Induced Travel Study in Urban Areas in Tennessee

Hoping to better understand travel patterns and local transportation impacts of road capacity expansion.

Roadway congestion is a huge public policy issue in the United States. In response, roadway capacity expansion is seen as a solution leading to increased highway vehicle travel and induced travel. In Tennessee growing traffic congestion is prominent: national-level freight corridors cross the state and are predicted to grow significantly. Unprecedented growth worsened traffic conditions in western, central, and eastern Tennessee, especially severe in urban areas.  

Current research on induced travel is inconclusive regarding how fast the changes occur in response to new capacity. This research on evidence-based estimates is very timely. During this project, Dr. Angela Antipova (Earth Sciences) and Dr. Sabya Mishra (Civil Engineering) will better understand the impacts of induced travel from the road capacity expansion projects. Transportation impact analyses will help planning agencies to better understand travel patterns and local transportation impacts of road capacity expansion in metro areas in Tennessee.  

For more information, contact Antipova at antipova@memphis.edu.