A systems-based approach to address unintended consequences of demand-driven transportation planning in national parks and public lands

In most cases, transportation planning in national parks and public lands might most appropriately be termed “demand-driven.” In this approach, rigorous analyses of park visitation, traffic, and parking data are used as a basis for transportation planning to accommodate current and projected future visitor demand, within financial constraints. Performance measures used to assess the quality of transportation systems in national parks are generally related to “moving people” efficiently. This approach is based on well-established principles for transportation planning in urban and rural communities. However, a demand-driven approach to transportation planning may not be suitable in national parks and public lands because it may enable levels of visitation that cause visitor crowding, resource impacts, and other unintended consequences. This paper introduces a more sustainable, systems-based transportation planning approach developed in the Rocky Mountain National Park (ROMO) to help the park operate its shuttle bus system efficiently and conveniently, and according to thresholds for visitor crowding and resource impacts at sites serviced by the shuttle system. The transportation planning approach developed in this study for ROMO is more suitable and sustainable for national parks and public lands than a demand-driven approach, and is readily adaptable to other locations. Correspondingly, the approach is now being applied in several other national parks and public lands recreation areas.     

Demand for park shuttle services––a stated-preference approach

This paper shows the potential of various shuttle bus services in Colonial National Historical Park in Virginia to reduce auto use on park roads. The purpose of these services would be to provide new opportunities in presenting the park’s history, relieve visitors of the burden of finding their way, and possibly reduce roadway maintenance and environmental impacts. This study uses a stated-preference survey and discrete choice model to quantify the effect of various service characteristics on visitors’ mode choice and on reducing car travel in the parks.     

The ecological implications of visitor transportation in parks and protected areas: Examples from research in US National Parks

The demand for recreation and nature-based tourism experiences in parks and protected areas continues to grow in many locations worldwide and in response, many parks are employing transit services designed to improve visitor access. Transit services (e.g., public bus service) are a component of the overall park transportation system and are very desirable in park settings as they yield many advantages over personal auto access including reduced congestion in parking areas, a reduced carbon footprint, and an enhanced visitor experience. However, a growing body of research also suggests that the delivery of visitors via transit to destinations within a park or protected area may have unique ecological disturbance implications resulting from increased visitor use, density, and altered spatial and temporal use patterns. In this paper, we examine the relevant literature and present examples from recent research that illustrates the potential range of ecologic impacts from visitor deliveries via park transportation systems. We conclude while transit systems remain very desirable in park settings, depending on a range of situational factors, conventional, demand-driven planning and management approaches may result in unintended impacts to ecological conditions. Overall, this discussion provides a framework for improved management of the potential ecological impacts of protected area transportation systems.     

Call for Papers: Special Edition of Current Issues in Tourism

Many national parks around the world are major tourist attractions. While increases in national park tourism provides business opportunities, there are several economic, social and ecological aspects that need to be monitored in order to sustain high quality visitor experiences. This paper reports findings from visitor surveys at Fulufjället National Park, Sweden–one year prior to and one year after the national park designation in 2002. The purpose is to monitor short term changes in park use. Data from on site visitor counters show a 40% increase in the number of visitors, while follow-up mail surveys reveal several changes in visitor characteristics, use patterns, expenditures and attitudes.     

Assessing the effects of access policies on travel mode choices in an Alpine tourist destination

Alternative Transportation Systems (ATS) can contribute to an overall reduction of visitation-related impacts in natural areas if their design and management are informed by a clear understanding of the factors influencing visitors’ mode choice. This is particularly relevant in areas served by multiple alternative transportation options at different locations because mode choices in this case can largely modify visitation patterns. This study investigated mode choices in a popular hiking area of the Dolomites (Italian Alps) that is reachable by car, bus, and lifts (i.e. cable car and chairlift). A stated preference survey was used to elicit visitor sensitivities to a series of management and experiential conditions, while simulation was applied to predict mode choice as a consequence of various access policies. While indicating lift as the most preferred transportation option, results suggest the existence of two main kinds of visitor: one preferring road-accessible trailheads and another preferring lift-accessible trailheads. These two kinds seem to reflect a traditional view (i.e., very sensitive to fares, road closures, and overcrowding) and a more modern one (i.e., moderately sensitive to lift fares, relatively insensitive to crowding), respectively. Simulations performed for both groups led to four management principles: road traffic is not reduced significantly without disincentives for car use; overly cheap lift fares are counterproductive; fare-frequency trade-off is key to ensure adequate bus ridership within both groups; and road closures may be comprehensively more effective than road tolls. The findings of this study may support managers and administrators in setting up access policies that better preserve natural resources and visitors’ recreational experience.     

