Travel Chain Based Urban Mobility

One of the basic strategies of urban transportation is the promotion of public transportation modes. However, numerous travels cannot be served by public transportation because there is no adequate spatial or temporal cover of service or the travel chain is too complex. To solve this problem a design paradigm is needed: instead of vehicles, the focus should be on the mobility of persons and goods, which requires attractive and competitive travel chains from the origin of the trip to the end. It means travel chains which are quick and comfortable. Travel time is the sum of the travel times on elements of the travel chain, so by improving one element a decrease of travel time will appear in the total travel time as well. Comfort, however, is judged by the worst parts, so improving one element could be totally ineffective from the point of view of the whole travel. This study focuses on a strategic approach based on travel chains. It shows a method to optimize the transport system according to the aspects of the user, to shift efficiently from individual vehicle usage to more sustainable transportation modes.