Content By:

Kratika Narain
Soham Munshi
Shivangi
Trisha Swarup
Shambhavi Kumari
Shravan Engineer
Priyanka Agarwal
Mithika Mathew
Monika Gupta

Copyright under Faculty of Mangaement, CEPT University, Ahmedabad

 Management Solutions for Improved Service Operation

BUS RAPID TRANSIT SYSTEM

Service Operations Management Studio

Semester III, 2019

Studio Instructor
Dr. Mercy Samuel
Teaching Assistant
Himadri Panchal
Editor and Compiler
Mithika Mathew, Monika Gupta
Graphic Designer
Soham Munshi, Kratika Narain
Acknowledgement
We are grateful to CEPT University, and the Faculty of Management for making it possible for
us to do this study.

We were privileged to work on this project under the guidance of Dr. Mercy Samuel and are
grateful for their mentorship and support. We are indebted to Ms. Himadri Panchal for her con-
stant guidance.

We are grateful to all the jurors and guest faculty throughout the semester, who with their
thoughtful comments gave the project more dimension at each stage. During the quest of data
collection, we met managers and staff on the site who helped us get through the investigation
process productively.

We would like to thank the City Government authorities and BRT SPV authorities who made it
possible for us to work with the organisations, and all the officers and staff at various offices who
were generous with their time and expertise.

Batch 2018-20
Master of Urban Management
Foreword
Public Transport is a much talked about subject. With the ever increasing traffic and vehicle
ownership it is pertinent to look at public transport comprehensively and holistically for making it ac-
cessible, comfortable and convenient for citizens to travel within a city. The density of private vehicles
in the country is increasing, the effects of which can be felt on the road with increasing traffic, pollution
and time delays. The easy access to two wheelers both in terms of convenience and affordability makes
matter worse for public transport in India. Higher motorization leads to decline in public transport usage.
Along with the comfort that a private mode offers it is the lack of appropriate public transport too which
adds to the woes of traffic.
Many cities in India have started a dedicated high priority bus lane called Bus Rapid Transit System to
make bus transport fast and comfortable on select routes within a city.

The semester III studio of services operations attempts to look at different aspects of public transporta-
tion with specific reference to Bus Rapid Transit System with a view to identify ways and means by which
the systems can be made smoother for citizens to adopt and sustain travel modes of public transit. The
studio looked at aspects of Contract Management, Fare determination, Fare collection and ticketing,
Depot Management, Bus maintenance and Incident Management, Integration of feeder systems, Rev-
enue Management, Intelligent Transit Management Systems and Adoption strategies with proposals to
streamline and better manage each function with efficiency for better traveler comfort and experience.
A case city was chosen to conduct the study and apply the operations tools from a service perspective.
Transport being a service its operations need to be looked at from a service perspective to be able to
professionally manage and cater to different customer segments. Segmentation, pricing, user behavior
and strategic management tools and techniques were used for arriving at innovative improvement strat-
egies. All this couldn’t have been possible without the help and support from the case city government
in terms of data, interviews and documents for better system understanding.

Dr. Mercy Samuel

Studio Tutor
Contents
Foreword
List of figures
List of tables
Abbreviations
Introduction
1. Contract management................................................................................. 14
2. Fare determination...................................................................................... 28
3. Fare collection & ticketing............................................................................ 38
4. Depot management..................................................................................... 46
5. Bus maintenance and incident management................................................ 56
6. Integration of feeder.................................................................................... 66
7. Revenue management................................................................................. 78
8. Intelligent transit management systems....................................................... 88
9. Adoption stategies to increase ridership........................................................ 102
Conclusion
References
Appendix

