Mobility vs. Accessibility

Throughout human history, cities have formed, developed, and expanded. This process has experienced exponential increase since the age of industrialization and the development of modern forms of transportation. In recent decades, however, our planners and developers have identified many issues with the way our cities initially grew. Cities with a limited amount of space and infrastructure began to see clustered and unorganized commuting paths, in which congestion became an issue. For this reason, in combination with the rapid development of technological advances in transportation modes, we began to analyze the efficiency of our transportation systems, in order to create more organized, commutable space. In order to study specific qualities of our transportation modes, it became necessary to find a way to define how and why certain forms work better than others. Today, many of these studies of efficiency focus in on two important and intertwining factors; mobility and accessibility.

Mobility

Mobility is the more technical of the two terms discussed. Global Development Research Center's (GDRC) section on Urban Environmental Management with a focus in Sustainable Management defines mobility as "...the efficient movement of people and goods that is seen as beneficial..." and discusses how mobility puts a high focus on efficiency in terms of transportation. Mobility can also be measured in quantifiable ways. These measurables could include the counting of vehicles, streets, accidents, and other factors that could negatively or positively affect the efficiency in which a mode of transportation, or a transportation design works. This term is a direct focus on the physical movement that takes place, with less of an emphasis on what that movement and its' efficiency creates in terms of opportunities and expansion.

Some examples of ways to increase mobility provided by the United States Department of Transportation are below:



Buses, trains, taxis, shuttles, carpools, etc. are effective combatants to poor mobility. By increasing the amount of persons per vehicle, the quantity of vehicles is decreased, causing a chain reaction in which congestion decreases and efficiency and mobility increase.

Accessibility

Although with relevance to transportation study, accessibility is extremely correlated to mobility, it does hold its' own meaning and values. GDRC's same department mentioned in the previous definition of mobility, also defines accessibility as "...the ability to REACH opportunities that is beneficial, not movement itself."  In essence, accessibility's primary point lies in how easily we are able to access what we want/need. For instance: A desired resource may be located in two separate locations, each at different distances from the point at which transportation begins. However, contrary to intuitive reasoning, the distance the resource is away is not what decides how easily it can be reached. Mobility plays a crucial role in accessibility, because efficiency is the key. If one location for the hypothetical resource is located only 2 miles from the originating point of transportation, but has congested,outdated streets and regulations it may take 10-15 minutes to reach. Let's say that the other option for the resource is located 4 miles away, but because of higher quality design and efficiency, it only take 5-7 minutes to reach. In this case, accessibility is higher for the resource located further away, a fact most definitely encouraged by the different levels of mobility.

The following diagram displays some ideas on how positively increasing mobility ideas may create greater accessibility:


Overall, is it important to understand that in most all cases, mobility functions as a "means to an end," with that "end" being accessibility. Without the understanding and proper implementation of one or both of these concepts, new development, safety, and expansion of transportation wouldn't be feasible.



Sources:

 Global Development Research center's website in the section entitled "Distinguishing Between Accessibility and Mobility.

 Photo #2 : World Resource Institute: How to Enable Safer Access to Mass Transit in Indian Cities

 Photo #1 : United States Department of Transportation

Hyperloop from Orlando to Miami

An in depth look at the Hyperloop One:

The Hyperloop One is a technology that can revolutionize the way humans travel.  The company started in Los Angeles in 2014, they had the idea of creating a "train" that would travel at never before seen speeds - close to 700 miles per hour.

The technology uses two innovative techniques: first, the electromagnetic propulsion that will push the train forward and second, the near frictionless tube that will allow for such high speeds. The magnetic levitation is a technology that is used in some of the worlds fastest trains, known as the MAGLEV, short for magnetic levitation. By using magnets there is little resistance, the resistance that is seen for railed trains such as Amtrak or  railways around metropolitan areas.

