Source: adapted from EPA420-R-97-007.

Four Stages Transportation / Land Use Model

The four stages transportation / land use model is a sequential procedure:

• Trip Generation. Estimate the extent, for a given spatial unit, to which it is an origin and destination for movements.
• Trip Distribution. Commonly a spatial interaction model that estimates movements between origins and destinations and which can consider constraints such as distance.
• Modal Split. Movements between origins and destination are then disaggregated by modes. This function depends on the availability of each mode, their respective costs, and preferences.
• Traffic Assignment. All the estimated trips by origin, destination and mode and then "loaded" on the transportation network, mainly with the consideration that users want to minimize their travel time. If the traffic exceeds the capacity of specific transport segments (which is often the case), congestion occurs and affects travel time. This in turn, through a feedback process, may influence trip generation and distribution.

This procedure is consequently iterative and converges at a solution, often measured as the minimal transportation cost considering a given travel demand and the characteristics of the existing transportation network. It relies on an extensive array of data.