ITMS

Adoption Strategy
Contract Management

Feeder System
Fare Determination

Revenue Management Fare Collection

BRTS

Depot Management

Bus Maintenance and Incident

Management
LIST OF
Figures
CHAPTER ONE
Figure 1: Contracts in public transport
Figure 2: Gross cost contract
Figure 3: Net cost contract
Figure 4: Methodology of study
Figure 5: Responsibilities of authority and operator
Figure 6: Data reflecting driver behavior
Figure 7: Driver performance index
Figure 8: Benefit
CHAPTER TWO
Figure 1: Technical fare calculation
Figure 2: Various pricing strategies
Figure 3: Various stakeholder’s in city bus service system
Figure 4: Fare revision formula, once a year
Figure 5: Swim lane for analysis of fare determination
CHAPTER THREE
Figure 1: Equipment used
Figure 2: Movement pattern in the BRTS station with a printed ticket
Figure 3: Movement pattern in the BRTS station with a travel card
Figure 4: Ticket analysis for ticketing type used
Figure 5: Card Issuance
Figure 6: Analysis of card issue applying process
Figure 7: Analysis of card issue using process
Figure 8: Swim lane showing process for availing passes
Figure 9: System based proposal
Figure 10: Proposed fast process
CHAPTER FOUR
Figure 1: Description of depots
Figure 2: Process mapping for depot operation: swimlane
Figure 3: Percentage of consumption of inventories
Figure 4: Existing layout of inventory store-mixed form
Figure 5: Proposed inventory sorting method
CHAPTER FIVE
Figure 1: Typical layout of a depot
Figure 2: Preventive maintenance schedule followed by operators
Figure 3: Observations
Figure 4: Swimlane depicting work allocation process
Figure 5: Roles and responsibility of the staff in hierachical order
Figure 6: Incident categories in case city bus rapid transit
Figure 7: Proposed work allocation regime for token system
Figure 8:Proposed RACI matrix for work allocation regime
Figure 9:Proposed work order format- productive tracking
Figure 10:Proposed work order format- productive tracking
Figure 11:Proposed work order format- productive tracking
Figure 12: Parameters for rewards and recognition
Figure 13: Creating awareness amongst passengers
CHAPTER SIX
Figure 1: Illustration showing first & last mile connectivity
Figure 2: Reasons for not using Public Transport Figure
Figure 3: Factors for shifting to Public Transport
Figure 4: Point to point VS hub & spoke model
Figure 5: Feeder route 1
Figure 6: Feeder route 2
Figure 7: Traffic Signal Prioritisation
CHAPTER SEVEN
Figure 1: Distribution of Fund for Initialisation of BRTS
Figure 2: Total Income Generation of Organization 2015-2025
Figure 3: Deficiency analysis in the Income of the Organization 2015-2025
Figure 4: Advertisement Revenue since 2015 through advertisement license fee
Figure 5: Components of Advertisement Tender
Figure 6: Per bus shelter revenue generation 2016-2019
Figure 7: Components of Semi – Naming Rights
Figure 8: Summarised procedure for semi-naming rights
Figure 9: Strategies for semi-naming rights
CHAPTER EIGHT
Figure 1: Distribution of Fund for Initialisation of BRTS
Figure 2: Total Income Generation of Organization 2015-2025
Figure 3: Deficiency analysis in the Income of the Organization 2015-2025
Figure 4: Advertisement Revenue since 2015 through advertisement license fee
Figure 5: Components of Advertisement Tender
Figure 6: Per bus shelter revenue generation 2016-2019
Figure 7: Components of Semi – Naming Rights
Figure 8: Summarised procedure for semi-naming rights
Figure 9: Strategies for semi-naming rights
CHAPTER NINE
Figure 1: Strategies of Transport Demand Management
Figure 2: Methodology
Figure 3: Objective of Analysis
Figure 4: SERVQUAL
Figure 5: Parameters surveyed for quality analysis of BRTS
Figure 6: Radar chart showing results of SERVQUAL
Figure 7: Ishikawa Diagram to understand the issues faced by Non-Riders
Figure 8: Issues identified
Figure 9: Market segment identified for the case city
Figure 10: Transport Aggregator Model
Figure 11: Business model canvas for bus aggregator
LIST OF
Tables
CHAPTER ONE
Table 1: PPP Arrangement and responsibility matrix
Table 2: Division of taxes and charges
Table 3: SLA’s for fleet operation
Table 4: Case city- fleet operators
Table 5: Case city - Fleet availability as per contract
Table 6: RACI- authority v/s operator
Table 7: Risk indicators
Table 8: Risk Matrix
CHAPTER TWO
Table 1: Fare comparison of all urban transport mode
Table 2: Fare comparison at each stage
Table 3: Integrated fare model (average fare)
Table 4: Integrated fare model (new fare determined)
Table 5: Impact of fare change due to pricing
Table 6: Impact of fare change due to pricing
Table 7: Fare determination for new passes with maximum operational hours considered
Table 8: Fare determined according to certain operational hours
Table 9: Incentive model
CHAPTER FIVE
Table 1: Maintenance operator details for workshops
Table 2: Fines for maintenance related issues
CHAPTER SIX
Table 1: Access and Egress modes from BRTS in the Case City
Table 2: Scenario 1 - IPT and BRTS
Table 3: Scenario 2 - Two-wheeler
Table 4: Scenario 2 - Two-wheeler cost analysis
Table 5: Scenario 3 - Car
Table 6: Scenario 3 - Cost analysis for Car
Table 7: Analysis of feeder route 1
Table 8: Number of trips and hours of operations per bus on feeder route 1
Table 9: Analysis of feeder route 2
Table 10: Time saved at each intersection due to TSP
Table 11: Fuel saved due to TSP
Table 12:Cost Savings due to TSP and cost incurred for the idling time at each intersection
CHAPTER SEVEN
Table 1: Sources of Revenue in the Organization
Table 2: Benchmarking of sample station for brand valuation
e City
CHAPTER EIGHT
Table 1: Data recorded in the Maintenance Management module
Table 2: Responsible, Accountable, Consulted and Informed personnel for device management
Abbreviations
AFCS - Automated Fare Collection System
AVLS- Automatic Vehicle Location System
BRTS-Bus Rapid Transit System
BI - Business Intelligence System
CCC - Command Control Centre
CNG- Compressed Natural Gas
DMS- Depot Management Software/System
DDU -Driver Display Units
DMRC - Delhi Metro Rail Corporation
EWT - Excess Waiting Time
ETM – Electronic Ticketing Machine
ETA - Estimated Time of Arrival
EVs- Electric Vehicles
EMS - Enterprise Management System
FCVs- Fuel cell vehicles
FOB – Fly Over Bridges
GDCR - Gujarat Development Control Regulations
GCC - Gross Cost model.
GST - Goods and Services Tax
GRP - Gross Rating Point
HC - High Commercial Zone
HEVs- Hybrid Electric Vehicles
HHT– Hand Held Ticketing
ICE -Internal Combustion Engines
IPT - Intermediate Public Transport
ITDP - Institute for Transportation and Development Policy
IMS - Incident Management System
ITMS- Intelligent Transit Management System
KMRL - Kochi Metro Rail Limited
LC - Low Commercial Zone
mDVR - Mobile Digital Video Recorder
NMT - Non-Motorized Transport
NTWU - National Transport Workers’ Union
KPI - Key Performance Indicators
OBU - On-Board Unit
OBITS - On-Board Intelligent Transit System
OEM - Original Equipment Manufacturer
PIS - Passenger Information System
PPP - Public-Private Partnerships
RFP - Request For Proposal
SLA – Service Level Agreement
TSP - Traffic Signal Priority
TOD - Transit Oriented Development
ULB - Urban Local Bodies
VPSD- Vehicle Planning, Scheduling, and Dispatch
INTRODUCTION
Public transport Bus Rapid Transit

