Travel Distance Research Articles

Application of Historical Comprehensive Multimodal Transportation Data for Testing the Commuting Time Paradox: Evidence from the Portland, OR Region

There have been numerous theoretical and empirical transportation studies contesting the stability of commuting time over time. The constant commuting time hypothesis posits that people adjust trip durations, shift across modes, and sort through locations, so that their average commuting time remains within a constant budget. There is a discrepancy between studies applying aggregate analysis and those using disaggregate analysis, and differences in data collection may have contributed to the varying conclusions reported in the literature. This study conducts both aggregate and disaggregate analyses with two travel surveys of the Portland region. We employ descriptive analysis and t-tests to compare the aggregate commuting times of two years and use regression models to explore factors affecting the disaggregate commuting time at the individual trip level to examine whether the stability of the commuting time remains after substantial changes in the transportation and land use systems. Our study indicates that the average commuting time, along with the average commuting distance, increased slightly, as the mode share shifted away from driving during the examined period. The growth in shares of non-driving modes, which are slower than driving, coupled with an increased travel distance, contributed to the small increase in the average commuting time. Our analysis also indicates that the average travel speed improved for transit riders as well as drivers, contradicting earlier research that claims that public transit investment has worsened the congestion in Portland.

How do Patients Receiving Antiretroviral Therapy (ART) at A Dedicated ART Center in Bhagalpur Demonstrate Observable Patterns and Outcomes in an Observational Study?

Ours study provides a comprehensive overview of the HIV/AIDS landscape in Bhagalpur, Bihar, focusing on patients receiving Antiretroviral Therapy (ART). Conducted over six years, involving 10,355 participants, the research explores demographic details, treatment outcomes, and treatment-seeking behaviors. Notably, 100% participation reflects the community's engagement, with detailed analyses of gender-specific registrations, treatment initiation, and outcomes. The study delves into patients' geographic origins, travel distances, and factors influencing their preferences. Insightful discussions on perceptions regarding HIV and ART underscore societal challenges. Positive aspects include family support and awareness, yet concerns like substance use and travel barriers need attention. The study concludes with recommendations for targeted interventions to enhance HIV/AIDS care effectiveness. Limitations highlight the need for broader community comparisons, emphasizing the study's contribution to shaping future research and healthcare strategies. The acknowledgment expresses gratitude for mentorship and collaborative efforts in completing the project.

Exploring Veterans' Experiences Accessing Chronic Pain Treatment in the VA Community Care Network.

Chronic pain is common among Veterans, and rural Veterans commonly struggle obtaining chronic pain care due to large travel distances to the nearest Veterans Affairs (VA) medical center. In 2019, the VA established the Community Care Network (CCN) to provide Veterans access to care in community-based settings, including chronic pain management. To explore the experiences of rural Veterans receiving chronic pain treatment in the VA CCN, including their perceptions about perceived barriers, facilitators, and benefits to accessing comprehensive chronic pain management. Qualitative study using semi-structured interviews. Ten rural Veterans receiving chronic pain management in the VA CCN took part in a qualitative interview focused on their experiences accessing and utilizing the VA CCN. A descriptive qualitative approach was used. Major themes were identified through thematic content analysis. Veterans described challenges navigating the approval process, finding approved CCN providers for pain management, and they perceived that communication between the VA and community providers was not seamless. Once enrolled in the CCN, however, Veterans valued the freedom to choose providers specializing in pain management within their local communities, timely access to appointments, and opportunities to explore a wider range of pain treatment options and alternative therapies, in addition to traditional medical interventions, all in their local community. As the CCN seeks to improve collaboration between VA and community providers, recognition of Veterans' experiences could serve to drive the development of network improvements. Findings reported here suggest that Veterans preferred obtaining care in the CCN once they could navigate administrative complexity to access it. Thus, efforts to streamline VA administrative requirements for initiating CCN care would better support Veterans in meeting their needs in this context.