Transportation and recreation: a case study of visitors driving for pleasure at Acadia National Park

Automobiles and roads are as much of a way of experiencing national parks as they are a means of conveyance. This study examines experiential aspects of transportation on Acadia National Park’s primary scenic road – Ocean Drive. Interviews with vehicle-based road users were conducted to identify indicators to measure and manage experiential quality on Ocean Drive. Also, a survey was conducted to make comparisons with important variables identified on “transportation-only” urban roads. Results suggest that (1) Ocean Drive is important to park visitors’ experience; (2) experiential indicators for Ocean Drive include vehicle crowding, scenery, and travel freedom/convenience; and (3) experiential aspects of transportation on scenic roads in parks may differ substantially from urban roads. Study findings suggest a need to deliberately and thoughtfully plan and manage for quality recreational experiences on roads in national parks and related areas.     

Does authenticity exist in cultural theme parks? A case study of Millennium City Park in Henan,China

ABSTRACT

Authenticity has always been a salient concept in tourism studies. Most previous studies focused on cultural heritage sites while much less research was conducted on man-made attractions. Given the importance of authenticity in the tourism industry, this research investigates different authenticity concepts in a unique context: a Chinese cultural theme park. Millennium City Park is a typical cultural theme park in Kaifeng, Henan, China, and was chosen as the case study. This study identifies the perception of authenticity from the perspectives of both park managers and park visitors. It is found that visitors value authentic experience in the experience economy. Authenticity plays an important role in the tourism industry, in which activity-related authenticity is more important to visitors than object-related authenticity in cultural theme parks since visitors prefer more participation and involvement during their visits. It is suggested that park planners emphasize cultural elements in various products in cultural theme parks.     

Defining and monitoring the quality of shared-use transportation facilities in parks and recreation areas

Transportation networks in parks and recreation areas provide travelers recreation opportunities and often support multiple transportation modes (e.g., hiking, walking, biking). In recreation areas, the quality of transportation service may be monitored and evaluated differently than in traditional transportation contexts. However, few studies have examined approaches for defining and monitoring the quality of transportation service and recreation experiences. This study applies traffic monitoring models to monitor (1) the quality of transportation service through the Levels of Service (LOS) framework and (2) travelers’ recreation experiences through the indicators and standards framework simultaneously on the Burlington Bike Path (BBP), a typical shared-use transportation recreation facility in Vermont. Results identify the temporal pattern of visitors use and the mode splits between cyclists and pedestrians. Moreover, study results show that the majority of travelers use the BBP for recreation or mixed purpose of recreation and commute. Study results build quantitative relationships between LOS and indicators and standards of quality that will help inform management of transportation in the context of recreation. The indicators and standards framework can help define the thresholds of acceptable levels of transportation service through the LOS framework. The relationships between LOS and the indicators and standards framework help build a robust and fully parameterized transportation planning and management framework for parks and recreation areas. Study results suggest quantitative guidelines that can be used to evaluate and monitor the quality of transportation performance for shared-use paths in parks and recreation areas.     

Fuzzy importance-performance analysis of visitor satisfaction for theme park: the case of Fantawild Adventure in Taiwan,China

This study presents a quantitative analysis of visitor satisfaction and its relationship with tourism attributes in the Fantawild Adventure Theme Park in Taiwan, China. The study applies a fuzzy method and importance-performance analysis (IPA) to determine the range of impact of various attributes on visitor satisfaction. The weight and logical value of satisfaction were determined by using triangular fuzzy variables. Analysis of 389 visitor surveys identified a complex relationship between satisfaction and the following attributes: recreation experience, park service and management, park environment, guidance information, amusement consumption, and park facilities. Recreation experience is the most significant factor in visitor satisfaction, whereas the attribute of park facilities is the least significant. The fuzzy IPA method is a very useful diagnostic tool for theme park managers, who can use it to identify current problems regarding visitor experiences and then assign priorities to improvement measures for such experiences.     