How people move from one point to another is a crit- Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) is a Mass Rapid Transit sys-
ical factor which determines the shape of cities, the tem with capacity and speed like a Metro rail system,
form of spaces in the public domain, the nature of em- but with flexibility, a lower cost, and simplicity of a
ployment and income, and overall, the quality of an standard city bus service. BRT has dedicated right-of-
urban inhabitant’s life. Public transport has evolved way- a segment on the road where only these buses
over centuries from rudimentary animal-drawn con- travel, allowing them to bypass traffic snarls and oth-
veyances to hyper-technological modes such as vac- er causes of delay. This infrastructure is aligned either
trains, responding to increasingly sophisticated de- along the side, or along the median of a road. BRT
mand. also has dedicated stations along these routes which
In India, the rapidly expanding population and the have platform-level boarding and off-board ticketing,
race of urbanization create a great demand for con- both of which reduce the overall time a passenger
venient, affordable, and efficient public transport. spends in the system.
The Indian government framed a National Urban BRT is a highly feasible option for Indian cities as it is
Transportation Policy (NUTP) in 2006, amended as re- relatively less expensive to set up and therefore eq-
cently as 2014 to reflect new challenges and possibili- uitable in terms of user fare, while meeting the need
ties. The Policy envisions livable, people-centric cities for a faster public transport to cater to the demands
which allow its citizens “safe, affordable, quick, com- of bigger and busier urban areas.
fortable, reliable, and sustainable access”. It priori-
tises public transport, sets out guidelines, prescribes Case city and BRT
funding support from the Government, and instructs
“cities with a population of more than 10 lakh to start A service operations management study was con-
planning for high capacity public transport systems”. ducted of the BRT service in a Tier-1 Indian city with
The various types of public transport systems in In- a population of nearly 85 lakh, and area about 465 sq
dian cities include waterway modes such as ferries, km. This city is governed by a Municipal Corporation,
rail-based modes including local trains, monorail and and is also a designated Smart City. Apart from the
metro rail, on-road modes including bus services and decade-old Bus Rapid Transit system, the city has a
Bus Rapid Transit systems public bus service established in the mid-20th centu-
ry, and is soon beginning its metro rail service.
Initiated to improve the standard of public transport
and draw in a new segment of users, the BRT system
was also meant to improve air quality by reducing the
number of vehicles on the road. The system has ded-
icated bus lanes and stations along the median of the
road, and was designed to form a network around the
city, rather than just transit corridors. The trunk-and-
feeder system was designed as closed- only BRT bus-
es would travel along it, but the system is currently
opened partially to extend BRT routes, and allow city
buses and state transport buses to use some sections.
The entire system is IT-enabled and constantly moni-
tored to optimize operational efficiency.