HUMAN PATHOGENS AMONG BATS

Bats are known to inhabit both caves and open space areas. Bulgaria is among the Еuropean countries with the highest number of bat species. The species found in the country are distributed over a wide area. They range from the Pyrenees and the British Isles to the Pacific region and the Far East. Many bat species are carriers of potential human pathogens. Bats play an important role in agriculture and act as a biological pest crop control agent. Bulgarian bat ecosystem comprises temperate climate and a wide range of abiotic factors, including humidity, darkness, sunlight, and temperature variations. The metabolism of bats and their body temperature vary significantly between the period of activity and the hibernation. Fluctuations in body temperature can potentially impact host microbiome biodiversity. Temperature variations may induce a high level of microbial mutagenesis. Additionally,the existence in large, mixed-species colonies, togeteher with a relatively long individual lifespan (4 – 16 years) and extensive travel distances, enhances the likelihood of encountering multiple pathogens in a single host organism. This, in turn, facilitates genetic variations and re-combinations among those microbial pathogens, thereby raising their potential to breach species barriers. In this review, we summarized and analyzed the available scientific information concerning the potential microbial human pathogens associated with bats, alongside with our preliminary data on the biodiversity of bats blood microbiome. Future research should focus on bats as both pathogens carriers and dynamic models for predicting emerging and re-emerging zoonotic diseases.

Comparing place meanings of recreational visits to coastal and inland nature

Blue spaces are being increasingly linked to a public health agenda, as the presence of water increases perceived restorativeness. Much research has examined coastal nature experiences and sense of place in coastal areas specifically, but little research has attempted to compare sense of place across different types of natural environments. In this study, we used place meanings to investigate how people perceive, experience, and attach to coastal and inland natural environments, providing new insights into human-nature relations in coastal and inland environments in Denmark. The study uses a mixed methods approach, combining qualitative analysis of free-text responses from a national online PPGIS survey with statistical analysis of background information. Responses from 500 coastal and 500 inland nature visitors were analysed through an inductive coding process, which elicited one hundred different place meanings. These meanings were categorized according to Williams’ (2014) layers of tangible and intangible place meanings. The meaning layer distribution was similar between coastal and inland nature visits, just as the most frequent place meanings were similar across the environments (e.g., Nature, Nice, Forest, Walk). However, significant differences were found among some individual place meanings (e.g., Wild, Vacation, Healing and comfort were more frequent for coastal visits), suggesting special coastal place meanings that should be further explored in future research. The analysis of place meanings was supplemented by an analysis of relevant visit characteristics behind the 500 coastal and 500 inland visits, suggesting great attraction coupled to coastal places (e.g., longer travel distance).

Travel distance estimation of landslide-induced debris flows by machine learning method in Nepal Himalaya after the Gorkha earthquake

Debris flows are more likely to be triggered in the earthquake-strike areas with a widespread presence of unstable slopes, causing severe casualties and changing the surrounding natural topography. In such scenario, estimating the travel distance of debris flows becomes crucial to understand the hazardous areas. Therefore, a hybrid machine learning model (GA-XGBoost) was employed to achieve a reliable estimation of debris-flow travel distance. This model was applied to the Nepal Himalayas, the site of the 2015 Gorkha earthquake. We selected four geomorphological factors for travel distance estimation. They are the volume of failure mass (VL), the height difference between the material source center and end point of movement mass (H), the mean gradient of the travel path (J), and the mean curvature of the travel path (C). Furthermore, to eliminate the noise information and enhance stability of input data, a principal component analysis (PCA) was used to generate three principal components (PC1, PC2, and PC3) from the selected factors to serve as input variables of model development. The performance of this model was evaluated using the assessment indexes, resulting in a mean absolute percentage error (MAPE) of 8.71%, a root mean square error (RMSE) of 144.3 m, and a mean absolute error (MAE) of 86.1 m. Four empirical approaches were also introduced for comparison analysis. Our proposed model has proven to be superior and effective, as the estimated results closely match the actual values. All the results affirm the suitability of our developed model for estimating the travel distance of landslide-induced debris flows following a strong earthquake.

