BDD/UTHM/2017

Transportation Planning &

Engineering

MFA 10403
Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering
UNIVERSITI TUN HUSSEIN ONN MALAYSIA
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Transit Capacity and Level-of-

Service (LOS)
Transit is the term used to describe shared passenger
transportation services that are available for public use.

Transit Modes
• Bus
• Streetcar/Tram
• Light rail
• Heavy rail
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Role of Transit
• accommodates choice riders – i.e. those who choose
transit for their trip-making even though they have other
means of travel (motor vehicle)

• provides basic mobility for segments of the population

that are too young to drive, too old to drive, or unable to
drive due to physical, mental or financial situations.
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Transit Characteristics
• transit service is only available in certain locations
during certain times

• transit capacity is limited by the number of transit

vehicles operated at a given time

• transit passengers rely on other modes to gain access to

transit
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Transit Characteristics
• transit use is greatest where population densities are
highest and pedestrian access is good

• transit moves people rather than vehicles

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Transit Capacity
Transit capacity is different from highway capacity.

Transit deals with the movement of both people and

vehicles, therefore it depends on:
• size of transit vehicles
• how often transit vehicles operates

Transit capacity reflects the interaction of passenger traffic

and transit vehicle flow.

Transit capacity is influenced by the operating policy of the

transit agency, which specifies service frequencies and
allowable passenger loadings.
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Transit Capacity
Vehicle Capacity Person Capacity

The number of transit The number of people

units (buses or trains) that can be carried past
that can be served by a a given location during
loading area, transit a given time period
stop, guideway, or under specified
route during a specified operating conditions,
period of time. without reasonable
delay, hazard, or
restriction, and with
reasonable certainty.
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Operating many buses, each carrying few passengers

represents a good quality of service from the passenger
perspective, but has negative impact on highway capacity.

Operating few buses, each overcrowded represents a

poor quality of service from the passenger perspective,
but has a positive impact on highway capacity.
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Vehicle Capacity
Vehicle capacity is determined at three locations:

Loading areas or Transit stops or Bus lanes and

berths stations transit routes

Each location directly influences the next. The vehicle

capacity of a bus stop or rail station is controlled by the
vehicle capacities of the loading areas.
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The vehicle capacity of a bus lane or transit route is

controlled by the vehicle capacity of the critical stops
along the lane or route.

The two greatest influences on loading area vehicle

capacity are:
• Dwell time
• Ratio of the green time to the cycle length (g/C ratio)

Time Time
Dwell time = required to + required to
serve open and
passengers close the
at the doors
busiest door
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Dwell time and g/C ratio also greatly influences the

vehicle capacity of transit stops and routes.

However, dwell time has the greater influence on vehicle

capacity of loading areas.

The green time controls the number of transit vehicles

that can arrive at a loading area.

The length of red in relation to the dwell time also affects

vehicle capacity; if passenger movements are finished, but
the vehicle must wait for a traffic signal to turn green,
vehicle capacity will be less than if the vehicle can leave
immediately, so that another vehicle can use the loading
area.
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Person Capacity
Person capacity is calculated for:
• Transit stops and stations
• Transit routes at their maximum load points
• Bus lanes at their maximum load points

Factors that control

person capacity:
• Operator policy
• Passenger demand
characteristics
• Vehicle capacity
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Peak-Hour Factor Loading-Area

Allowed Passenger Trip Vehicle Capacity
passenger Lengths Transit-Stop
loading Vehicle Capacity
Boarding Volume
Transit Distribution Among Transit-Lane
Frequency Stops Vehicle Capacity

Passenger
Operator Demand Vehicle
Policy Characteristics Capacity

Person Capacity
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Operator Policy
An operator with a
policy requiring all
passengers to be seated
will have a lower person
capacity.

An operator with a policy that

does not require all
passengers to be seated
(standing allowed) will have a
higher person capacity.
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Passenger Demand Characteristics

The number of boarding passengers that can be carried
is determined by how passenger demand is:
• distributed spatially along a route
• distributed over time during the analysis period

Passenger demand fluctuates during the peak hour. The

peak-hour factor (PHF) reflects peak demand volumes
over a 15 minute period during the hour.

Actual person capacity during peak hour will be less than

the peak 15-min demand volumes, because peak
demand is not sustained over the entire hour and
vehicles will experience different peak loadings.
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The average passenger trip length affects how many

passengers can board a transit vehicle.

If trips are long with passengers boarding near the start

of the route and alighting near the end, vehicles will not
board as many passengers as when passengers board
and alight at many locations (short trips).
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The distribution of boarding passengers among transit

stops affects the dwell time at each stop.
If passenger boardings
are concentrated at one
stop, the vehicle
capacity of a transit
route or bus lane will be
lower, since the dwell
time at that stop will
control the vehicle
capacity (and, in turn,
people capacity) of the
entire route/lane.
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Vehicle Capacity of various transit facilities sets an

upper limit to the number of passengers that may use a
transit stop, or that may be carried past the maximum
load point.
Transit-Lane
Transit-Lane Allowed
Person Capacity Peak-Hour
= Vehicle x Passenger x
at Max. Load Factor
Capacity Loading
Point

Transit-Route
Allowed
Person Capacity Route Peak-Hour
= x Passenger x
at Max. Load Frequency Factor
Loading
Point
Peak 15-min
Stop/Station Passenger Peak-
Transit-Stop
Vehicle Interchange
Person Capacity = x x Hour
Capacity Volume per Factor
Vehicle
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Dwell Time
Dwell times may be governed by:
• boarding demand
• alighting demand
• total interchanging passenger demand (at major
transfer point)

Dwell time is proportionate to the boarding and alighting

volumes multiplied with the service time per passenger.

