A Synthesis of Passive Third-Party Data Sets Used for Transportation Planning
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Report No. UT-20.20 A SYNTHESIS OF PASSIVE THIRD-PARTY DATA SETS USED FOR TRANSPORTATION PLANNING Prepared For: Utah Department of Transportation Research & Innovation Division Final Report December 2020 i DISCLAIMER The authors alone are responsible for the preparation and accuracy of the information, data, analysis, discussions, recommendations, and conclusions presented herein. The contents do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions, endorsements, or policies of the Utah Department of Transportation or the U.S. Department of Transportation. The Utah Department of Transportation makes no representation or warranty of any kind, and assumes no liability therefore. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The authors acknowledge the Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) for funding this research, and the following individuals on the Technical Advisory Committee for helping to guide the research: • Robert Chamberlin (Consultant, UDOT Research) • Adam Radel (UDOT) • Kaitlyn Marousis (UDOT) • Rikki Sonnen (UDOT) • Richard Brockmyer (UDOT) ii TECHNICAL REPORT ABSTRACT 1. Report No. 2. Government Accession No. 3. Recipient's Catalog No. UT-20.20 N/A N/A 4. Title and Subtitle 5. Report Date A SYNTHESIS OF PASSIVE THIRD-PARTY DATA SETS USED Dec 2020 FOR TRANSPORTATION PLANNING 6. Performing Organization Code 7. Author(s) 8. Performing Organization Report No. Gregory S. Macfarlane, Michael J. Copley 9. Performing Organization Name and Address 10. Work Unit No. Brigham Young University 5H08282H Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering 11. Contract or Grant No. 430 Engineering Building 20-8511 Provo, UT 84602 12. Sponsoring Agency Name and Address 13. Type of Report & Period Covered Utah Department of Transportation Final 4501 South 2700 West Nov 2019 to Dec 2020 P.O. Box 148410 14. Sponsoring Agency Code Salt Lake City, UT 84114-8410 PIC No. UT19.602 15. Supplementary Notes Prepared in cooperation with the Utah Department of Transportation and the U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration 16. Abstract This report summarizes an extensive review of academic and professional research making use of third- party data products available to transportation agencies. In particular, the review focused on studies conducted with Bluetooth receivers, Global Positioning System (GPS) devices, and mobile device data (MDD) obtained through cellular networks and location-based services embedded in smartphone applications. The review considers the specific applications of the data products seen within the literature, the sample size reported or inferred within the reviewed studies, and summarizes success or failure of the attempted applications. The review also contains a summary of the underlying technologies, including inferred and known sources of bias or incompleteness. The recommendations of this report are based on the previously described review of the literature as well as personal interviews with prominent researchers identified in the review. The central finding of the report is that entirely replacing legacy data collection methods is not likely to result in the best outcomes for UDOT or other agencies. Rather, passive data products can be most useful to agencies that use them as a supplement to existing and ongoing data collection efforts. 17. Key Words 18. Distribution Statement 23. Registrant's Seal Data management, transportation planning, Not restricted. Available through: passive data, Bluetooth, GPS, Location-Based UDOT Research Division N/A Services 4501 South 2700 West P.O. Box 148410 Salt Lake City, UT 84114-8410 www.udot.utah.gov/go/research 19. Security Classification 20. Security Classification 21. No. of Pages 22. Price (of this report) (of this page) 100 N/A Unclassified Unclassified iii TABLE OF CONTENTS Table of Contents ....................................................................................................................... i List of Tables .......................................................................................................................... vii List of Figures ........................................................................................................................ viii List of Acronyms ..................................................................................................................... ix Executive Summary .................................................................................................................. 1 Chapter 1 Introduction .............................................................................................................. 3 1.1 Problem Statement .......................................................................................................... 3 1.2 Objectives ....................................................................................................................... 3 1.3 Outline of Report ............................................................................................................ 4 Chapter 2 Bluetooth .................................................................................................................. 5 2.1 Overview ......................................................................................................................... 5 2.2 Bluetooth Technology ..................................................................................................... 5 2.3 Transportation Studies using Bluetooth Data ................................................................. 7 2.3.1 Travel-Time Studies................................................................................................. 7 2.3.2 Cordon Analysis..................................................................................................... 11 2.3.3 Path Analysis ......................................................................................................... 13 2.4 Analysis of Bluetooth as a Data Source ........................................................................ 16 2.4.1 Penetration Rates ................................................................................................... 17 2.4.2 Strengths ................................................................................................................ 20 2.4.3 Weaknesses ............................................................................................................ 22 2.5 Summary and Recommendations ................................................................................. 25 Chapter 3 Global Positioning Systems ................................................................................... 27 3.1 Overview ....................................................................................................................... 27 iv 3.2 GPS Technology ........................................................................................................... 27 3.3 Transportation Studies Using GPS Data ....................................................................... 31 3.3.1 Network Construction ............................................................................................ 31 3.3.2 Travel Times .......................................................................................................... 34 3.3.3 Origin-Destination Analysis .................................................................................. 38 3.3.4 Volume Estimations ............................................................................................... 42 3.4 Analysis of GPS as a Data Source ................................................................................ 45 3.4.1 Penetration Rates ................................................................................................... 45 3.4.2 Strengths ................................................................................................................ 47 3.4.3 Weaknesses ............................................................................................................ 48 3.5 Summary and Recommendations ................................................................................. 51 Chapter 4 Mobile Device Data ............................................................................................... 53 4.1 Overview ....................................................................................................................... 53 4.2 Mobile Device Data Underlying Technologies ............................................................ 53 4.2.1 Cellular Call Data Records .................................................................................... 53 4.2.2 Location-Based Services ........................................................................................ 55 4.3 Transportation Studies Using Mobile Device Data ...................................................... 57 4.3.1 Origin-Destination Studies..................................................................................... 58 4.3.2 Trip Attractions ...................................................................................................... 61 4.3.3 Volume Estimations ............................................................................................... 63 4.3.4 Mode Differentiation ............................................................................................. 67 4.4 Analysis of Mobile Device Data as a Data Source ....................................................... 70 4.4.1 Strengths ...............................................................................................................