16 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

The BRT service is governed by a Special Purpose Ve- Introduction to the book
hicle (SPV) chaired by the city’s Municipal Commis-
sioner, with a Deputy Municipal Commissioner as its
This book is the outcome of the study of Bus Rapid
Executive Director. The SPV was set up 2 years before
Transit service operations, and identifies opportu-
the service began, and facilitated planning, design,
nities and puts forward suggestions to optimize the
and implementation. Despite being a large and mul-
system. Service operations involve all the daily activ-
tifaceted operation, the core SPV staff strength is rel-
ities, processes, and decisions involved in providing a
atively small. Instead, the SPV works with a service
service to a customer. This was an exercise to analyse
model where functions from bus operations to fare
a functioning system, and understand customer per-
collection and even Intelligent Transit Management
ception and expectation.
are contracted out. Daily operation and maintenance
For this study, 9 sectors within the system framework
is handled by these contractors according to strin-
have been identified for analysis. These are:
gent agreements, while the SPV core team handles
Contract Management
monitoring, administration, and decision-making.
Fare determination
The studied BRT covers nearly 100km, with about
Fare collection and ticketing
260 buses and 160 stations. The bus fleet is a mix of
Depot Management
Diesel, CNG, and electric buses, which are handled
Bus maintenance and Incident Management
by four operators housed at five depots. The system
Integration of feeder systems
operates for 17 hours daily beginning at 6:00AM. In a
Revenue Management
day, it is used by approximately 1.7 lakh passengers
Intelligent Transit Management Systems
and generates a revenue of INR 22 lakh. The entire
Adoption strategies
operation is monitored from a Command Control
Centre.
The first stage of the study was of literature includ-
ing published research, governing policy, and case
studies to understand the bigger picture, and best
practices. The next step, on-site study, was a mix of
interaction with stakeholders, one-to-one interviews,
site observation and documentation, surveys, and ex-
amination of official data. The collected information
was analysed through process analysis tools includ-
ing process profile worksheets, swim-lane diagrams,
RACI matrices, and SERVQUAL. This enabled iden-
tification of gaps in existing processes, evaluation
of challenges, and highlighted avenues for improve-
ment. Suggestions have been tailored in response to
these findings.
While some of the examined topics are a documenta-
tion of existing processes, others are more conceptu-
al and offer models for further analysis.