Factors influencing theme park visitor brand-switching behaviour as based on visitor perception

With the development of theme parks, which represent a multi-million-pound industry worldwide, research investigating the factors affecting theme park visitor brand-switching behaviour is an important method for improving theme park competitiveness. In the present work, models and research hypothesis are constructed based on visitor perception, and the survey data are collected and analysed to assess the hypothesis and to revise the conceptual model in this paper. The results indicate that there are seven factors influencing visitor brand-switching behaviour: ‘visitor variety-seeking', ‘visitor satisfaction', ‘switching cost', ‘perceived value', ‘competitor attraction', ‘theme park image' and ‘visitor involvement'. The perceived value and visitor satisfaction strongly influence brand-switching behaviour as intermediate variables. Visitor variety-seeking and competitor attraction are positively related to visitor brand switching behaviour, whereas the other five factors are negatively related to visitor brand-switching behaviour.     

The development of Park and Ride in Scotland

The provision of Park and Ride services is one of the principal means of addressing problems caused by traffic congestion in urban areas. Bus-based Park and Ride schemes are intended to attract motorists from outside an urban area to park at a peripherally located car park and travel by bus to the town centre. A number of local authorities in Scotland have been developing such schemes. These will introduce a new form of land use on the fringe of Scotland's towns and cities. In addition, the provision of Park and Ride is also likely to influence the catchment areas of retail and tourist centres and the residential location of employees in towns thus served.     

Influence of bus-based park and ride facilities on users’ car traffic

The rate of provision of bus-based park and ride facilities on the fringes of UK urban areas has grown in recent years. However, there has been a debate about whether the schemes reduce traffic. Research published in 1998 for the UK Government considered eight case studies and was interpreted by some as providing reassurance that park and ride can have traffic-reduction benefits. The present paper offers a new approach to the appraisal of the same eight park and ride schemes, separating the analysis into urban and extra-urban components. The urban-area analysis considers the net result of intercepting cars on the edge of urban areas and running additional dedicated bus services from the car parks. The finding is that traffic was avoided in seven out of eight cases. The analysis of the extra-urban effects of park and ride considers three sources of traffic increase: motorists that are intercepted detouring to reach sites, users switching from public transport services and motorists making additional trips. All are found to be important phenomena, with the total additional traffic generated outside the urban area being greater than that avoided within the urban area in every case study. It is concluded that the main effect of the schemes is traffic redistribution, and that their role within traffic restraint policies is unlikely to be directly one of traffic reduction.     

Giving voice to heritage tourists: indicators of quality for a sustainable heritage experience at Petra,Jordan

ABSTRACT

The tourist experience should be placed at the heart of management and planning process to achieve the goal of sustainable heritage tourism. The concept of indicators and standards of quality, which emerged in the field of natural resources and outdoor recreation management as a conceptual framework for understanding visitors’ experiences, has been widely applied in nature-based parks rather than cultural heritage sites. This study applies the concept of indicators to heritage experience at Petra Archaeological Park in Jordan. Qualitative interviews were conducted with 29 tourists to understand the tourist experience at the park, and to formulate indicators of the tourism experience. Results suggest that cultural and natural scenic value, crowding, attractions accessibility, vendor persistence, and odor of animals waste are potential indicators for the tourism experience at the park. Related management implications and recommendations are also discussed.     

Assessing visitor preferences in the management of archaeological and heritage attractions: a case study of Hadrian's Roman Wall

Managing archaeological and heritage sites requires information on visitor preferences to guide displays of cultural exhibits. A choice experiment is used to investigate visitor preferences in the management of Vondolanda Roman fort, within Hadrian's Wall World Heritage Site. It assesses visitor preferences, utility and value of attributes of the site: excavation and research, interpretation information, museum displays, reconstructions, visitor amenities and admission price. Interaction effects between attributes are analysed. The analysis reveals a preference for the status quo and greater choice uncertainty associated with alternative hypothetical attribute bundles. Neighbouring substitute Roman forts affect the price that visitors are willing to pay for entry. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Employment centers and travel behavior: exploring the work commute of Mumbai’s rapidly motorizing middle class

In the Greater Mumbai Region (GMR), jobs and housing are agglomerating in nodes in the periphery of Mumbai City. However, current transportation investments focus on strengthening connections within Mumbai City, while these outlying nodes have received less attention. As housing and jobs move out, given limited travel choices, the need for mobility nudges many middle class Indian households into owning private vehicles. Using household travel survey data from the GMR, this paper develops an understanding of how worker’s trips are different for those who commute to the city versus the exurbs. Socio-economic and transportation indicators for middle class workers going to the city versus the exurbs show that these populations are quite similar demographically. However, those traveling to the exurbs, on average, tend to be at a socio-economic disadvantage with respect to income, education and out-of-pocket travel burdens. Those traveling to exurban work locations have shorter travel times and trip distances, and make much higher use of walking, biking, rickshaws, and motorized two-wheelers compared to commuters to Mumbai City. Across the GMR, car users travel longer and farther compared to motorized two-wheeler users. On average, traveling by a private vehicle is faster than bus or rickshaw travel revealing advantages of private vehicle use. These mode choices in the middle class have resulted in rapid motorization and negative externalities such as traffic congestion and emissions. Evidence of large increases in motorized two-wheelers and cars in India suggests that these modes will likely keep growing, unless competing efficient travel options are supplied.     

