ABSTRACT
Developing a model of rational cruising may seem pointless because some drivers resist paying for parking under any circumstances and do not seem to behave rationally when they cruise. Although drivers who take longer to find a curb space "earn" less money per minute of cruising, they also create more traffic congestion and air pollution, and this cost is borne by everyone collectively, not by the cruisers individually. The average time spent cruising, in turn, is simply the 11 cruisers divided by 1.5 spaces that become available each minute, or eight minutes (column 10). This chapter has presented a model of how drivers decide whether to cruise or to pay. There is a fixed number of parking spaces per unit of distance. The demand for parking is derived from the demand for trips. Khattak and Polak explain how parking information influences drivers’ behavior.
