Increasing Mass Transit Demand by Raising Automobile Costs

How Mass Transit Demand is Increased by Raising Automobile Costs

Raising the cost of using an automobile may alter current transit trends. Despite the increasing use of Los Angeles Metrolink rail lines by high-income commuters to and from work, there is still a majority of workers that rely on their cars in Los Angeles. Mamon and Marshall (1977) feel that members of high status and high income groups will continue to use their cars for the journey to work, unless the cost of using a car are driven higher relative to these alternatives. Moses and Williamson (1963) made a similar observation in their study and feel that many of the problems of cities are due to the automobile, and that ways must be found to divert commuters to public transportation. Assuming that people are leisure preferrers (as opposed to income), and that they must work a standard number of hours, Moses and Williamson (1963) concluded, for a study based in Chicago, that to divert 75 percent of those who specified that bus-streetcar was their best alternative (to using private transport), the price of an automobile trip must be raised at least $1.00.