Dwell time can influence a transit operator’s service costs:

Reducing dwell time may result in fewer vehicles required
to provide the same service frequency.
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Factors that influences Dwell Time

Passenger Stop/Station Fare payment
demand and spacing procedures
loading The fewer the stops Time taken for
along a route, the passengers to pay
Number of
greater the number for fares influences
passengers
of passengers boarding time.
boarding and
boarding at each
alighting the busiest
stop. Prepaid tickets,
door determines
smart cards, passes,
how long to serve
Too few stops etc. and off-board
all passengers.
increase walking fare collection
distance. systems (e.g. paid-
Crowded vehicles
fare waiting areas)
will result in higher
Too many stops can help reduce
service times.
increases overall boarding time.
travel time.
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Factors that influences Dwell Time

Vehicle Types On-board Wheelchair and
Low-floor buses Circulation bicycle boarding
eliminates need to Encouraging The time taken by
ascend and descend passengers to exit passengers in
steps, thus reducing via the rear door wheelchairs to
passenger service time (for buses with board and alight,
– particularly for routes more than one and bicyclists to
frequented by the doors) will load and unload
elderly, disabled, or eliminate bicycles, affects
passengers with congestion at the dwell time.
strollers or bulky carry- front door and
on items. reduce passenger
service times.
Wide doors allow
simultaneous boarding
and alighting.
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BUS CAPACITY CONCEPTS

Loading Areas

A loading area (or bus berth) is a space for buses to stop to

pick up and discharge passengers.

Bus stops contain one or more loading areas. The most

common form of loading area is a linear bus stop along a
street curb.

Loading areas can be provided in the travel lane (on-line)

or out of the travel lane (off-line).
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Loading areas in bus terminals

may be linear or other forms:
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The three main elements that determine loading area

capacity are:
(1) Dwell time
(2) Dwell time variability
(3) Clearance time

Dwell time variability recognises that buses do not stop

for the same amount of time at a stop because of
fluctuations in passenger demand.

The effect of variability in bus dwell times on bus capacity

is reflected by the coefficient of variation of dwell times.
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Coefficient of Standard deviation of dwell-time

variation of = observations
dwell time Mean dwell time

Clearance time is the period after the bus closes its doors
and prepares to depart from the stop. During this time,
the loading area is not available for use by the following
bus.
Time for bus to
Clearance Time for bus to travel its own
= start up + length (clear
Time (for on-
line stop) the stop)
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Time for bus to

Clearance Time for bus to travel its own
= start up + length (clear
Time (for off-
line stop) the stop)

+ Time for bus to find suitable gap

in traffic to re-enter traffic
stream and accelerate

Re-entry delay may be eliminated if laws that require

vehicles to give-way to buses re-entering the traffic stream
after stopping are introduced.
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Bus Stop

A bus stop is an area where one or more buses load and

unload passengers.

It consists of one or more loading areas.

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Bus stop capacity is related to:

• the capacity of the individual loading areas at the stop

• the loading area design (linear or non-linear)
• the number of loading areas
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Bus Terminals

The design of off-street bus terminals and transfer centers

involves additional considerations – not only estimates of
passenger service times of buses, but also a clear
understanding of how each bus route will operate.

Loading area requirements and sizing of the facility may be

well-established if the following are considered:
• Schedule recovery times
• Driver relief times
• Layovers to meet scheduled departure times
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Loading-area space requirements

should recognise:

• The specific type of transit

operations
• Fare collection practices
• Bus door configurations
• Passenger arrival patterns
• Amount of baggage
• Driver layover-recovery
times
• Terminal design
• Loading area
configuration
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On-Street Bus Stops

On-street bus stops are typically located curbside in one of

three locations:

Nearside – when the bus stops immediately before an

intersection.

Farside – when the bus stops immediately after an

intersection.

Midblock – when the bus stops in the middle of a block,

between intersections.
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The location of a bus stop influences capacity, particularly

when passenger vehicles are allowed to make left turns
from the curb lane.

Farside stops have the least effect on capacity (buses are

allowed to use an adjacent lane to avoid left-turn queues),
followed by midblock stops and nearside stops.
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Bus Stop Loading-Area Requirements

The key factors influencing the number of loading areas

required:
Bus Volumes Probability of Loading Area
The number of Queue Design
buses scheduled to Formation
Sawtooth and drive
use a bus stop
The failure rate – through loading
during an hour
the probability that area designs are
directly affects the
queues of buses will very effective since
number of buses
form – is an buses move in and
that may need to
important design out of the loading
use the stop.
factor. areas
independently of
other buses.
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Bus Stop Loading-Area Requirements

The key factors influencing the number of loading areas

required:
Traffic Signal Timing
The amount of green signal time provided to a street that buses
operate on affects the maximum number of buses that potentially
can arrive.

