Civil Engineering
Permanent URI for this communityhttps://scholarworks.montana.edu/handle/1/30
The Department of Civil Engineering has strong affiliation with the Western Transportation Institute (WTI) and the Center for Biofilm Engineering (CBE), a graduated NSF research center. The department is also affiliated with a Montana Department of Transportation Design Unit located on the MSU campus.
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Item The Impact of Weight Matrices on Parameter Estimation & Inference: A Case Study of Binary Response Using Land Use Data(2013-11) Wang, Yiyi; Kockelman, Kara M.; Wang, Xiaokun (Cara)This paper develops two new models and evaluates the impact of using different weight matrices on parameter estimates and inference in three distinct spatial specifications for discrete response. These specifications rely on a conventional, sparse, inverse-distance weight matrix for a spatial auto-regressive probit (SARP), a spatial autoregressive approach where the weight matrix includes an endogenous distance-decay parameter (SARPα), and a matrix exponential spatial specification for probit (MESSP). These are applied in a binary choice setting using both simulated data and parcel-level land-use data. Parameters of all models are estimated using Bayesian methods. In simulated tests, adding a distance-decay parameter term to the spatial weight matrix improved the quality of estimation and inference, as reflected by a lower deviance information criteriaon (DIC) value, but the added sampling loop required to estimate the distance-decay parameter substantially increased computing times. In contrast, the MESSP model’s obvious advantage is its fast computing time, thanks to elimination of a log-determinant calculation for the weight matrix. In the model tests using actual land-use data, the MESSP approach emerged as the clear winner, in terms of fit and computing times. Results from all three models offer consistent interpretation of parameter estimates, with locations farther away from the regional central business district (CBD) and closer to roadways being more prone to (mostly residential) development (as expected). Again, the MESSP model offered the greatest computing-time savings benefits, but all three specifications yielded similar marginal effects estimates, showing how a focus on the spatial interactions and net (direct plus indirect) effects across observational units is more important than a focus on slope-parameter estimates when properly analyzing spatial data.Item Where are the electric vehicles? A spatial model for vehicle-choice count data(2015-02) Chen, T. Donna; Wang, Yiyi; Kockelman, Kara M.Electric vehicles (EVs) are predicted to increase in market share as auto manufacturers introduce more fuel efficient vehicles to meet stricter fuel economy mandates and fossil fuel costs remain unpredictable. Reflecting spatial autocorrelation while controlling for a variety of demographic and locational (e.g., built environment) attributes, the zone-level spatial count model in this paper offers valuable information for power providers and charging station location decisions. By anticipating over 745,000 personal-vehicle registrations across a sample of 1000 census block groups in the Philadelphia region, a trivariate Poisson-lognormal conditional autoregressive (CAR) model anticipates Prius hybrid EV, other EV, and conventional vehicle ownership levels. Initial results signal higher EV ownership rates in more central zones with higher household incomes, along with significant residual spatial autocorrelation, suggesting that spatially-correlated latent variables and/or peer (neighbor) effects on purchase decisions are present. Such data sets will become more comprehensive and informative as EV market shares rise. This work’s multivariate Poisson-lognormal CAR modeling approach offers a rigorous, behaviorally-defensible framework for spatial patterns in choice behavior.