The second aspect that makes Hyperloop One a tremendous technology is the near frictionless tube the train will travel in. These tubes will have vacuums in them that will remove particles in the air to make the train experience hardly any friction or pressure as it travels from point A to point B. The tube is planning to have one one-thousandth of the air pressure at sea level, which would be roughly 100 Pascals (100 Pa).

An additional aspect of Hyperloop One that makes it cutting edge is its effort to support clean energy. Their goal is to get power from resources available along the route of the train. There will likely be a large amount of solar power available in a route in Florida, which would support clean energy.

The Hyperloop One has created a competition among various countries and states in America. The municipalities have proposed routes for Hyperloop One to build their first fully functional track and Hyperloop has chosen 10 finalists. One of the 10 remaining tracks is from Miami to Orlando. This path would connect the two tourist hubs at their airports and allow for travel from one to the other in less than 30 minutes. This route has the support of the Miami-Dade County transit director, Alice Bravo. The Hyperloop would allow for freight and passenger transport, it would be beneficial to the Port of Miami in helping get goods out of the port quickly and farther north for other Floridians or American's to take advantage of. Another aspect I like about connecting the airports of Orlando and Miami is that a family could go to Orlando for the day to visit Disney and make it back to their hotel in Miami for the night. Since tourism is such a large part of the economy in Florida, it would connect two major tourist hubs, making south Florida seem much closer to the center of the state.

One of the main advantages of Hyperloop choosing this Florida based path for their first train is that it is adaptable. The company can choose to continue the train to cities farther to the North, such as Atlanta, Washington DC, Chicago, New York and others. The connectivity would allow for a transpiration breakthrough similar to the airplane.

It will be amazing to see where the technology of the Hyperloop One takes humans in the future.

Articles Referenced:

Miami Herald Hyperloop
Nancy Dahlberg, (2017, September 17). Miami to Orlando in 26 minutes is one step closer to hyperloop reality. Retrieved October 06, 2017, from http://www.miamiherald.com/news/business/article173847151.html


Hyperloop FAQ
Hyperloop One. (2016). FACTS & FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS. Retrieved October 06, 2017, from https://hyperloop-one.com/fact-sheet-and-faq

MAGLEV
U.S. Department of Energy (2016, June 14). How Maglev Works. Retrieved October 06, 2017, from 
https://www.energy.gov/articles/how-maglev-works

Hurricane Harvey and Irma Reveals State Emergency Management's Achilles Heel

Ah, Florida. Paradise to some, God's Waiting Room to others.



An image taken by Trudy Lampson shows residents of the
 La Vita Bella living facility amid flood waters in
Dickinson, Texas, on Sun., Aug. 27, 2017.

But on a serious note, many retirees choose to call Florida home for a number of reasons: unlimited vitamin D year round (it's not called the Sunshine State for nothing), lower taxes, and they don't have to twist their relatives' arm to come visit. Hello? Disney World!

While it is wonderful that our state is desired, it comes with its own unique challenges. It is projected by the year 2020, more than one-fifth of Florida's population will be consumed by those 65 and older, the highest proportion of any state in the United States.

Today we are over halfway through our 2017 hurricane season, but it feels like it is long from being over with Jose, Lee, and Maria still lingering in the Atlantic. Hurricane Harvey was the first storm to make landfall in the contiguous U.S., and while Hurricane Irma roared through the Caribbean, Florida Governor Rick Scott declared a state of emergency a full week ahead of her. Mandatory evacuations were in effect for Monroe County, home of the Florida Keys, and low lying areas across the eastern and western coastal counties.

To some this was the largest evacuation in the southeast, let alone Florida but we still have a problem: what about our senior citizens? Do we pack their things and evacuate them or do we honker down and prepare to be without power and running water for days at a time? Federal and especially state laws require nursing homes and assisted living facilities to "file a written written plan with the Agency for Health Care Administration on how their patients will be evacuated if needed." One senior facility in my hometown decided to evacuate to Tallahassee, a 12-hour drive that normally takes me 6 hours. You can read their story here.