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 17

Contract management
-Kratika Narain
 CHAPTER ONE
Net Cost Contract
Contracts are agreements between two parties who Route Concession
are obligated legally to perform specific acts or ser-
vices. Contracts in public transport are necessary to Bus
Procurement
Bus Procurement
(Optional )
improve efficiency, increase responsiveness to mar- Operation Revenue,
ket demand, promote organization, regulation and Route planning
Procurement and
URBAN
TRANSPORT PRIVATE
Procurement
(optional),
Risk PLAYER Scheduling
operational performance, involve private players, rationalization AUTHORITY Operation
and
Maintenance Maintenance
and allocate risks and costs. Hence, contracts can Fare Fixation Risk

bring performance efficiency in the public sector. and revision Fare Collection

Highest Premium
OR
Lowest VGF per
route / per bus

Contracts for Figure 3: Net cost contract

System
Public transport services

Public-Private Public provision

Private Operation Management /
Partnerships (Public utility by
(Deregulated)
(Concessions)
Service contracts
transport authority) To understand the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) opera-
tions, contractual arrangements in delivery of bus
Gross cost contracts
service in the case city were thoroughly reviewed. The
key stakeholders of the system are the transit author-
ity, and the private operators. The contracts used for
Net cost contracts
BRT operations in the case city have been analysed
Figure 1: Contracts in public transport
taking into account the on-ground implementation,
and also the opinions received from various stake-
Contracting in Public Transport services are critical holders. Based on these findings, an understanding
tools to ensure that operators deliver efficient, clean about how various clauses of contract impact the BRT
and high-quality service, in line with user expecta- operations is developed.
tions and the requirements of the authorities.
Interaction with Examining
Review of
Identification of stakeholders for various clauses
contract
Stakeholders areas of for Efficient
documents
Gross Cost Contract improvement service delivery

Route Concession Figure 4: Methodology of study

Bus
Procurement Bus Procurement
Contracts in BRT
(Optional )
Scheduling
Procurement
In the case city, the Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) set
up as transit authority is responsible for contracts. It
Procurement URBAN
and TRANSPORT PRIVATE (optional)/
Route planning Operation
Revenue Risk and AUTHORITY PLAYER Operation and
rationalization
Maintenance
Risk
practices a service model, where operations to run the
Fares collection – Maintenance service, including the bus fleet, are contracted to op-
Fixation and revision
erators. Competitive tendering is practiced, and con-
tracts used are of the Gross Cost (GCC) model. These
Lowest Cost of
Operations (Per km /
Per Vehicle / Per pax
contracts are usually for a period of seven years, with
Figure 2: Gross cost contract
no extension clause, and are monitored through the
Intelligent Transit Management System (ITS).
There are 4 categories of service contracts the stud-
ied SPV has entered to ensure efficient operations of

20 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

 the BRT system. Operation, management, and main- volved, and must not leave any room for ambiguity
tenance responsibilities are clearly defined in the con- of involvement. Apart from articulating responsibility
tracts. for fleet procurement, maintenance, and infrastruc-
ture investment and maintenance, extensive conces-
sion contracts must include parameters such as prec-
Contract Length
Operator Operation Management Maintenance
(Years)

Infrastructure Bus Depot 4 7 - - Operator edent conditions, payment mechanism, assignment