Road-user charging and the Lake District National Park

This academic case study investigated the potential implementation of a road-user charging cordon in the Lake District National Park, examining the response of three distinct stakeholder groups: visitor, resident and business operator, to the imposition of road-user charges. Monetary preferences were elicited from all three stakeholders grouping’s using a mail-back questionnaire incorporating a contingent valuation method scenario. In conclusion, road-user charging was deemed an impracticable transport demand management strategy for the Lake District National Park due to the potential equity costs exceeding road network efficiency gains.     

Improving bus service quality and information in Winchester

This paper reports the results of a package of measures, contained within a quality bus partnership (QBP), designed to improve bus service quality and information on three city centre routes in Winchester, including the Park and Ride (P&R) service. These measures were implemented by Hampshire County Council, Stagecoach Bus Company and Winchester City Council as part of the EU sponsored MIRACLES project, which ran from 2002 to 2006 and whose aims included reducing the environmental impacts of transport at the local level while increasing urban accessibility.These measures included the introduction of new buses, increasing the frequency of one of the main city centre bus routes, new bus infrastructure such as new shelters and poles, physical improvements to the bus/rail interchange and the printing of pocket travel maps. In addition, one of the P&R car parks was extended so that the capacity of the scheme was doubled. The objectives of this work package were to contribute to an 8% increase in bus patronage and the satisfaction rating of bus passengers on the QBP routes as well as integrating public transport services more effectively within Winchester.A review was carried out of bus travel and users’ needs, quality bus partnerships, bus-based P&R schemes and the importance of frequency of service to increasing patronage.In order to evaluate the effects of these measures, data were collected from the bus operator Stagecoach regarding patronage, reliability and the average age of the fleet. In addition, two bus questionnaire surveys were carried out to assess passenger's views to changes made to these three city centre bus services. An evaluation of the QBP routes was made to see how quickly investments made in purchasing the new buses and extending the P&R car park would be recovered. Conclusions and recommendations have been made with regard to the effectiveness of the changes made to the three bus city centre services as well as their cost effectiveness.     

Road pricing in National Parks: a case study in the Yorkshire Dales National Park

Road user charging is typically associated with urban contexts, however, congestion at rural attractions is of increasing concern and road user charging may be considered as a suitable policy instrument. This paper investigates the issue of rural road pricing and presents the results of a survey of car-based visitors to Upper Wharfedale in the Yorkshire Dales National Park, which explores the potential impacts on mode and destination choice of a road user charging scheme, combined with a park and ride alternative. The scheme was found to be acceptable to 68% of the respondents, with nearly half opting to park and ride. The results are of particular interest in the light of the 1998 Transport White Paper that encourages pilot road user charging schemes in rural areas.     

Exploring experiential consumption dimensions in the theme park context

Although theme park products play a significant role in experiential consumption, there is a lack of attention on the components of theme park experience in the experiential consumption framework. Therefore, the current study was conducted to develop a scale to measure theme park visitor experience by applying Schmitt’s [(1999a). Experiential marketing: How to get customers to sense, feel, think, act, and relate to your company and brands. New York, NY: Free Press] five strategic experiential modules of SENSE, FEEL, THINK, ACT, and RELATE. The scale was tested on an online sample of 400 US residents who visited at least one theme park in the past twelve months. Three different analyses were used to test the reliability and validity of the 5-factor experiential consumption model. First, principal component analysis to identify the number of meaningful factors revealed a 4-factor model structure. Second, confirmatory factor analysis to test the psychometric properties of the measurement and structural models supported the 5-factor model structure, with a few convergent and discriminant validity issues, particularly on the ACT factor. Third, partial least squares analysis with both formative and reflective specifications fully supported the 5-factor model structure with a minimal concern on the convergent validity of the ACT factor. Theoretical, managerial, and methodological implications regarding visitor experience in theme parks are discussed.