Video-Guided Optimization of Stimulation Settings in Patients with Parkinson's Disease and Deep Brain Stimulation.

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) for Parkinson's disease (PD) often necessitates frequent clinic visits for stimulation program optimization, with limited experience in remote patient management. Due to the resource-intensive nature of these procedures, we investigated a way to simplify stimulation optimization for these patients that allows for the continuous monitoring of symptoms while also reducing patient burden and travel distances. To this end, we prospectively recruited ten patients treated with DBS for PD to evaluate the feasibility of telemedicinal optimization in a home-based setting. Patients recorded daily videos of a modified Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS) III, which experienced DBS physicians located at the clinic assessed to provide instructions on adjusting stimulation settings using a handheld programmer with previously set programs as well as patient amplitude control. This study concluded with significant improvements in participants' motor status as measured by the UPDRS-III (p = 0.0313) compared to baseline values. These findings suggest that remote video-guided optimization of DBS settings is feasible and may enhance motor outcomes for patients.

Lessons learned from spatiotemporal effect of COVID on the population density in the CBD

Alonso in 1964 developed the land use and transport interaction theory based on the bid and rent concept. It tells that the central core part of urban areas has the highest housing rental prices, and it gradually decays as it is further away from the centre. The city’s district is divided based on the distribution of land prices according to distance from the city centre. This fundamental relationship provides a basic insight into how people behave rationally subject to their living budgets. Based on this relationship, this paper aims to investigate the temporal and spatial changes in the de facto population of Seoul caused by coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The de facto population has declined significantly since 2020. A major decrease has been found in areas within 2.5 km of travel distance from the city centre. The de facto population decreased the most during the night hours (18:00–24:00) on weekdays and the daytime (10:00–18:00) on weekends. These findings could be postulated to foresee how people might select their housing locations in terms of transport costs in the post–COVID-19 era.

Exploration of Mode Choice Behavior for Regular and Short Distance Travel in a Developing Country

The study of mode choice behaviour is receiving a considerable interest in Bangladesh like in other developing countries. Hence, a questionnaire survey of 514 citizens in Chittagong city was conducted to explore mode choice behaviour for short distance and regular travel. Multinomial Logit Model (MNL) was used to assess the factors involved for various mode choices. Gender, age, profession, education, level of income, household type, vehicle ownership, and distance to a stopping spot all seem to be factors that have been found to be important for short-distance and regular travel using the MNL model according to a utility function. The major findings indicates that the majority of the people prefer the bus both for short and regular distance travel, whereas high earners choose the cars for regular travel. Journal of Engineering Science 15(1), 2024, 59-73

Investigating the relative accuracy of GPS, GSM and CDR data for inferring spatiotemporal travel trajectories

AbstractThe potential of passively generated big data sources in transport modelling is well‐recognised. However, assessing their accuracy and suitability for policymaking remains challenging due to the lack of ground‐truth (GT) data for validation. This study evaluates the accuracy of inferring human mobility patterns from global positioning system (GPS), call detail records (CDR), and global system for mobile communication (GSM) data. Using outputs from an agent‐based simulation platform (MATSim) as ‘synthetic GT’ (SGT), synthetic GPS, CDR, and GSM data were generated, considering their positional disturbances and conventional spatiotemporal resolutions. Mobility information, including activity location, departure time, and trajectory distance, derived from the synthetic data, was compared with SGT to evaluate the accuracy of passive trajectory data at both disaggregate and aggregate levels. The results indicated a higher accuracy of GPS data in identifying stay locations at high resolution. But, GSM data at a lower resolution effectively accounted for over 80% of the variability in stay locations. Comparisons of departure time distribution and travel distance revealed higher measurement errors in GSM and CDR data than in GPS data. The proposed simulation‐based accuracy assessment framework will aid transport planners select the most suitable data for specific analyses and understand the potential margin of error involved.