Rolling stock Buses 4 7 Operator
AJL &
Operator
Operator of risk, dispute settlement mechanism, performance
ITS
ITMS & CCC 1 6
AJL &
Operator
AJL Operator monitoring, and contract termination.
application
Fare collection 2 2 Operator AJL Operator The case city’s contract was studied against these
Other
Services
Housekeeping 1 3 - AJL Operator parameters to understand its service operations. The
Advertisement 3 2 Operator AJL Operator terms of the contract are as follows:
Table 1: PPP Arrangement and responsibility matrix
Payment mechanism
AUTHORITY O P E R ATO R
The Operators are offered annual assured kilometres,
Provide i.e. 60-70,000km per contracted bus. The bid price per
infrastructure Provide and km consists of the
Procure fleetfuel price, driver cost,ofoperations
Operation the
(depot, parking install monitoring fleet as per the
costs, interest, and housekeeping
for service and maintenance
space) devices operation plan
costs. For calculation of fuel cost; average of daily fuel
cost at the end of the month is used as indicator. For
Prepare Do regular manpowerMaintenance of
and consumables, indicators
Employing are set using
fleet and
operational inspection and Whole-sale Price Index (WPI). Fordrivers
provided payment, the kilo-
and staff
plan impose penalty metres considered are those defined in the bus opera-
infrastructure
tion plan created by the SPV, or any additional routes
authorized by them. In addition to this, the distance
O P E R ATO R
travelled by the bus to its depot for maintenance or to
the nearest fuel station are also considered.
de and Procure fleet Operation of the
l monitoring fleet as per the Conditions precedent
for service
es operation plan
Before commencement of the operation, operators
Maintenance of are required to supply prototype buses for a training
gular fleet and Employing period, and pay a performance security. Inspection of
ction and provided drivers and staff
se penalty prototype buses are done by the authority. The oper-
infrastructure
ator is required to hire staff 15 days prior to Commer-
cial Operation Date (CoD), and ensure all the taxes
Figure 5: Responsibilities of authority and operator and charges for the buses are completed and paid for.
These taxes and charges are divided among the au-
A well-defined contract has shown to provide better thority as well as operator.
service quality, and ensure appropriate engagement
of service performance with public needs and goals. A
contract must be comprehensive enough to describe
the division of responsibilities between the parties in-

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 21

 Fine in
Sr. No. Taxes And Charges Parties Responsible Sr. no. Incidents
Km
1 Delay in more than 20 min. end of shift, 10
1 Vehicle registration charges Operator
Insurance premium for buses and other assets Improper bus docking, speeding, improper
2 Operator
owned by the authority uniform, missing station, changing routes,
2 25
visible dents, adv. In/on buses damaged or
3 Motor vehicle tax within municipal limit Operator
broken bus parts.
4 Motor vehicle tax outside municipal limit Operator Dirty vehicle, accidents due to negligence,
bus breakdowns in bus lane,
5 Passenger tax Authority 3
malfunctioning doors headlights, brake,
50
6 Stage carriage permit Authority mirror.

