Our Experts

Marlon Boarnet

  • GSRBA, PhysicsRice University19801984
  • GSRPhD, Public AffairsPrinceton University19861992
  • GSRBA, PhysicsRice University19801984
  • GSRPhD, Public AffairsPrinceton University19861992
  • ProfessorUrban Planning and Public PolicySchool of Social EcologyUC Irvine19912011
  • Faculty AssociateITS-IrvineUC Irvine19912011
  • ProfessorSol Price School of Public PolicyUniversity of Southern California2011

Dr. Marlon Boarnet was an ITS Faculty Associate when he was Professor of Planning, Policy, and Design and of Economics at UC Irvine from 1991 through 2011. He is now a Professor of Public Policy and Chair of the Urban Planning & Spatial Analysis Department at the University of Southern California and is recognized as a renowned authority on urban economics, urban growth patterns, transportation, and regional science. He is an expert in transportation and land use, and has served on the National Research Council committee that authored “Driving and the Built Environment.

Record last updated: December 10, 2024.

Areas of Expertise

Infrastructure Delivery, Operations, & Resilience Public Transit, Shared Mobility, & Active Transportation Safety, Public Health, & Mobility Justice Travel Behavior, Land Use, & the Built Environment

Related Information

ITS Affiliations

Recent Projects

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Gender Differences in Non-Work Travel Behavior: Interaction between Land Use and Sociodemographic Characteristics

Complete | Apr 2011—Mar 2012

Research Team:

Marlon Boarnet (lead), Hsin Hsu

Spring 2011 Dissertation Award – Hsin-Ping Hsu

Complete | Apr 2011—Mar 2012

Research Team:

Marlon Boarnet (lead)

Spatially focused Travel Survey Data Collection & Analysis: Closing Data Gaps for Climate Change Policy

Complete | Dec 2010—Jun 2015

Research Team:

Doug Houston (lead), Marlon Boarnet

Department(s):

Urban Planning and Public Policy

Recent Publications

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published journal article | Mar 2019

Gender and rail transit use: Influence of environmental beliefs and safety concerns
Transportation Research Record

published journal article | Nov 2018

Intrapersonal day-to-day travel variability and duration of household travel surveys: Moving beyond the one-day convention
JTLU

published journal article | Oct 2017

Changes in service and associated ridership impacts near a new light rail transit line
Sustainability

Publications

Note: Publications listed below are generally limited to those associated activity during Marlon Boarnet's affiliation with ITS-Irvine. The list may be incomplete. For a more comprehensive list, please consult other data sources in their Related Information.

