ETC adoption, time-of-travel choice, and comprehensive policies to enhance time-of-day pricing: a stated preference investigation

Abstract

The main objective of this paper is to gain insight into the interconnections between the decision to use electronic toll collection, the choice of time-of-travel, and comprehensive policies that enhance the effectiveness of time-of-day pricing. This is an important topic of research because of pricing’s potential role in transportation demand management. To this effect, the paper estimates discrete choice models using stated preference data collected from users of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ) facilities in the New York City metropolitan area. The paper discusses descriptive analysis, analyzes the results of the models estimated, and identifies policy implications. The research concludes that the choices of payment method and time-of-travel are interconnected, and that the effectiveness of time-of-day pricing could be significantly enhanced through the use of measures that reduce crossing times for the alternatives that produce the least congestion, combined with initiatives that increase time of arrival flexibility.