ANALYSIS OF THE METROPOLITAN BOSTON TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM DURING THE POSTBLIZZARD WEEK--FEBRUARY 13-17, 1978

On February 6 and 7, 1978, a major blizzard crippled transportation services in the Boston metropolitan area. The disruption was so great that all but emergency vehicles were banned from the streets and highways in most eastern Massachusetts communities during the week after the blizzard. Not until midnight on Monday, February 13, was the ban completely lifted in the densely populated activity centers of the region. In some of these communities an on-street parking ban remained in effect through Tuesday, February 14. In addition to these legal restrictions, large quantities of snow presented additional obstacles to vehicular travel. Because of these legal and physical impedances, state and regional transportation agencies encouraged the use of transit or ride sharing for work trips in the region. In addition, the state recommended staggered work hours for employees in downtown Boston. This paper analyzes the effects of the driving and parking bans on travel in the region. Data pertaining to the volumes and temporal distribution of the various modes of travel during the week after the blizzard were collected and analyzed. These data were compared with travel data from a more typical time period. The analysis indicates that a significant shift to public transportation took place for the commute-to-work trip and that, through a combination of staggered work hours and special suburban transit services, the public transportation system was able to accommodate the great increase in demand. This shift to public transportation was only temporary in nature, however; normal preblizzard travel patterns returned when restrictions on vehicular travel were removed. (Author)