Journal Articles

  1. Hsin-Ping Hsu, Marlon G. Boarnet and Douglas Houston (2019) “Gender and rail transit use: Influence of environmental beliefs and safety concerns”, Transportation Research Record, 2673(4), pp. 327–338. Available at: 10.1177/0361198119837193. [ITS-Irvine record]
  2. Wei Li, Douglas Houston, Marlon G. Boarnet and Han Park (2018) “Intrapersonal day-to-day travel variability and duration of household travel surveys: Moving beyond the one-day convention”, JTLU, 11(1). Available at: 10.5198/jtlu.2018.984. [ITS-Irvine record]
  3. Jeongwoo Lee, Marlon Boarnet, Douglas Houston, Hilary Nixon and Steven Spears (2017) “Changes in service and associated ridership impacts near a new light rail transit line”, Sustainability, 9(10), p. 1827. Available at: 10.3390/su9101827. [ITS-Irvine record]
  4. Andy Hong, Marlon G. Boarnet and Douglas Houston (2016) “New light rail transit and active travel: A longitudinal study”, Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, 92, pp. 131–144. Available at: 10.1016/j.tra.2016.07.005. [ITS-Irvine record]
  5. Steven Spears, Marlon G Boarnet and Douglas Houston (2016) “Driving reduction after the introduction of light rail transit: Evidence from an experimental-control group evaluation of the Los Angeles Expo Line”, Urban Studies, 54(12), pp. 2780–2799. Available at: 10.1177/0042098016657261. [ITS-Irvine record]
  6. Marlon G. Boarnet, Xize Wang and Douglas Houston (2016) “Can new light rail reduce personal vehicle carbon emissions? A before-after, experimental-control evaluation in Los Angeles. LIGHT RAIL AND CO2 EMISSIONS”, Journal of Regional Science, 57(3), pp. 523–539. Available at: 10.1111/jors.12275. [ITS-Irvine record]
  7. Harya S. Dillon, Jean-Daniel Saphores and Marlon G. Boarnet (2015) “The impact of urban form and gasoline prices on vehicle usage: Evidence from the 2009 National Household Travel Survey”, Research in Transportation Economics, 52, pp. 23–33. Available at: 10.1016/j.retrec.2015.10.006. [ITS-Irvine record]
  8. Douglas Houston, Thuy T. Luong and Marlon G. Boarnet (2014) “Tracking daily travel; Assessing discrepancies between GPS-derived and self-reported travel patterns”, Transportation Research Part C: Emerging Technologies, 48, pp. 97–108. Available at: 10.1016/j.trc.2014.08.013. [ITS-Irvine record]
  9. Douglas Houston, Marlon G Boarnet, Gavin Ferguson and Steven Spears (2014) “Can compact rail transit corridors transform the automobile city? Planning for more sustainable travel in Los Angeles”, Urban Studies, 52(5), pp. 938–959. Available at: 10.1177/0042098014529344. [ITS-Irvine record]
  10. Steven Spears, Douglas Houston and Marlon G. Boarnet (2013) “Illuminating the unseen in transit use: A framework for examining the effect of attitudes and perceptions on travel behavior”, Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, 58, pp. 40–53. Available at: 10.1016/j.tra.2013.10.011. [ITS-Irvine record]
  11. Hansheng Pan, Christian Bartolome, Eric Gutierrez, Marko Princevac, Rufus Edwards, Marlon G. Boarnet and Douglas Houston (2013) “Investigation of roadside fine particulate matter concentration surrounding major arterials in five Southern Californian cities”, Journal of the Air & Waste Management Association, 63(4), pp. 482–498. Available at: 10.1080/10962247.2013.763867. [ITS-Irvine record]
  12. Marlon G. Boarnet, Douglas Houston, Rufus Edwards, Marko Princevac, Gavin Ferguson, Hansheng Pan and Christian Bartolome (2011) “Fine particulate concentrations on sidewalks in five Southern California cities”, Atmospheric Environment, 45(24), pp. 4025–4033. Available at: 10.1016/j.atmosenv.2011.04.047. [ITS-Irvine record]
  13. Jean-Daniel M. Saphores and Marlon G. Boarnet (2006) “Uncertainty and the timing of an urban congestion relief investment.”, Journal of Urban Economics, 59(2), pp. 189–208. Available at: 10.1016/j.jue.2005.04.003. [ITS-Irvine record]
  14. Marlon G. Boarnet, Craig L. Anderson, Kristen Day, Tracy McMillan and Mariela Alfonzo (2005) “Evaluation of the California Safe Routes to School legislation: Urban form changes and children’s active transportation to school”, American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 28(2), pp. 134–140. Available at: 10.1016/j.amepre.2004.10.026. [ITS-Irvine record]
  15. Marlon Boarnet and Randall Crane (2001) “The influence of land use on travel behavior: specification and estimation strategies”, Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, 35(9), pp. 823–845. Available at: 10.1016/S0965-8564(00)00019-7. [ITS-Irvine record]

