AIMing for Equity in Aviation Accessibility: Development of the Aviation-accessibility Integrated Mobility (AIM) Metric

Abstract

As federal spending and planning for air transportation infrastructure looks to prioritize access for disadvantaged populations, aviation systems planning metrics that measure accessibility at the individual level are necessary. Existing metrics, from the mobility-driven metrics focused on efficiency and on-time performance to geographic accessibility metrics focused on connectivity, lack the detail of the multiple, interlocking constraints that limit potential travelers (especially lower-income travelers) from executing their agency and accessing the aviation system. We seek to develop a methodology, resulting in new analysis metrics, to quantify accessibility on an origin–destination basis based on individual constraints, time- and cost-based impedance, and aviation travel supply. We develop and apply our Aviation-accessibility Integrated Mobility (AIM) metric to empirically model relative accessibility based on traveler-specific constraints, accounting for individual-level sensitivity to travel costs and propensity to travel by ground access modes. We illustrate how equity-focused variables can change the calculus and geographic distribution of accessibility by applying the AIM to our case study region: Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Newark metropolitan areas, a region with significant socioeconomic disparities, to diverse markets (Austin, Atlanta, Nashville). Our findings indicate that incorporating individual constraints greatly influences the calculation of accessibility; additionally, we find that transportation supply and service characteristics alter the distribution of accessibility. Our model supports a national map of accessibility and potential policy recommendations to expand traditional federal airport infrastructure projects, such as targeted air service enhancement.