That's wonderful and all, but not all elderly live in these facilities. Not all elderly have the means to leave whenever they would like. Some live on their own and their families are at least 500 miles away. Options are limited between a fixed number of flights that everyone is trying to buy or get onto the only 2 major interstate corridors that run north to sit in traffic for twice the amount of time it takes to get to the Georgia state line? If they are anything like my grandfather, they will just stay put.

Facilities that decide to follow through with their evacuation plan, run the risk of putting their patients in danger as studies show in this article about the hidden death tolls of hurricane evacuations. So as transportation planners, what can we do to provide safety and mobility of ALL citizens, including our aging population? Currently our university along with Florida A&M, and the University of North Florida are conducting interdisciplinary research awarded by the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) to focus on areas that range from the geometric design of our roadways to the "safety of our seniors as it relates to the multi-modal transportation and emergency operations". You can read more about the $1.4 million federal research grant here.

What are some solutions we can implement in order to provide safety to our most vulnerable citizens?

The Massive Evacuation Effort in South Florida Have Millions Fleeing Hurricane Irma.

A look at Transportation Systems during Hurricane Irma

           In September of 2017, the United States experienced one of the worst natural disasters in the country’s history. Starting as a tropical wave off the western coast of Africa, Hurricane Irma developed into one the most powerful and destructive hurricanes on record. After officially becoming a hurricane on August 30, Irma began slowly moving west towards the Caribbean Islands and the United States. Its painfully slow movement over the extremely warm water of the Atlantic Ocean allowed Hurricane Irma to rapidly intensify. In a matter of days the storm strengthened to a Category 5 Hurricane, with maximum sustained winds at 185 MPH. When it was all said and done, Hurricane Irma was responsible for 84 fatalities in the US and Caribbean nations. Furthermore, Irma is estimated to have caused over $62 billion dollars worth of damage- a number that is sure to rise as damage assessments continue. 

            In the days prior to Hurricane Irma making landfall, the United States aggressively began preparing for the storm’s impact. Early projections of Irma’s path had the entire Florida peninsula within the cone of uncertainty. Almost the entire state was expected to experience hurricane force winds as well as significant rainfall. With the images of the destruction from Hurricane Harvey in recent memory, government officials in Florida were preparing for Irma with the utmost seriousness. Over the course of several days, widespread mandatory evacuations were ordered throughout the state of Florida. On the east coast, residents in Miami-Dade and Broward Counties who lived east of Federal Highway 1 were ordered to evacuate. Similarly residents of the Florida Keys, the region where Hurricane Irma made landfall, were told to leave the islands completely. Overall, more than 6.5 million Floridians, nearly a third of the state’s population, were told to evacuate. This became the largest evacuation in US history. 

            With such a large number of people leaving the state, one of the biggest concerns of officials was how would the state’s transportation systems handle the influx of people. The vast majority of evacuees opted to drive. This resulted in an unprecedented amount of vehicle on Florida’s throughways. In particular, the Florida Turnpike and Interstate 95 and 75 were completely inundated with gridlock traffic. Florida Highway Patrol estimates that traffic levels were nearly quadrupled in parts of these roads. Many people on the road reported moving at painfully slow paces. While government officials attempted to alleviate the traffic by suspending tolls and opening up the shoulder lanes, their efforts were mostly in vain. Standstill traffic was widespread in the days prior Irma making landfall, causing massive headaches and huge safety concerns for evacuees. 

            In addition to traffic congestion, one of the biggest issues for Florida’s transportation system was fuel shortage. With hundreds of thousands of more vehicles on the road, the supply of gas could simply not keep up with the demand. Throughout the state people lined up for hours at gas stations hoping to get some gas so they could drive to safety. Gridlock traffic made it very difficult for fuel trucks to get to gas stations, which led to state troopers having to escort them to their destination. Furthermore, Hurricane Harvey had put nearly every oilrig in the Gulf of Mexico out of commission- which only further compounded the fuel shortages. 

