Friday, February 4, 2011
Room 204 of the Distance Learning Center Wing of the Urban Center on the Portland State University campus

Speaker: Joe Cortright, Impresa

Topic: How Sprawl is Lengthening our Commutes and Why Misleading Mobility Measures are Making Things Worse

Abstract: This report offers a new view of urban transportation performance. It explores the key role that land use and variations in travel distances play in determining how long Americans spend in peak hour travel. It shows how the key tool contained in the Urban Mobility Report – the Travel Time Index – actually penalizes cities that have shorter travel distances and conceals the additional burden caused by longer trips in sprawling metropolitan areas. Finally, it critically examines the reliability and usefulness of the methodology used in the Urban Mobility Report, finding it does not accurately estimate travel speeds, it exaggerates travel delays, and it overestimates the fuel consumption associated with urban travel. How we measure transportation systems matters, and the nation needs a better set of measures than it has today.