Paid by operator 4 Damaged tire, Drunken driver 100

7 GST reimbursed by Abandoning bus during operational hours,
authority 5 damage to vehicle tracking device 200
installed by authority.
Table 2: Division of taxes and charges
Table 3: SLA for fleet operation
Bus Procurement commissioner.
Operators are required to procure fully built buses as The second is arbitration, which will be conducted by
per technical specification in the RFP. Procurement of an arbitration tribunal. Each party of the contract will
prototype buses is approved by the authority through put forward an arbitrator for the tribunal, in addition
inspections and testing. Operators must establish to a third arbitrator agreed on by both parties.
maintenance facilities for preventive and routine
maintenance of the fleet. Infrastructure investment and
maintenance
Driver recruitment The authorities are required to provide the opera-
The operator is responsible for hiring drivers and staff, tors with infrastructure and amenities like the depot,
as per requirements. Drivers hired must have 3+ year parking space, terminals, water supply, and electrici-
heavy duty commercial license, and have undergone ty. The operators are required to maintain the facili-
skill and knowledge tests. Operators are supposed to ties, their maintenance equipment, and pay for utility
train the drivers of driving, maintenance, safety, be- services such as water, gas, and electricity.
haviour, hygiene, etc. The training program must be
held on a regular basis for new recruits, and to update Contract termination clauses
training of existing manpower. If the operator defaults on the contract, a notice of
45 days shall be given to remedy the situation. The
Performance monitoring counter-measures from the authority in case of such
There are a set of Service Level Agreements provided lapses can include revoking performance security, re-
by the authority for effective monitoring of the BRT voking any hardware or software, and removing the
service. Operators are penalised for breach of these facility for buses under operators’ possession. If there
agreements, by deducting the corresponding number is default on the part of the authorities, operators are
of KM for a misdemeanour from the total KM they are to be compensated by paying any sum that is due, re-
due to be paid for. funding performance security, and finally transferring
the bus fleet and operations to any similar system
Dispute settlement mechanism that is under the authority’s jurisdiction.
If a dispute arises due to non- compliance with
agreement, there are two mechanisms that may be Once the contract period expires, the operator shall
followed. The first is amicable settlement, where a return any hardware, software, firmware and deliv-
notification to the party which has defaulted will be erables installed by the authority in proper working
given to solve or improve the default. If not, there will condition. They are also required to maintain confi-
be settlement under the purview of city’s municipal dentiality of operations information for a period of 3
years after the termination or expiry of the contract.

22 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

Operators in case city
There are different types of contracts used in the Analysis
studied BRT, with different combinations of owning,
operating, and maintaining, as detailed in table 4. Performance adherence
mechanism
Bus Depot Operator Bus Type No. of Buses Model
No. of
Drivers The mechanisms used to ensure performance deliv-
D1 O1 Diesel
88
(25 O1 + 63 A)
Own-Operate-Maintain
Operate-Maintain
100 ery are described below: payment mechanism, as-
D2 O2 Electric 18
Own
Operate-Maintain(O3)
78 signment of risk, performance monitoring through
D3 O3 CNG 60 Operate-Maintain 87 penalties or reward.
D4 O4 Diesel 50 Own-Operate-Maintain 65

Table 4: Case city- fleet operators Payment mechanism

The operator generates an invoice every 10 days in-
cluding fuel price bills, taxes of each contracted bus,
The operators are required to assure 93% avail- and kilometres travelled. The SPV is required to make
ability of bus fleet on route for the first 3 years of the payment within 3 days of receiving the invoice.
the contract period, and at least 90% for the re- The operator is paid per operated kilometre (as per
maining tenure. Fleet availability in the case city approved operation plan) according to the fixed rate.
is described in Table 5. Since these payments are fixed, they offer income se-
curity to the operator.
Bus Depot Operator Bus Type No. of Buses On route Spare %Fleet on route

D1 O1 Diesel 88 83 5 94%
93% By mapping the process of payment, it was found that
D2
O1 Diesel 45 41 4 91%
the SPV takes 7 days to make each payment- 4 days
O2 Electric 18 9 9 47%
in excess of the agreed 3. These extra days are uti-
New contract

D3 O3 CNG 60 57 3 95%
lised to analyse the invoices generated by the oper-
D4 O4 Diesel 50 46 4 92%
ator, compare it with the on-ground report prepared
Table 5: Case city - Fleet availability as per contract by DC surveyors who record departure and arrival of
buses from stations, and the report generated by the
Intelligent Transit Management System (ITMS) which
records real-time data of each bus. The 3 reports are
forwarded to the audit team which accepts the report
which quotes the lowest amount, deducts penalties
for breach of SLA, and makes payment of the final
amount via RTGS.

