Managed Lane Travelers -- Do They Pay for Travel as They Claimed They Would? (SWUTC/11/161002-1)

This study examined if travelers are paying for travel on managed lanes (MLs) as they indicated that they would in a 2008 survey. To achieve the objectives, an Internet-based stated preference (SP) survey of Houston's Katy Freeway travelers was conducted in 2010. Three survey design methodologies--D_b-efficient, random level generation, and adaptive random--were tested in this survey. Separate mixed logit models were developed from the responses obtained from the three different design strategies in the 2010 survey. The implied mean value of travel time savings (VTTS) varied across the design-specific models. Only the D_b-efficient design was able to estimate a value of reliability (VOR). Based on this and several other metrics, the D_b-efficient design outperformed the other designs. A mixed logit model including all the responses from all three designs was also developed; the implied mean VTTS was estimated as 65 percent ($22/hr) of the mean hourly wage rate, and the implied mean VOR was estimated as 108 percent ($37/hr) of the mean hourly wage rate. Data on actual usage of the MLs were also collected. Based on actual usage, the average VTTS was calculated as $51/hr. However, the $51/hr travelers are paying likely also includes the value travelers place on travel time reliability of the MLs. The total (VTTS+VOR) amount estimated from the all-inclusive model from the survey was $59/hr, which is close to the value estimated from the actual usage.