas for improvement were also identified in the pilot. Based on the finding, REACT! represents an ideal platform for a computerized household survey that can produce data for activity-based travel models.