Modeling constraints versus modeling utility maximization: Improving policy sensitivity for integrated land-use/transportation models

Traditionally, integrated land-use/transportation models intend to represent all opportunities of travel and household location, maximize utilities and find an equilibrium in which no person or household could improve their satisfaction any further. Energy scarcity, higher transportation costs and an increasing share of low-income households, on the other hand, demand special attention to represent constraints that households face, rather than opportunities for utility maximization. This paper describes the integrated land-use model SILO that explicitly represents various constraints, including the price of a dwelling, the travel time to work and the monetary transportation budget. SILO ensures that no household makes choices that violate these constraints. Implementing such constraints helps SILO to generate more realistic results under intense scenarios, such as a serious increase in transportation costs or severely increased congestion.     «

Traditionally, integrated land-use/transportation models intend to represent all opportunities of travel and household location, maximize utilities and find an equilibrium in which no person or household could improve their satisfaction any further. Energy scarcity, higher transportation costs and an increasing share of low-income households, on the other hand, demand special attention to represent constraints that households face, rather than opportunities for utility maximization. This paper d...     »