BACKGROUND

Private-sector travel origin-destination (O/D) data has become increasingly popular in a variety of transportation planning applications, including travel demand modeling. But evolving privacy regulations, computational algorithms, and data sources may introduce uncertainties and biases in data quality and stability. The rise of new and big data sources for trip flows adds further complexity, raising concerns about sample size and data representativeness. Each provider’s O/D data has unique characteristics, making direct comparisons and validation challenging. 

State departments of transportation (DOTs) and other agencies need to assess/validate the quality of passenger and freight crowdsourced O/D data. Currently, limited standard guidance exists for such a validation process, leading to potential inconsistencies or biases. Additionally, discrepancies in spatial and temporal granularity, as well as in inferred trip characteristics among vendors, require adaptable guidance. Research is needed to develop comprehensive O/D data accuracy assessment and validation frameworks to support transportation planning agencies in setting data standards and adapting to evolving data sources. 

OBJECTIVE

The objective of this research is to develop a guide for crowdsourced vehicle O/D data assessment and validation for transportation planning applications.   

Accomplishment of the project objective will require at least the following tasks.

TASKS

Task descriptions are intended to provide a framework for conducting the research. The NCHRP is seeking the insights of proposers on how best to achieve the research objective. Proposers are expected to describe research plans that can realistically be accomplished within the constraints of available funds and contract time. Proposals must present the proposers' current thinking in sufficient detail to demonstrate their understanding of the issues and the soundness of their approach to meeting the research objective. 

PHASE I—Planning

Task 1.  Investigate how practitioners and researchers have approached validating crowdsourced O/D data in transportation planning through a literature review, surveys, and/or interviews. Information may be obtained from published and unpublished sources and through the NCHRP; the Federal Highway Administration; and other national, state, and pooled fund sponsored research. 

Task 2.  Conduct a survey of a representative sample of O/D data vendors/aggregators to understand data validation practices and current methods. It shall also include questions on primary data sources, concerns over availability and reliability of location-based services (LBS) data, and the applicability of other emerging data sources and their processing algorithms resulting from recent advances in machine learning and artificial intelligence. The survey shall be accompanied by follow-up interviews as needed. 

Note: Survey questions and a list of potential recipients shall be submitted for review and approval by the NCHRP. 

Task 3. Based on the results of Tasks 1 and 2, identify best practices and knowledge gaps in validating proprietary third-party O/D data used to estimate travel patterns in the following categories: characteristics of different data sources, data imputation processes (imputing mode, home/work locations, link volumes, trip records, etc.), data expansion, and spatial/temporal data granularity and extent. The knowledge gaps should be addressed in the final product or the recommended future research, as the budget permits. 

Task 4. Propose the work plan to be executed in Phase II to achieve the research objective. At a minimum, the work plan shall include: 

• Independent validation and sensitivity testing procedures that consider:
  • Passenger vs. freight vehicle data categories 
  • Different types of data (e.g., GPS data, Bluetooth data, connected vehicle data, location-based services data)
  • Sampling rate and durations 
  • Representativeness of the data at different scales (local vs. regional) in terms of sociodemographic groups, resident vs. visitor, internal vs. external trips, trip length frequency distribution, etc. 
  • Relationships between the O/D data and the production and attraction data
  • Different use cases such as planning, modeling, policy analyses, etc. 
  • Different contexts (urban vs. rural or regional vs. corridor vs. site, seasonal variations, etc.)
  • Periodic quality assurance/quality control procedures  
• Developing a guide for crowdsourced O/D data assessment and validation for transportation planning applications. The guide shall consider resources required to execute the validation plan by state DOTs. 

Note: Proposers are expected to identify specific postpandemic private-sector O/D data sources to be used to test the validation procedures developed in the work plan.

Task 5. Prepare a draft annotated outline for the guide. The annotated outline is intended to provide the foundation, context, and framework for the guide that will be developed in Phase II. 

Task 6. Prepare Interim Report No. 1, which documents Tasks 1 through 5 and provides an updated work plan for the remainder of the research. The updated work plan must describe the process and rationale for the work proposed for Phases II and III.