Conference Papers

  1. Harya S. Dillon, Jean-Daniel Saphores and Marlon Boarnet (2016) “A SEM analysis of the impact of urban form and gasoline prices on vehicle use: An application to southern California”, in Proceedings of the 95th annual meeting of the transportation research board, p. 19p. [ITS-Irvine record]
  2. Douglas Houston, Marlon Boarnet, Gaby Abdel-Salam, Andy Hong, Dongwoo Yang, Wei Li and Steven Spears (2013) “Walking to transit: Transit proximity and physical activity in a low-income community”, in Proceedings of the active living research conference, san diego. [ITS-Irvine record]
  3. S. Spears, D. Houston and M. Boarnet (2012) “Illuminating the unseen in neighborhood travel: A framework for examining the influence of attitudes, norms, and perceptions on travel behavior”, in Proceedings of the annual meeting of the association of collegiate schools of planning (ACSP), cincinnati, OH. [ITS-Irvine record]
  4. D. Houston, M. Boarnet, W. Li, S. Spears and D. Yang (2012) “Transit ridership, bus ridership, and physical activity in a low income community”, in Proceedings of the annual meeting of the association of collegiate schools of planning (ACSP), cincinnati, OH. [ITS-Irvine record]
  5. M.G. Boarnet, D. Houston, G. Ferguson and S. Spears (2010) “Land use and vehicle miles of travel in the climate change debate: Getting smarter than your average bear”, in Proceedings of the land policy conference of the lincoln institute of land policy, cambridge, massachusetts. [ITS-Irvine record]

Technical Reports

  1. Hilary Nixon, Marlon Boarnet, Doug Houston, Steven Spears and Jeongwoo Lee (2015) Changes in transit use and service and associated changes in driving near a new light rail transit line, p. 63p. [ITS-Irvine record]
  2. Susan Handy and Marlon Boarnet (2014) Impact of Highway Capacity and Induced Travel on Passenger Vehicle Use and Greenhouse Gas Emissions. Research Report. ITS-Irvine. Available at: https://ww2.arb.ca.gov/sites/default/files/2020-06/Impact_of_Highway_Capacity_and_Induced_Travel_on_Passenger_Vehicle_Use_and_Greenhouse_Gas_Emissions_Technical_Background_Document.pdf. [ITS-Irvine record]
  3. Deborah Salon, Marlon Boarnet and Patricia Mokhtarian (2014) Quantifying the Effect of Local Government Actions on VMT. Research Report. ITS-Irvine. Available at: http://www.arb.ca.gov/research/apr/past/09-343.pdf. [ITS-Irvine record]
  4. Marlon G. Boarnet, Andy Hong, Jeongwoo Lee, Xize Wang, Weijie Wang, Doug Houston and Steven Spears (2013) The exposition light rail line study: A before and after study of the impact of new light rail transit service, p. vii, 64p. [ITS-Irvine record]
  5. Doug Houston, Marlon Boarnet, GAVIN FERGUSON and DAVID WILLIAM NYENHUIS (2013) Spatially Focused Travel Survey Data Collection and Analysis: Closing Data Gaps for Climate Change Policy. Research Report CA14-2243. ITS-Irvine. Available at: https://dot.ca.gov/-/media/dot-media/programs/research-innovation-system-information/documents/f0016826-final-report-contract-65a0438-task-2243.pdf. [ITS-Irvine record]
  6. Marlon Boarnet, GAVIN FERGUSON and RUFUS D EDWARDS (2010) Fine Particulate Concentrations Near Arterial Streets: The Influence of Building Placement and Wind Flow. Research Report. ITS-Irvine. Available at: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/3jk569f1. [ITS-Irvine record]
  7. Marlon Boarnet, RUFUS D EDWARDS, Jun Wu, GAVIN FERGUSON, Anahita Fazl and RAUL PEREZ LEJANO (2009) Near-Source Modeling of Transportation Emissions in Built Environments Surrounding Major Arterials. Research Report UCTC 886. ITS-Irvine. Available at: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/5w357946. [ITS-Irvine record]
  8. Marlon Boarnet and Saksith Chalermpong (2003) New Highways, House Prices, and Urban Development: A Case Study of Toll Roads in Orange County, CA. Research Report. ITS-Irvine. Available at: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/2zd554cs. [ITS-Irvine record]

