Examining the Differences Between Travelers’ Revealed Versus Actual Travel Time Savings

Revealed preference surveys are one of the most common ways to obtain information on how travelers use a given transportation facility. In a revealed preference survey the respondents are asked questions related to their recent travel. In a survey conducted in 2010 on Houston Katy Freeway travelers, respondents were asked about their travel experience using the new Katy Freeway Managed Lanes (MLs). They were asked if they experienced any travel time savings by using the MLs. This study examined any difference between their perceived and actual travel time savings. This study found that travelers overestimate the travel time savings they experience by traveling on the MLs. The magnitude of misperception varied with individuals with an average value of 11 minutes. Linear regression models were fit to model the misperception of the travel time and found that both trip characteristics and respondent socio-economic characteristics had an effect on the magnitude of misperception of travel time savings. Respondents’ trip purpose, age, gender, and income were found to be significant predictors of how well they estimated their travel time savings.

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