Note: Following a 1-month review of the interim report by the NCHRP, the research team will meet in person with the project panel to discuss the interim report. Work on Phase II will not begin until authorized by the NCHRP. 

PHASE II—Execution 

Task 7. Execute the work plan according to the approved Interim Report No. 1.

Note: The research team is required to hold a virtual session to discuss the draft guide with the panel and receive feedback. 

Task 8. Conduct a virtual workshop to gather feedback on the draft guide from a variety of audiences (including the surveyed individuals and agencies as part of Tasks 1 and 2). Revise the draft guide according to the feedback received from the virtual workshop.

Task 9. Prepare Interim Report No. 2, which documents Tasks 7 and 8 and provides an updated work plan for the remainder of the research. The updated work plan must describe the process and rationale for the work proposed for Phase III. 

Note: Following a 1-month review of Interim Report No. 2 by the NCHRP, the research team will meet with the project panel to discuss the interim report. Work on Phase III of the project will not begin until authorized by the NCHRP.

PHASE III—Final Products 

Task 10. Revise the draft guide after consideration of the panel’s review comments. 

Task 11. Conduct an overview webinar to communicate research findings and a virtual technical training session on how to apply the final guide within the last 3 months of the contract period. 

Task 12. Submit the draft final deliverables, including (1) a final report that documents the entire research effort, (2) the guide, (3) a stand-alone technical memorandum titled “Implementation of Research Findings and Products (see Special Note J for additional information), and (4) a PowerPoint presentation to present the research findings to the panel.

Note: Following receipt of the draft final deliverables, the remaining 3 months shall be for NCHRP review and comment and for research agency preparation of the final deliverables.

SPECIAL NOTES

A. The Information and Instructions for Preparing Proposals for the Transportation Research Board’s Cooperative Research Programs were revised in May 2024. Please take note of the new and revised text which is highlighted in yellow.

B. Proposals must be submitted as a single PDF file with a maximum file size of 10 MB. The PDF must be formatted for standard 8 ½” X 11” paper, and the entire proposal must not exceed 60 pages (according to the page count displayed in the PDF). Proposals that do not meet these requirements will be rejected. For other requirements, refer to chapter V of the instructions.

C. The Information and Instructions for Preparing Proposals for the Transportation Research Board’s Cooperative Research Programs have been modified to include a revised policy and instructions for disclosing Investigator Conflict of Interest. For more information, refer to chapter IV of the instructions. A detailed definition and examples can be found in the CRP Conflict of Interest Policy for Contractors. The proposer recommended by the project panel will be required to submit an Investigator Conflict of Interest and Disclosure Form as a prerequisite for contract negotiations.

D. Proposals will be rejected if any of the proposed research team members work for organizations represented on the project panel. The panel roster for this project can be found at https://www.mytrb.org/OnlineDirectory/Committee/Details/7054. Proposers may not contact panel members directly; this roster is provided solely for the purpose of avoiding potential conflicts of interest.

E. Proprietary Products - If any proprietary products are to be used or tested in the project, please refer to Item 6 in the Information and Instructions for Preparing Proposals.

F. Proposals are evaluated by the NCHRP staff and project panels consisting of individuals collectively knowledgeable in the problem area. The project panel will recommend their first choice proposal considering the following factors: (1) the proposer's demonstrated understanding of the problem; (2) the merit of the proposed research approach and experiment design; (3) the experience, qualifications, and objectivity of the research team in the same or closely related problem area; (4) the plan for ensuring application of results; (5) how the proposer approaches inclusion and diversity in the composition of their team and research approach, including participation by certified Disadvantaged Business Enterprises; and, if relevant, (6) the adequacy of the facilities. A recommendation by the project panel is not a guarantee of a contract. The National Academy of Sciences (NAS - the contracting authority for the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine) will conduct an internal due diligence review and risk assessment of the panel’s recommended proposal before contract negotiations continue.

Note: The proposer's approach to inclusion and diversity as well as participation by Disadvantaged Business Enterprises should be incorporated in Item 11 of the proposal.