The amount of red signal time influences how much additional

time a bus occupies a stop after passenger movements are
completed.
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Bus Lanes

A bus lane is any lane on a roadway in which buses

operate.

It may be exclusive (bus only lanes) or shared (with

traffic).

The vehicle capacity of a bus lane is mainly influenced by:

• Capacity of the critical bus stop located along the lane,

typically the stop with the highest volume of passengers,
or could be the stop with insufficient number of loading
areas.
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Bus lane capacity is also influenced by:

• Bus lane type

Type 1: Bus lanes have no use of the adjacent lane.
Type 2: Bus lanes have partial use of the adjacent lane,
which is shared with traffic.
Type 3: Bus lanes provide for exclusive use of two lanes
by buses.

When the lane is primarily for mixed traffic, there is no

formal designation of a bus lane either with signing or
with pavement markings.

The greater the exclusivity of the bus lane, the greater

the number of lanes available for buses to maneuver,
thus the greater the bus lane capacity.
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Bus lane capacity is also influenced by:

• Skip-Stop Operation

Bus lane capacity can be increased by dispersing bus

stops so that only a portion of the buses use the bus
lane stop at a particular set of stops.

This allows for a faster trip and reduces the number of

buses stopping at each stop.
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Bus lane capacity is also influenced by:

• Platooning

When skip stops are used, gathering buses into platoons

at the beginning of the skip-stop section maximises the
efficiency of the system.

Each platoon is assigned a group of stops, and the

platooned buses travel as trains past the skip-stop
section.

The number of buses in each platoon should ideally be

equal to the number of loading areas at each stop.
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Bus lane capacity is also influenced by:

• Bus Stop Location

Farside stops provide the highest bus lane capacity, but

other factors, such as conflicts with other vehicles,
transfer opportunities, and traffic signal timing must
also be considered when siting bus stops.
Exercise 1. Dwell times
Table 1 shows dwell times that were observed at 20 bus stops located
in a city center. Determine the coefficient of variation of dwell times
and comment on how large variation in dwell times will affect bus
loading area capacity.
Table 1: Observed dwell times
Bus Dwell Time Bus Dwell Time
Stop (sec) Stop (sec)
1 68 11 132
2 75 12 141
3 145 13 160
4 50 14 30
5 71 15 58
6 230 16 79
7 56 17 85
8 63 18 65
9 48 19 47
10 55 20 152
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Problem 1

An express route is planned along an arterial from a

suburb to the central business district (CBD) with 10 stops,
including one at a transit center at Stop 5. The route will
operate in mixed traffic in the CBD (Stops 7 to 10).

• The route will use 42-seat buses.

• Exact fare is required on boarding.
• The door opening and closing time is 4 sec.
• All passengers board through the front door and alight
through the back door.
• Assume 3 sec boarding time per passenger (3.5 sec with
standees, and 2 sec alighting time per passenger.
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The transit agency has estimated potential ridership for

the route and predicts the following average number of
boarding and alighting passengers per stop:

Stop Alighting Boarding Stop Alighting Boarding

number passengers passengers number passengers passengers

1 0 20 6 6 8

2 0 16 7 16 2

3 3 11 8 19 1

4 2 12 9 15 0

5 14 16 10 11 0

What will the average dwell times be at the 10 stops and

how might these affect the development of the route?
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Problem 2

A transit operator wants to consolidate its outbound

downtown bus routes that currently use several streets
onto a single three-lane one-way street with four
signalised intersections. How will the street operate with
the added buses, given the following information?
• g/C ratio = 0.45 on the one-way street at each of the four signalised
intersection
• Cycle length = 90 sec at each signalised intersection
• 40 buses/hour will use the street; all 40 are assumed to stop at each
bus stop
• Bus stops are located at each signal, none between signals
• 1,200 automobiles/hour will also use the street, plus 40 buses
• Loading areas per stop = 2
• Near-side, on-line stops located at the four signalised intersection
 Bus stop

Loading areas
Curb lane

Adjacent lane

Adjacent lane
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• No on-street parking
• No grades
• Travel lanes = 3.6 m
• Base saturation flow rate = 1,900 pc/h/ln
• Dwell times, curb lane automobile left-turn and through volumes, and
conflicting pedestrian movements are as follows:

Stop no. Dwell time (s) Curb Lane Curb Lane Conflicting
Left-turn Through Pedestrian
Auto Volume Auto Volume Volume
(veh/h) (veh/h) (ped/h)
1 30 350 50 100

2 35 200 100 300

3 40 100 100 500

4 20 300 50 200
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Problem 3

The CBD street from Problem 2 is used.

The transit operator would like to try using far-side stops

instead of near-side stops to avoid some left-turn
interferences.

How will the street operate under this new scenario?