Patient Factors Associated with Access to Outpatient Pediatric General Surgical Care in a Rural State

BackgroundWe sought to understand factors impacting timely access to outpatient pediatric general surgical care in a largely rural state. MethodsWe conducted a multi-site retrospective cohort study, evaluating patients <18 years referred for outpatient pediatric general surgical evaluation from 11/1/2017–7/31/2022. Outcomes included obtaining an appointment, completing an appointment, and undergoing an operation. Time to appointment and operation were calculated. Bivariate analysis and multivariable logistic regression were performed to evaluate for associations between patient factors and the primary outcomes, as well as delay to appointment. ResultsOf 5270 patients, mean age was 7.1 years (SD = 6) with 59% male. All patients obtained an appointment; 85% (n = 4498) completed an appointment within one year. Forty percent (n = 2092) underwent an operation. Mean times from referral to appointment and operation were 22.5 (SD = 33.4) and 81.5 days (SD = 137.5), respectively. Patients who identified as African American/Black (OR = 1.94, p < 0.001), had self-pay (OR = 6.33, p < 0.001), or lived >100 miles away (OR = 1.55, p < 0.001) were more likely to not complete appointments. Patients with high household income (OR = 0.70, p = 0.009) and private insurance (OR = 0.60, p < 0.001) were less likely to not complete appointments. Delay to appointment was associated with race (p = 0.020). Patients with private insurance (p < 0.001) and higher income (p = 0.020) were more likely to undergo operation. ConclusionFifteen percent of patients referred for outpatient pediatric general surgical evaluation did not complete an appointment within one year. Race, household resources, insurance, and travel distance were associated with completing appointments. Information about groups that have disparate access to care will inform interventions to improve this access. Type of StudyRetrospective Cohort Study. Level of EvidenceIII.

Advancing Antenatal Care in Ethiopia: The Impact of Tele-Ultrasound on Antenatal Ultrasound Access in Rural Ethiopia.

Introduction: Access to antenatal ultrasound is limited in low-income countries such as Ethiopia. Virtual care platforms that facilitate supervision and mentoring for ultrasound scanning may improve patient access by facilitating task-sharing of antenatal ultrasound with midlevel providers. The purpose of this study was to assess the feasibility of a large volume tele-ultrasound program in Ethiopia, its impact on antenatal care (ANC) and patient access, and its sustainability as it transitioned from a pilot project to a continuing clinical program. Methods: Health care providers at two health centers in the North Shoa Zone, Ethiopia, performed antenatal tele-ultrasound exams with remote guidance from obstetricians located in urban areas. Data regarding ANC and ultrasound utilization, participant travel, ultrasound findings, specialist referrals, and participant experience were collected through a mobile app. Results: Between November 2020 and December 2023, 7,297 tele-ultrasound exams were performed. Of these, 489 tele-ultrasound exams were performed during the period of data collection from October to December 2022. The availability of tele-ultrasound at the two health centers significantly reduced participant travel distance (4.2 km vs. 10.2 km; p < 0.01; one-way distance). Most participants (99.2%) indicated the tele-ultrasound service was very important or important, with high levels of satisfaction. Clinically significant findings were identified in 26 cases (5.3%), leading to necessary referrals. Conclusion: This study demonstrated the feasibility of a large volume tele-ultrasound program in Ethiopia, its impact on improving the quality of ANC, and its sustainability. These findings lay a foundation upon which low-income countries can develop tele-ultrasound programs to improve antenatal ultrasound access.