G. Copyrights - All data, written materials, computer software, graphic and photographic images, and other information prepared under the contract and the copyrights therein shall be owned by the National Academy of Sciences. The contractor and subcontractors will be able to publish this material for non-commercial purposes, for internal use, or to further academic research or studies with permission from TRB Cooperative Research Programs. The contractor and subcontractors will not be allowed to sell the project material without prior approval by the National Academy of Sciences. By signing a contract with the National Academy of Sciences, contractors accept legal responsibility for any copyright infringement that may exist in work done for TRB. Contractors are therefore responsible for obtaining all necessary permissions for use of copyrighted material in TRB's Cooperative Research Programs publications. For guidance on TRB's policies on using copyrighted material please consult Section 5.4, "Use of Copyrighted Material," in the Procedural Manual for Contractors.

H. The text of the final deliverable is expected to be publication-ready when it is submitted. It is strongly recommended that the research team include the expertise of a technical editor as early in the project timeline as possible. See Appendix F of the Procedural Manual for Contractors Conducting Research in the Transportation Research Board’s Cooperative Research Program for technical editing standards expected in final deliverables.

I. Proposals should include a task-by-task breakdown of labor hours for each staff member as shown in Figure 4 in the Information and Instructions for Preparing Proposals. Proposals also should include a breakdown of all costs (e.g., wages, indirect costs, travel, materials, and total) for each task using Figures 5 and 6 in the brochure. Please note that TRB Cooperative Research Program subawards (selected proposers are considered subawards to the National Academy of Sciences, the parent organization of TRB) must comply with 2 CFR 200 – Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards. These requirements include a provision that proposers without a "federally" Negotiated Indirect Costs Rate Agreement (NICRA) shall be subject to a maximum allowable indirect rate of 10% of Modified Total Direct Costs. Modified Total Direct Costs include all salaries and wages, applicable fringe benefits, materials and supplies, services, travel, and up to the first $25,000 of each lower tier subaward and subcontract. Modified Total Direct Costs exclude equipment, capital expenditures, charges for patient care, rental costs, tuition remission, scholarships and fellowships, participant support costs and the portion of each lower tier subaward and subcontract in excess of $25,000.

J. The required technical memorandum titled “Implementation of Research Findings and Products” should (a) provide recommendations on how to best put the research findings/products into practice; (b) identify possible institutions that might take leadership in applying the research findings/products; (c) identify issues affecting potential implementation of the findings/products and recommend possible actions to address these issues; and (d) recommend methods of identifying and measuring the impacts associated with implementation of the findings/products. Implementation of these recommendations is not part of the research project and, if warranted, details of these actions will be developed and implemented in future efforts.

The research team will be expected to provide input to an implementation team consisting of panel members, AASHTO committee members, the NCHRP Implementation Coordinator, and others in order to meet the goals of NCHRP Active Implementation: Moving Research into Practice, available at http://onlinepubs.trb.org/onlinepubs/nchrp/docs/NCHRP_ActiveImplementation.pdf

K. If the team proposes a Principal Investigator who is not an employee of the Prime Contractor, or if the Prime Contractor is proposed to conduct less than 50% of the total effort (by time or budget), then section five of the proposal should include: (1) a justification of why this approach is appropriate, and (2) a description of how the Prime Contractor will ensure adequate communication and coordination with their Subcontractors throughout the project.

L. All budget information should be suitable for printing on 8½″ x 11″ paper. If a budget page cannot fit on a single 8½″ x 11″ page, it should be split over multiple pages. Proposers must use the Excel templates provided in the Information and Instructions for Preparing Proposals for the Transportation Research Board’s Cooperative Research Programs.

M. The National Academies have an ethical and legal obligation to provide proper attribution whenever material from other sources is included in its reports, online postings, and other publications and products. TRB will review all Cooperative Research Programs draft final deliverables using the software iThenticate for potential plagiarism. If plagiarized text appears in the draft final deliverable, the research team will be required to make revisions and the opportunity to submit future proposals may be affected.