Working Papers

  1. Marlon Boarnet, Kristen Day, Tracey Elizabeth McMillan, MARIELA ALFONZO (2006) Impacts on Walking, Bicycling, and Pedestrian Safety. Available at: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/4sw448cv. [ITS-Irvine record]
  2. MARIELA ALFONZO, Marlon Boarnet, Kristen Day, Tracey Elizabeth McMillan (2006) The Relationship of Neighborhood Built Environment Features and Walking. Available at: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/8fh1x4h3. [ITS-Irvine record]
  3. Marlon Boarnet, Kristen Day, Tracey Elizabeth McMillan, MARIELA ALFONZO (2006) Urban Form Changes and Children’s Active Transportation to School. Available at: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/3vd3g3jm. [ITS-Irvine record]
  4. Tracey Elizabeth McMillan, Kristen Day, Marlon Boarnet, MARIELA ALFONZO (2006) Johnny Walks to School – Does Jane? Sex Differences in Children’s Active Travel to School. Available at: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/22f7k6z8. [ITS-Irvine record]
  5. Jean-Daniel M. Saphores and Marlon G. Boarnet (2004) Uncertainty And The Timing Of An Urban Congestion Relief Investment. Working Paper UCI-ITS-WP-04-2. Institute of Transportation Studies, Irvine. Available at: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/2x46m9pb. [ITS-Irvine record]
  6. Marlon Boarnet (2003) Empirical Methods and Data Resources. Available at: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/7mj625f0. [ITS-Irvine record]
  7. Marlon G. Boarnet, K.S. Nesamani and C. Scott Smith (2003) Comparing the Influence of Land Use on Nonwork Trip Generation and Vehicle Distance Traveled: An Analysis using Travel Diary Data. Working Paper UCI-ITS-WP-03-8. Institute of Transportation Studies, Irvine. Available at: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/50v4j7nb. [ITS-Irvine record]
  8. Marlon Boarnet, Kristen Day (2003) Evaluation of the California Safe Routes to School Construction Program. Available at: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/7fg6w31h. [ITS-Irvine record]
  9. Marlon Boarnet, Saksith Chalermpong (2002) A “Before and After” Test. Available at: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/7426232j. [ITS-Irvine record]
  10. Craig Anderson, Marlon G. Boarnet, Tracy McMillan, Mariela Alfonzo and Kristen Day (2002) Walking and Automobile Traffic Near Schools: Data to Support an Evaluation of School Pedestrian Safety Programs. Working Paper UCI-ITS-WP-02-7. Institute of Transportation Studies, Irvine. Available at: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/69h09913. [ITS-Irvine record]
  11. Marlon Boarnet, Saksith Chalermpong, Elizabeth Geho (2001) Specification Issues in Models of Population and Employment Growth. Available at: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/5fn0m74n. [ITS-Irvine record]
  12. Michael J. Greenwald and Marlon G. Boarnet (2001) The Built Environment as a Determinant of Walking Behavior: Analyzing Non-Work Pedestrian Travel in Portland, Oregon. Working Paper UCI-ITS-WP-01-9, UCI-ITS-AS-WP-01-4. Institute of Transportation Studies, Irvine. Available at: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/9gn7265f. [ITS-Irvine record]
  13. Marlon Boarnet, Saksith Chalermpong (2000) New Highways, Urban Development and Induced Travel. Available at: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/7jm9c08m. [ITS-Irvine record]
  14. Marlon G. Boarnet and Saksith Chalermpong (2000) New Highways, Urban Development, and Induced Travel. Working Paper UCI-ITS-WP-00-4. Institute of Transportation Studies, Irvine. Available at: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/3t18n41x. [ITS-Irvine record]
  15. Marlon G. Boarnet and Andrew F. Haughwout (2000) Do Highways Matter? Evidence and Policy Implications of Highways' Influence on Metropolitan Development. Working Paper UCI-ITS-WP-00-2, UCTC 515. Institute of Transportation Studies, Irvine. Available at: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/5rn9w6bz. [ITS-Irvine record]
  16. Marlon Boarnet, Mike Greenwald (1999) Reproducing for Portland, Oregon, Empirical Tests from other Urban Areas. Available at: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/9zd6c7dh. [ITS-Irvine record]
