Browsing by Author "Turkel, Eli"
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Item Autonomous Vehicles in Delaware: Analyzing the Impact and Readiness for the First State(2017-04) Barnes, Philip; Turkel, EliThe sci-fi reality of self-driving, networked, autonomous vehicles is nearly here. Ford claims it will sell these vehicles within five years, and most analysts expect modest sale numbers by the late 2020s and widespread adoption throughout the 2030s and 2040s. The consequences of the impending autonomous vehicle revolution for Delaware’s economy, its residents, and visitors are significant. Public and private stakeholders will need to adapt current practices and processes to accommodate the new advancement in transportation. State regulations that govern vehicles and drivers will need to evolve with the technology. Cybersecurity and privacy limits will be tested. The insurance industry will be required to develop new products and actuarial models. Claims of liability will be argued and settled in the courts. There will also be impacts, both positive and negative, to important transportation and urban planning areas, especially roadway safety, ownership, parking demand, vehicle miles traveled, roadway congestion and capacity, development patterns, infrastructure design, jobs and the economy, state and local budgets, fuel efficiency and carbon emissions, and transportation equity. The authors of this report attempted to preview the possible impact that autonomous vehicle deployment would have on each area. Major information gaps exist on autonomous vehicles, and there are complex interactions among areas that render such previews extremely challenging and uncertain. Despite these difficulties, the table summarizes the report’s findings. The findings are based on a long- term view and assume full, widespread penetration of autonomous vehicles across all Delaware roadways with a corresponding decline in manually-driven vehicles. A confidence measure was added to articulate the level of certainty/uncertainty for each area. Entries in the table should not be accepted as absolute truths, but rather as starting points for preliminary discussions on policy and administrative options to minimize negative impacts and amplify positive ones. In terms of readiness to accept autonomous vehicles, the state is well prepared technologically. The Delaware Department of Transportation (DelDOT) possesses an extensive telecommunications network that can be leveraged for autonomous vehicle integration, and DelDOT is proactively upgrading its systems in anticipation of autonomous vehicle deployment. DelDOT plans to install a transportation-specific wireless network in Dover, test signal timing and traffic light priority in Smyrna, and develop software to partially automate decision-making at the state’s Transportation Management Center. These are positive steps that will make Delaware attractive for vehicle testing, operation, and deployment. From an administrative standpoint, the state could accelerate the evolution of its governance systems and institutions to align with the technological advance. If action is taken now, Delaware could position itself to be a leader in the autonomous vehicle area.Item Delaware's paratransit policy and the need for innovation(University of Delaware, 2016) Turkel, EliDemand-response transportation, as defined in federal law refers to, “any non-fixed route system of transporting individuals that requires advanced scheduling by the customer, including services provided by public entities, nonprofits, and private providers”. Paratransit is a term often used to refer to demand-response transportation. The State of Delaware provides a high level of paratransit services. The reason for this is that Delaware provides paratransit services to and from any location throughout the entire state. Due to Delaware’s unique paratransit policy, IPA has studied the issue in Delaware for over 10 years. This thesis seeks to continue IPA’s work by investigating the effectiveness of transportation coordination strategies, specifically transportation coordinating councils. By comparing two counties that have similar transportation issues, this study seeks to make recommendations to improve paratransit in Delaware.Item The diffusion of civic technology: how technology and devolution are reshaping civic life in urban America(University of Delaware, 2020) Turkel, EliOver the last decade, urban communities in the United States and around the world have seen the diffusion of civic technology. Civic technology, or “technology for the public good”, takes various forms. In this case, civic technology refers to volunteer activities that use open civic data, technology, and innovative practices. Within the United States, Code for America is a particularly active agent in the work to diffuse civic technology. Code for America has a volunteer arm known as Code for America Brigades. Using Code for America Brigades a proxy for civic technology this dissertation asks the question, who is adopting civic technology and why? ☐ Since de Tocqueville, academic literature on American democracy has argued that civic association is a central feature of the success of American society. Though there is evidence that civic participation in American civil society is in decline, civic technology represents a new form of civic association. Another feature of American life in recent decades is economic polarization at multiple scales, including regional. Using urban U.S. counties as the study population this dissertation asks a series of questions regarding the characteristics of urban counties that have and have not adopted Code for America Brigades. The dissertation finds that the diffusion of Code for America Brigades is not a function of population, but rather a function of socioeconomic organization. That is, Code for America Brigades are not strongly associated with traditional forms of social capital nor are they associated with economically distressed areas. Rather, the diffusion of Code for America Brigades is associated with economically prosperous regions with high concentrations of creative class workers. ☐ The dissertation concludes that the creative class is a group with a shared incentive structure is supportive of mobilization in Code for America Brigades. Young, talented, tech-savvy, career-oriented individuals seek out the types of professional development and career advancement opportunities that affiliation with Code for America provides. In order to expand the civic technology movement, it is incumbent on Code for America and related organizations to build network structures that incentivize the involvement of organizations that are mobilized by differentiated incentive structures.Item Opioid Use Disorder in Delaware: Policies and Programs(Center for Community Research & Service; Biden School of Public Policy & Administration, University of Delaware, 2022-01) Loughlin, Emily; Turkel, Eli; Nescott, Erin; McColl, Rebecca