Public Transportation

Breaking a Harmful Feedback Loop: Mitigating Bus Queuing and Headway Irregularity on Busy Corridors

Shen, Minyu
Gu, Weihua
Cassidy, Michael
Lin, Yongjie
Ni, Wei
2024

We unveil that a previously-unreported and undesirable feedback loop can be created when bus queues frequently form at congested curbside stops along a corridor. Buses caught in this loop exhibit growing variation in headways as they travel from stop to stop. Bus and patron delays resulting from these queues accumulate in like fashion and can grow large on long, busy corridors. We show that this damaging feedback loop can be abated by applying various bus holding strategies at a corridor's entrance. Specifically, holding buses not only helps reduce headway variations---a well understood...

How Neighborhood Design and Location Affect Three Types of Walking: Results from the Washington, DC Area

Cho, GH
Rodriguez, DA
2012

Understanding how the built environment on a neighborhood scale is associated with individuals' walking has been a common research objective in transportation and urban planning. In contrast to existing literature, this study is based on the assumption that a neighborhood's location defined at regional scale may be associated with walking and that this association may be separately identifiable from the influence of the neighborhood built environment on behaviors. The findings indicated that walking for commuting purposes was more strongly associated with neighborhood location than...

Advanced Public Transportation Systems: A Taxonomy And Commercial Availability

Khattak, Asad
Noeimi, Hisham
Al-deek, Haitham
Hall, Randolph
1993

The main objectives of this study are to: 1) systematically classify new transit technologies and their impacts, 2) use the classification structure for exploring availability of new transit technologies, and 3) introduce technology developers to the California Advanced Public Transportation System (CAPTS) program. A structure is developed and applied for investigating the availability of new technologies in the market. The classification structure is based on a conceptualization of how technology attributes and technology performance will impact travelers and operators. After developing a...

An Assessment of Opportunities for Bus Rapid Transit in the San Francisco Bay Area

Miller, Mark A.
2005

This report presents the findings from an investigation of opportunities to implement bus rapid transit systems in the San Francisco Bay Area with a focus on bus transit routes that travel on the state’s highway system. A primary component of this project has been the consideration of inter-connectivity and regional aspects of bus rapid transit systems deployment in the Bay Area. We examined approximately 200 bus transit routes in the Bay Area that lie on the state highway system from which five routes were identified as likely candidates for bus rapid transit implementation. Two of the...

Who Noticed, Who Cares? Passenger Reactions to Transit Safety Measures

Wallace, RR
Rodriguez, DA
White, C
Levine, J
1999

Safety and security are important considerations for the transit operator, but few empirical studies exist that measure the effectiveness of measures taken to improve transit safety either on actual crime (or other incident) data or transit passengers’ perceived safety. The current study focuses on the links between transit safety measures implemented in the Ann Arbor, Michigan, area; the visibility of these improvements to transit passengers; and perceived levels of safety. The findings indicate that the characteristics of passengers’ riding patterns, and whether a safety measure...

Evaluation Of The Advanced Operating System Of The Ann Arbor Transportation Authority: Passenger Reactions to Transit Safety Measures

Wallace, RR
Rodriguez, D
White, C
Levine, J
1999
Safety and security are important considerations for the transit operator, but few empirical studies exist that measure the effectiveness of measures taken to improve transit safety on either actual crime (or other incident) data or transit passengers’ perceived safety. The current study focuses on the links between transit safety measures implemented in the Ann Arbor, Michigan region, the visibility of these improvements to transit passengers, and perceived ...

Evaluation Of The Advanced Operating System Of The Ann Arbor Transportation Authority: Impacts of an Advanced Public Transportation System: Demonstration Project

Levine, J
Hong, Q
Hug, GE
Rodriguez, D
1999
In 1997, the Ann Arbor (Michigan) Transportation Authority began deploying a set of integrated advanced public transportation system technologies in its vehicles, stations and control center. This paper summarizes selected findings of a multidimensional evaluation of the effects of the system on schedule adherence and transfer time, passenger perception and impacts on drivers. Some improvement in on-time performance was observed in vehicle departures from major ...

Impacts of an Advanced Public Transportation System Demonstration Project

Levine, J
Hong, Q
Jr, G Edward Hug
2000

In 1997 the Ann Arbor (Michigan) Transportation Authority began deploying a set of integrated, advanced public transportation system technologies in its vehicles, stations, and control center. Selected findings are summarized of a multidimensional evaluation of the effects of the system on schedule adherence and transfer time, passenger perception, and drivers. Some improvement in on-time performance was observed in vehicle departures from major transfer points, though not in arrivals. Modest improvements were observed in transfer coordination for routes planned for timed transfers....

Transit Passenger Perceptions of Transit-Related Crime Reduction Measures

Reed, TB
Wallace, RR
Rodriguez, DA
2000

Violent crimes against public transit bus operators and passengers in Michigan were studied. The study was funded by the Michigan Department of Transportation and conducted by the University of Michigan in early 1999. A survey approach examined transit passenger perceptions of numerous transit-related crime reduction measures, primarily patrol and security, design actions, and technological innovation. The respondents ranked emergency telephones for passengers and increased lighting as the best crime prevention measures. The survey was part of a wider study that also surveyed transit...

How Chaos Does Not Destroy Ridership: Operations of an Exclusive Busway Carrying More Than 35,000 Passengers Per Hour Per Direction

Ardila, A
Rodriguez, DA
2000

Busways have been reported to carry up to 28,000 passengers per hour per direction (pphpd). However, recent passenger counts indicate that the exclusive busway in Bogotá, Colombia, has a flow of more than 35,000 pphpd. This passenger flow is achieved despite poor operating conditions and a general lack of maintenance without a city busway management and operation authority. Consequently, there is little police control, no systems management, and scarce information for users. These conditions should affect passenger flow negatively, but the Bogotá busway carries more passengers than...