  17. Marlon G. Boarnet, Eugene Jae Kim and Emily Parkany (1998) Measuring Traffic Congestion. Working Paper UCI-ITS-WP-98-3. Institute of Transportation Studies, Irvine. Available at: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/2hr1k5s0. [ITS-Irvine record]
  18. Marlon G. Boarnet and Sharon Sarmiento (1996) Can Land Use Policy Really Affect Travel Behavior? A Study of the Link between Non-Work Travel and Land Use Characteristics. Working Paper UCI-ITS-WP-96-15, UCI-ITS-AS-WP-96-5. Institute of Transportation Studies, Irvine. Available at: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/7db9v4zb. [ITS-Irvine record]
  19. Marlon G. Boarnet (1996) Geography and Public Infrastructure. Working Paper UCI-ITS-WP-96-1, UCTC 305. Institute of Transportation Studies, Irvine. Available at: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/1fn223q7. [ITS-Irvine record]
  20. Marlon G. Boarnet (1996) Business Losses, Transportation Damage and the Northridge Earthquake. Working Paper UCI-ITS-WP-95-17, UCTC 341. Institute of Transportation Studies, Irvine. Available at: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/80w9g0rd. [ITS-Irvine record]
  21. Marlon G. Boarnet and Nicholas S. Compin (1996) Transit-Oriented Development in San Diego County: Incrementally Implementing a Comprehensive Idea. Working Paper UCI-ITS-WP-96-7, UCTC 343. Institute of Transportation Studies, Irvine. Available at: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/21f3t24g. [ITS-Irvine record]
  22. Marlon G. Boarnet (1996) The Direct and Indirect Economic Effects of Transportation Infrastructure. Working Paper UCI-ITS-WP-96-4, UCTC 340. Institute of Transportation Studies, Irvine. Available at: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/9770p8b2. [ITS-Irvine record]
  23. Marlon G. Boarnet and Randall Crane (1995) Public Finance and Transit-Oriented Planning: New Evidence from Southern California. Working Paper UCI-ITS-WP-95-19, UCTC 304. Institute of Transportation Studies, Irvine. Available at: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/4v95x0tm. [ITS-Irvine record]
  24. Marlon G. Boarnet (1995) The Economic Effects of Highway Congestion. Working Paper UCI-ITS-WP-95-16, UCTC 292. Institute of Transportation Studies, Irvine. Available at: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/6tk2m53k. [ITS-Irvine record]
  25. Marlon Boarnet (1995) Interpreting Recent Evidence. Available at: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/4g79984s. [ITS-Irvine record]
  26. Marlon G. Boarnet and Eugene Jae Kim (1995) Economic Impacts of the Northridge Earthquake's Transportation Damage: Results from a Survey of Firms. Working Paper UCI-ITS-WP-95-14. Institute of Transportation Studies, Irvine. Available at: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/3vp8940q. [ITS-Irvine record]
  27. Marlon G. Boarnet (1995) Highways and Intrametropolitan Employment Growth. Working Paper UCI-ITS-WP-95-9, UCTC 85. Institute of Transportation Studies, Irvine. Available at: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/7cd0157q. [ITS-Irvine record]
  28. Marlon Boarnet and Randall Crane (1995) L.A. Story: A Reality Check for Transit-Based Housing. Working Paper UCI-ITS-WP-95-7, UCTC 250. Institute of Transportation Studies, Irvine. Available at: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/28130050. [ITS-Irvine record]
  29. Marlon G. Boarnet (1995) Transportation Infrastructure, Economic Productivity, and Geographic Scale: Aggregate Growth versus Spatial Redistribution. Working Paper UCI-ITS-WP-95-4, UCTC 255. Institute of Transportation Studies, Irvine. Available at: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/6sj276z4. [ITS-Irvine record]
  30. Marlon G. Boarnet (1992) Transportation Access, Urban Problems, and Intrametropolitan Population and Employment Changes. Working Paper UCI-ITS-WP-92-5. Institute of Transportation Studies, Irvine. Available at: https://escholarship.org/uc/item/9v732838. [ITS-Irvine record]

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