Skateboarding as Transportation: Findings from Exploratory Research

The video begins at 2:45.

Topic: Skateboarding as Transportation: Findings from Exploratory Research

Bio: Tessa Walker is currently completing her thesis on non-motorized transportation and qualitative research methods with supervision from Dr. Jennifer Dill and Dr. David Morgan. For more information on her thesis research please visit the Skate Study PDX website (http://www.skatestudypdx.wordpress.com). Tessa has previously worked in town planning in Vermont, sustainability auditing in Massachusetts, and in bicycle and pedestrian transportation research with the Family Activity Study at PSU. She is currently an intern at the public opinion research firm DHM Research, and she will be a 2013-2014 Hatfield Fellow.

Private Sector Role in Reducing Auto Travel: Motives for Innovation?

The video begins at 2:49.

Are Bicycling and Walking “Cool?”: Adolescent Attitudes about Active Travel

The video begins at 0:10.

Summary: The declining rates of physical activity among children, particularly adolescent girls, are well-documented, yet there has been insufficient research into the attitudes about health behaviors, particularly active travel, of the children themselves. Tara's research explores attitudes about active transportation among children aged 4-17 years and examines how perceived ability, self-efficacy, and sensitivity to certain environments or facilities vary across gender and age of the children. She utilises data from the Family Activity Study, a multi-year longitudinal intervention study in Portland, Oregon, in which 490 children answered surveys regarding their attitudes, perceptions, and behaviors about traveling by walking, bicycling, or being in a car.

Fringe Urbanism: Potential Transportation Patterns In Overlooked Suburban Density

The video begins at 1:22.

Webinar: Land Use Mix and Pedestrian Travel Behavior: Advancements in Conceptualization and Measurement

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Webinar: Land Use Mix and Pedestrian Travel Behavior

Smart growth policies have often emphasized the importance of land use mix as an intervention beholding of lasting urban planning and public health benefits. Past transportation-land use research has identified potential efficiency gains achieved by mixed-use neighborhoods and the subsequent shortening of trip lengths; whereas, public health research has accredited increased land use mixing as an effective policy for facilitating greater physical activity....

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Making Urban Transport Sustainable: Comparison of Germany and the USA

The video begins at 2:16.

Abstract: Reliance on the automobile for most trips contributes to costly trends like pollution, oil dependence, congestion, and obesity. Germany and the U.S. have among the highest motorization rates in the world. Yet Germans make a four times higher share of trips by foot, bike, and public transport and drive for a 25 percent lower share of trips.

This presentation first investigates international trends in daily travel behavior with a focus on Germany and the USA. Next, the presentation examines the transport and land-use policies in Germany over the last 40 years that have encouraged more walking, bicycling, and public transport use. Using a case study of policy changes in the German city of Freiburg, the presentation concludes with policies that are transferable to car-oriented countries around the world.

Bio: Ralph Buehler is Assistant Professor of Urban Affairs & Planning and a Faculty Fellow with the Metropolitan Institute at Virginia Tech in Alexandria, VA. Originally from Germany, most of his research has an international comparative perspective, contrasting transport and land-use policies, transport systems, and travel behavior in Western Europe and North America. His research falls into three areas: (1) the influence of transport policy, land use, socio- demographics on travel behavior; (2) bicycling, walking, and public health; and (3) public transport...

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Public Health and Active Living

Dr. James Sallis, Professor of Psychology, San Diego State University; Director, Active Living Research
Co-sponsored by the School of Community Health

The video begins at 4:40.

Four Types of Cyclists: What do we know and how can it help?

The video begins at 1:32.

Topic: Four Types of Cyclists: What do we know and how can it help?

Labeling or categorizing cyclists has been occurring for over a century for a variety of purposes. Dr. Dill's research aimed to examine a typology developed by the City of Portland that includes four categories: Strong and the Fearless, Enthused and Confident, Interested but Concerned, and No Way No How. Unlike several other typologies, this widely referenced typology is intended to apply to all adults, regardless of their current cycling behavior. This seminar will present her findings, focusing on differences between the four types and a better understanding the market for increasing cycling for transportation.

Portland's Green Dividend

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The video begins at 2:40.

Trick or Treatment? Impact of Route-Level Features on Decisions to Walk or Bike

The video begins at 0:34.

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Speaker: Joseph Broach, Ph.D. Candidate, Portland State University
Topic: Trick or Treatment? Impact of Route-Level Features on Decisions to Walk or Bike
Summary: Some travel routes attract people walking and cycling, while others may scare them away. What features of street environments are most important, and how do available routes affect decisions to bike or walk on a specific trip? 

Research to date has focused on either large-scale areal measures like "miles of bike lane nearby" or else has considered only shortest path routes. Neither method is suited to capturing the impact of targeted route-level policies like neighborhood greenways. This session will present a new technique for measuring bike and walk accessibility along the most likely route for a given trip. The method is applied to travel data, and results provide new insight into the relationship between route quality and travel mode choice.

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