EMPIRICAL-EVALUATION OF ALTERNATIVE MODEL SPECIFICATIONS TO PREDICT COMMUTING FLOWS

This study is devoted to empirical and modeling aspects on how charact eristics of spatial structure influence commuting flows. Within a doub ly-constrained framework, results from a competing-destinations formul ation are evaluated and compared to results from the traditional gravi ty model. The evaluation depends critically upon the specification of within-zone journeys-to-work. Specific labor-market characteristics ar e found to be significant to explain how workers are absorbed in diago nal elements of the trip-distribution matrix. We also find that the pa rametric specification of the accessibility measure is important, and that the competing-destinations formulation is superior to the traditi onal gravity model.