            Naturally, the price of gasoline has jumped in the recent weeks. In Florida the average price of a gallon of gasoline was $2.72 after Irma, more than $.44 more than it was a month ago. Unfortunately, these prices are expected to continue to rise. Now that Irma has dissipated, the millions of Floridians who evacuated will be returning home. This means gas will remain in high demand for the time being, and fuel shortages will continue to be an issue. As one petroleum analyst put it, “Don’t be in a hurry to come back.”

            Although it has only been a few weeks since Hurricane Irma made landfall, it is not too early to begin to identify some of the successes and failures of our transportation systems. While the majority of people were able to drive to safety, it was not without a huge hassle. The biggest issue was the gridlock traffic. It is clear that the highways in Florida cannot handle millions of people going in the same direction in a small period of time. That is why measures such opening up more lanes or staggering the timing of evacuations is needed to alleviate the traffic. Additionally, more consideration must be made towards the supply of fuel. Without gas, people cannot evacuate. In scenarios were large scale evacuations are anticipated, officials must make sure there is more fuel going to gas stations to keep up with demand. 

            In conclusion, Hurricane Irma caused a historic evacuation in the state of Florida. All things considered, the state’s transportation systems were able facilitate the movement of millions of people from danger. However, it is clear that there are things that can be done to make evacuations more efficient. Going forward, government officials must learn from the evacuation of Hurricane Irma in order to ensure the safety of Floridians in the future. 

Articles Referenced:

• "Florida Highways Gridlocked by Masses of Evacuees Ahead of Hurricane Irma" - Aaron Mak, Sept. 8, 2017 http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_slatest/2017/09/08/florida_evacuations_ahead_of_hurricane_irma_causing_highway_gridlock.html
• "Mass Evacuations in Florida as Hurricane Irma Closes In" - Tina Nguyen, Sept. 8, 2017 https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2017/09/hurricane-irma-mass-evacuations-florida
• "Hurricane Irma Gas Shortages could worsen as drivers return to Florida Homes" - Nathan Bomey, Sept. 11, 2017 https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2017/09/11/hurricane-irma-gas-shortages-could-worsen-drivers-return-florida-homes/653426001/#

The first technology of transportation

A creative presentation of the sled/sledge by Ralik:

Following the smell of water was his only hope. Muscle cramps and exhaustion riddled his body but the only thing occupying his mind was the desire to quench the thirst that has conquered his mind frame for the past 3 days. The heavy weight of a 1 foot long hatchet made of a small tree branch and rock with the hind legs of a dead coyote in his bag composed of squirrel leather made the muscle cramps of his back more dreadful than the leg cramps of the week long trip he’s been on. As the screams of animals around him begin to get louder as the night sky falls, he continues to follow the low grassland path as he looks around at the heavy, longer, grass around the path.

The Darlington Railway

The Stockton and Darlington railway; photo by Hulton-Deutsch Collection/Corbis

In our current society, citizens rely heavily on some form of transportation for work, school, or basic daily functions. This is not only in America, this is all over the world. The most common form of transportation in the world today is by train or rail. I personally have been on a train at least a dozen times, including Tri-Rail in South Florida, Amtrak in Maryland, and several different ones in New York City. The advancement of technology has made the railroad more enjoyable by making it safer, faster, and more flexible than when it was created 200 years ago.

The Darlington Railway, also known as the Stockton and Darlington Railway, was the first railway service with freight and passenger service in England (Encyclopedia Britannica 2017). It was also the first in the world with steam traction. The railway ran from Darlington to Stockton in 1825. It all started when a man named Edward Pease, who at the time, was an entrepreneur and business leader, saw a need for a railroad to run from West Durham to the port of Stockton, England. The railroad would include wagons drawn by horses to carry coal between these two cities (Simkin 2014). The railroad consisted of iron rails which were laid on wooden blocks as well as sections laid on stone blocks.

