Dr. Kelcie Ralph and Ellen Oettinger White published an article on Apr. 20 in the Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board, examining how transportation engineering textbooks address the concept of induced travel.
The study is important because induced travel—new travel that occurs after expanding infrastructure—is key to understanding long-term project benefits and environmental impacts. The authors argue that engineers often overlook this concept during planning and review, which may be due to unfamiliarity or skepticism about its relevance.
Ralph and White conducted a systematic review of seven engineering textbooks to determine whether they clearly define induced travel, discuss its expected magnitude, include it in problem sets consistent with engineering pedagogy, and describe its implications for practice and policy. They found that three textbooks did not mention induced travel at all, while others only partially addressed it. None included all four essential elements identified by the researchers. The study also found that most textbooks focused more on accommodating demand than managing it, and portrayed driver responses to traffic conditions asymmetrically. “Overall, the engineering textbooks reviewed here leave students unprepared to understand induced travel or its implications,” Ralph and White said.
According to the official website, the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy operates as part of Rutgers University, focusing on fostering just, socially inclusive, environmentally sustainable and healthy communities at local, national and global levels. The school has earned national rankings for its graduate urban planning program (third place) and undergraduate public health program (fourth place), according to its official website. It advances social impact through research centers dedicated to community development, transportation, health, workforce development and energy policy. According to the official website, Stuart Shapiro became dean in 2023.
The Bloustein School also recognizes distinguished alumni through a Hall of Fame established in 2013 as well as annual achievement awards dating back to 1994, according to its official website.