Association of complicated appendicitis with geographic and socioeconomic measures in children

BackgroundComplicated appendicitis, considered a marker of delay in accessing surgical care among children, has been inconsistently associated with race, socioeconomic status, insurance type, rurality, and distance to care. This statewide assessment measured factors associated with complicated appendicitis while overcoming limitations of prior work, namely, selection bias and use of inexact socioeconomic status measures. MethodsChildren (<18 years) undergoing appendectomy for appendicitis in Wisconsin from 2018 to 2021 were identified in the Wisconsin Hospital Association database. Patient residence and hospital locations were used to determine rurality, travel distances, and socioeconomic status as measured by Area Deprivation Index, Child Opportunity Index, Community Need Index, and county-level poverty rates. Multivariable logistic regression was used to assess factors associated with complicated appendicitis. ResultsAmong 5,881 children undergoing appendectomy, 1,375 (23.4%) had complicated appendicitis. Adjusting for other variables, complicated appendicitis was associated with younger age (adjusted odds ratio 0.90 per year increase); Hispanic White race/ethnicity (adjusted odds ratio 1.40–1.63); distance to the hospital where surgery was performed (adjusted odds ratio 1.16–1.17 per 10-mile increase); and very low Child Opportunity Index (adjusted odds ratio 1.29), Community Need Index (adjusted odds ratio 1.20 per 1-score increase), and county-level poverty (adjusted odds ratio 1.02 per 1% increase). Insurance type, rurality, and Area Deprivation Index were not associated with complicated appendicitis. Residential county-level complicated appendicitis rates (0.0%–50.0%) had moderate correlation to pediatric county-level poverty rates (rs=0.43). ConclusionComplicated appendicitis was associated with Child Opportunity Index, Community Need Index, and county-level poverty but not insurance type, rurality, or Area Deprivation Index. There was geographic variability in complicated appendicitis rates, with modest correlation to county-level poverty. Targeted interventions among Hispanic populations and those with travel- and socioeconomic status–related barriers to care may be beneficial in preventing complicated appendicitis among children.

Field evidence and indicators of rockfall fragmentation and implications for mobility

Rockfall fragmentation can play an important role in hazard studies and the design of protective measures. However, the current lack of modeling tools that incorporate rock fragmentation mechanics is a limitation to enhancing studies and design. This research investigates the fragmentation patterns of rockfalls and analyzes the resulting distribution of fragment sizes within corresponding rockfall deposits. We focus on small rock fragments, which provide insights into the dynamics of the rockfall event and can be used as input for numerical modeling. We analyzed multiple rockfall events from locations worldwide, each exhibiting different degrees of fragmentation. Using image analysis techniques, we mapped all visible blocks, determined their volumes, and measured the distances they travelled from the initial point of impact. A key finding is the identification of three indicators of fragmentation. First, in cases where fragmentation was largely absent, we observed a trend of increasing block size with distance from the impact point or source area, which aligns with previously published findings. However, for energetic rockfall events characterized by intense fragmentation, we observed that small fragments exhibited longer travel distances compared to larger fragments. This distinction allowed us to differentiate blocks primarily resulting from the disaggregation process from those primarily resulting from dynamic fragmentation, with implications for rockfall mobility. Second, although the size distribution of rockfall deposits exhibits a power-law scaling for volumes larger than a minimum size threshold corresponding to a rollover of the distribution, in some case studies a deviation from power-law scaling is observed, indicating a process of larger block comminution due to fragmentation. Third, we found that rockfalls with fragmentation experience reduced mobility, indicated by higher reach angles, and higher lateral dispersion showing a wider distribution of trajectories. We interpret these findings as being directly related to the energy-consuming nature of fragmentation, which prevents farther deposition of fragmented rock blocks.

Risk and Reward: Nationwide Analysis of Cardiac Transplant Center Variation in Organ Travel Distance and the Effects on Outcomes.

The 2018 UNOS allocation policy change deprioritized geographic boundaries to organ distribution, and the effects of this change have been widespread. The aim of this investigation was to analyze changes in donor transplant center distance for organ travel and corresponding outcomes before and after the allocation policy change. The UNOS database was utilized to identify all adult patients waitlisted for heart transplants from 2016 to 2021. Transplant centers were grouped by average donor heart travel distance based on whether they received more or less than 50% of organs from >250 miles away. Descriptive statistics were provided for waitlisted and transplanted patients. Regression analyses modeled waitlist mortality, incidence of transplant, overall survival, and graft survival. Centers with a longer average travel distance had a higher mean annual transplant volume with a reduction in total days on a waitlist (86.6 vs. 149.2 days), an increased cold ischemic time (3.6 vs. 3.2 h), with no significant difference in post-transplant overall survival or graft survival. The benefits of reducing waitlist time while preserving post-transplant outcomes extend broadly. The trends observed in this investigation will be useful as we revise organ transplant policy in the era of new organ procurement and preservation techniques.

