Do People Use the Shortest Path? An empirical test of Wardrop's first principle

Shanjiang Zhu and David Levinson

No 59, Working Papers from University of Minnesota: Nexus Research Group

Abstract: Most recent route choice models, following either Random Utility Maximization or rule-based paradigm, require explicit enumeration of feasible routes. The quality of model estimation and prediction is sensitive to the appropriateness of consideration set. However, few empirical studies of revealed route characteristics have been reported in the literature. Such study could also help practitioners and researchers evaluate widely applied shortest path assumptions. This study aims at bridging the gap by evaluating morning commute routes followed by residents at the Twin Cities, Minnesota. Accurate GPS and GIS data were employed to reveal routes people utilized. Findings from this study could also provide guidance for future efforts in building better travel demand models.

Keywords: Rationality; travel behavior; transport geography; commuting; transportation networks (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: C93 D01 D81 D83 R41 R48 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2015
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-ure
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (29)

Published in PLoS ONE 10(8): e0134322

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http://hdl.handle.net/11299/180050 Second version, 2015 (application/pdf)

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Journal Article: Do People Use the Shortest Path? An Empirical Test of Wardrop’s First Principle (2015)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:nex:wpaper:shortestpath

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