It all started a few years back when Edward Pease joined a few men to form a company to make trains. The first train invented, the Locomotion, was the first train to travel this journey. It pulled 36 wagons, twelve of which were coal and flour, six of guests, and fourteen of workers (Simkin 2014). The train ride took two hours and reached speeds between nine to fifteen miles per hour. The railroad became a success and it drew in large crowds opening day. After opening day, it started running trains six days a week.

Going back to technology, trains today can reach speeds of 100mph to 150mph, almost ten times as fast as it was 200 years ago. Also, a two hour train ride 200 years ago would maybe be about 30 minutes max of a ride if going 100mph today. Looking back at the Locomotion, it was drawn by horses and wagons, neither of which is very common anymore. Also, while the first train used steam, most trains today are either diesel or electric. Thanks to the railroad, different types of trains have emerged, all invented within the last 100 years. Some of them include the monorail, tram, rapid transit, and passenger trains, which include inter-city, fast, and regional trains.

            Overall, trains have been a huge part of people’s lives all over the world. If you haven’t been on a train, I suggest taking a ride on one and see what it’s like to get away from heavy city traffic on a bus or in a car. You might be surprised how easy and enjoyable it is. While not everyone has access or been on a train, they are definitely in demand in our society and will continue to be developed alongside with technology.

https://www.britannica.com/topic/Stockton-and-Darlington-Railway

http://spartacus-educational.com/RAstockton.htm

Self-Driving Pizza Delivery

The Ford Fusion prototype; image by Sam Abuelsamid

          

            In the late 1800’s, society started to move away from the horse and buggy and the railcar, and cars started to emerge. Cars were an essential part of this time period and have evolved over the last 200 years in our society thanks to the invention of the engine. In our world today of advanced technology, self-automated cars were bound to arise in the near future.

In America today, citizens are feeling the pressure of having less time to cook at home and do the daily essentials. Wanting a faster, cheaper, and more efficient way to get food has been on the rise. Pizza delivery is no stranger to anyone but receiving a pizza box in a car with no driver? That’s a different story.

An experiment has emerged in which Domino’s and Ford has teamed up to launch a pizza delivery to take place in a self-driving car. Selected customers in Ann Arbor, Michigan will be a part of this experiment. Domino’s for many years has promised that your order will be delivered in 30 minutes or less or else it’s free. Domino’s drivers today do their best to deliver your fresh hot pizza in under that time limit. This new invention of the self-driving Ford Fusion will put pizza delivery to the test, in which it will try to deliver your pizza in under 30 minutes and get to you safely. On the outside of the car will be a tablet that will allow customers to pay for their pizza as well (Abuelsamid 2017).

A recent update from Ford officials explained that the self-driving car will be put to hold for the time being and instead, someone will operate the vehicle manually. They want to focus on how the vehicle operates and interacts with customers and focus on the automated control system later. So the experiment that will officially take place will be a manually operated vehicle with tinted windows and a fully automated system to give the customer a real life experience of a self-driving car.

Over the next month, Domino’s and Ford will test a variety of scenarios for the car. Two types of tests they will conduct include the car delivering to different types of homes as well as delivering in different types of weather. The self-driving cars have already been tested and approved, Ford just wants to test the car manually first to receive feedback on customer satisfaction.

Now, self-driving cars might be worrisome to some people. Trying to trust a car to get from point A to point B could be nerve-wracking, especially if it is on a timed schedule (30 minutes or less according to Domino’s). Self-driving cars will also cause job loss and could hurt families or individuals who rely on pizza delivery for their income. Wondering how the car would know when to change lanes, trust the GPS system, and most importantly not crash and cause an accident, are three main issues we might have as well. Citizen’s, like me, might accumulate fear when on the road and see a car labeled “self-driving,” and I’m not quite sure how ready our society is to encounter this new tie between self-driving cars and pizza delivery.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/samabuelsamid/2017/08/29/dominos-takes-high-tech-pizza-delivery-to-level-4-with-ford/#5611435c299e