Enhanced energy deposition of laser-produced proton beams in high-density plasmas due to beam density self-steepening

The energy deposition of laser-accelerated proton beams in solid-density plasmas with different ion charge numbers is studied with detailed one-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations. In the plasma with a high ion charge number, in which the plasma collision frequency approaches electron oscillation frequency, the beam protons are strongly decelerated by the electric field induced by the plasma return current. The energy deposition is further enhanced as the beam travel distance increases due to beam density self-steeping, which is also confirmed by multi-dimensional particle-in-cell simulation. A simple analytical model is proposed to estimate the characteristic travel distance for significant density self-steeping, showing agreement with the simulation results. While in the plasma with a low ion charge number, in which the plasma collision frequency is much smaller than the electron oscillation frequency, the proton beam is modulated significantly by the excited two-stream instability.

Optimising picking operations in distribution centres: a simulation and algorithm-based approach for travel distance reduction

Abstract This study examines the pivotal role of the logistics sector in corporations, particularly those with diverse product portfolios. It focuses on the time-intensive “picking” process, driven by various products and material handling requirements for order fulfilment. The research presents a methodology that combines distribution centre modelling for simulation with an optimisation algorithm to enhance operational efficiency. The goal is to determine an optimal route for product retrieval, minimising employee travel distances, using the simulated annealing algorithm. The results showcase a significant 7 % reduction in employee travel distance during collection. This research is relevant to academia and practical applications as it presents an opportunity to reduce operational costs in distribution centres, enhance the efficiency of picking operations, and improve the competitiveness of companies. Furthermore, it contributes to operations research by addressing a complex problem with significant practical implications using a rather unused method to solve this problem of picking operations. The approach is empirically applied in a prominent Brazilian beverage company. This methodology proves valuable for optimising logistics operations in various industrial contexts, highlighting its practical applicability.

Recycling drop-off centre: can it have an effect?

Municipalities in Greece hold the responsibility for establishing and organizing Green Points (a type of recycling drop-off centre), as mandated by law to have at least one within their jurisdiction. The aim of this study was to assess the recycling habits and opinions of the residents of the city of Larissa, with a specific focus on the potential impact of introducing a Green Point within the municipality area. Finally, a comparison was carried out to examine the differing viewpoints of individuals who recycle and those who do not, as well as the potential effects of a Green Point on them. A web-based qualitative questionnaire with closed-ended questions was deployed for the analysis. The key questions in the survey were clearly answered by 213 participants, providing strong indications. The local community is actively involved in recycling efforts and is generally satisfied with the current related system, but they feel that changes must be made. Although almost all the participants held a positive opinion on the potential location of a Green Point in their city, the majority of them disagreed with a potential increase in the current waste charges to support the operation of the Green Point. Non-recyclers cited time and space constraints as the primary reasons for not participating. The general consensus among participants is that a financial reward and/or fine can serve as a viable motivator for recycling. The primary distinctions between recyclers and non-recyclers are reflected in their beliefs about how powerful these motivators can be and how much they would increase the travel distance for recycling in the case of their existence.

Protocol for the effectiveness of multimonth refill of antituberculosis drugs (MORAD) on treatment success among people with drug-susceptible tuberculosis in rural eastern Uganda: a non-inferiority randomised trial

IntroductionMultimonth dispensing of antituberculosis (TB) drugs reduces frequent visits and costs associated with longer travel distances to a TB clinic. We will evaluate the effectiveness of multimonth dispensing of anti-TB...

176 Reducing travel distances in Sport – good for people and the planet

176 Reducing travel distances in Sport – good for people and the planet