TRAFFIC CHARACTERISTICS OF MASSACHUSETTS ROUTE 128

AN ANALYSIS IS PRESENTED OF THE TRAVEL PATTERNS OF EMPLOYEES OF NEW INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT ADJACENT TO MASSACHUSETTS ROUTE 128, A LIMITED-ACCESS CIRCUMFERENTIAL HIGHWAY LOCATED ABOUT 10 MI FROM THE CENTRAL BUSINESS DISTRICT OF BOSTON. THESE TRAVEL PATTERNS ARE COMPARED WITH THOSE OF IN-TOWN INDUSTRIAL EMPLOYEES, AND THE IMPACT OF THE GENERATED TRAFFIC IS EVALUATED. MOST OF THE DATA PRESENTED ARE SEPARATED ACCORDING TO TWO MAJOR CLASSIFICATIONS: (1) ROUTE 128 USERS, AND NON-USERS, AND (2) PRESENT EMPLOYEES WHO WORKED FOR A COMPANY AFTER IT MOVED. ADDITIONAL SEPARATIONS ARE MADE FOR EACH OF FOUR TYPES OF INDUSTRY AND FOR EACH OF SEVEN INDUSTRIAL LOCATIONS ALONG THE HIGHWAY. ALSO,AVERAGE TIMES, DISTANCES, AND SPEEDS TO WORK ARE PRESENTED TOR THE EMPLOYEES WHO LIVE IN OUTLYING, INTERMEDIATE, AND IN-TOWN RESIDENTIAL AREAS. ALSO INCLUDED IS OTHER INFORMATION CONCERNING THE PARKING FACILITIES OF THE NEW INDUSTRIES ALONG THE HIGHWAY, AS WELL AS DATA ON EMPLOYMENT-VEHICLE RATIOS FOR VARIOUS TYPES OF INDUSTRY AND RANGES OF EMPLOYMENT. FINALLY, AN EVALUATION IS MADE OF THE STUDY AND ITS METHODOLOGY, TOGETHER WITH COMMENTS REGARDING FUTURE AREAS OF RESEARCH. /AUTHOR/