Role of congestion and information in trip-makers' dynamic decision processes experimental investigation

The role of congestion and information on trip-makers' dynamic decision processes, particularly commuters' route- and departure-time-switching behavior, is investigated. Using data from interactive simulation experiments, indifference bands for route- and departure-time-switching decisions are calibrated based on a boundedly rational behavioral framework. Trip-maker behavior is influenced not only by the magnitude of congestion but also by its day-to-day evolution. Both information quality and the interaction between information, behavioral inertia, and traffic supply conditions are significant determinants of behavior. Trip-makers' short-term and longer-term experiences in traffic strongly influence route- and departure-time-switching decisions. These findings have important implications for dynamic traffic modeling, network state prediction, design of Advanced Traveler Information Systems products and services, and assessment of Intelligent Transportation Systems impacts.