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 23

 R Responsible C Consulted

A Accountable I Informed

Processes Authority Operator

Quality assurance Authority
Inspection of buses
Procurement
Delivery of buses
7
Maintenance facility
Fare setting
Route scheduling 5
Schedule following
Operation
Setting standard
Monitoring Operator
Payment
Provision of site 6
Maintenance standards
Maintenance
Monitoring
Insurance
4
Table 6: RACI- authority v/s operator

Assignment of risk Monitoring mechanism

A critical part of contract management is the assign- Monitoring can be through penalty or reward.
ment of risk between the parties. The assignment The operator contract defines penalties, but also a
of risk is a key factor of the success or failure of bus cap to the penalty to spare the operator from unrea-
systems, and is tied closely to the strength and ca- sonable fines and to give them a chance to improve
pacity of the SPV, and its willingness to manage risks service.
that may fall under its extent of control. Risk must be The contract restricts penalty to a maximum of 10%
shared, and a certain risk must be allocated to that of the invoice amount. However, if the operator over-
party which is most able to manage it. (Delloite, 2015). shoots this 10% cap for five consecutive payment cy-
cles, the contract may be terminated.
A RACI analysis of the parties and functions (Table 6)
show that the division of responsibility between oper- Conversely, the capping criterion in the contract
ator and SPV is almost equal. tends to make the operator lax about compliance.
Therefore, the contract clause must be re-defined to
Risk analysis of the scenario (Tables 7 and 8) indicates ensure value of the penalty is high enough to act as a
significant risk in revenue, contributed to by leakage deterrent to non-compliance.
in revenue collection. The SPV owns this risk. The
other major risk is operational, caused by driver be- Some solutions could be to impose extra penalty, fire
haviour and bus accidents. This risk is owned by the the repeat offender (driver, operations manager), or
operator. These were identified through one-on-one to terminate the contract.
interviews with the operators, and by analysis of data
recorded through the ITMS.

24 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

 CONSEQUENCE

INSIGNIFICANT MINOR MODERATE MAJOR EXTREME

1 2 3 4 5

RARE 1 L L L M M
LIKELIHOOD

UNLIKELY 2 L M M H H

LIKELY 3 L M H H E

DEFINITELY 4 M H H E E

Table 7: Risk indicators

A score of 1–3 Low risk
A score of 4–6 Medium risk
EVENT CONSEQUENCE
A score of 8–12
LIKELIHOOD
High risk
RATING RISK OWNER
A score
4 of 15–20 Extreme
2 risk
Indemnity (fire & vandalism) 8 Operator
FINANCIAL RISK
Force majeure 5 1 5 Operator
Loss in ridership 4 3 12 Authority
Loss of revenue 4 4 16 Authority
REVENUE RISK
Delay in operator payments 3 3 9 Authority
Change of law 3 1 3 Operator
Non availability of fleet 3 3 9 Operator

Breakdowns (maintenance issue) 3 4 12 Operator

OPERATIONAL RISK
Driver behavior (rough driving) 4 4 16 Operator
Accidents 4 4 16 Operator
Table 8: Risk Matrix
A score of 1–3 Low risk
A score of 4–6 Medium risk
A score of 8–12 High risk
A score of 15–20 Extreme risk

Reward-based monitoring mechanism defined in the the same year. An additional performance-based bo-
contract prescribes a bonus to the contractor if total nus possibility also exists, but neither are ever used in
penalties levied in a given year are less than or equal the studied case.
to 3% of the total payments made to the operator in

Driver - driving behavior analysis

2% (2097)
Harsh acceleration
19%
23% (18,316)
(22684)
Harsh braking

Sharp cornering
56%
(54899)
Over speeding

Oneweek data from

23rd sept 2019- 29th sept 2019 Reputational Risk to SPV

Figure 6: Data reflecting driver behaviour

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 25

Suggestions Case Study: London
(Quality incentive contract)
Proposal: Driver Incentive
Programs In London, financial incentives were introduced
to improve reliability of services. There are 3 in-
centive provisions:
Performance of the driver is intricately linked to the 1. Reliability Performance Payment: Based on
ability to build and uphold efficient and successful measurement of the reliability of buses by Excess
delivery of BRT operations. Since the level of service Waiting Time (EWT), i.e. the actual waiting time
that a BRT system delivers has a significant impact minus the waiting time expected if buses ran ex-
on the overall customer experience, it is necessary to actly at the intervals that they are scheduled at.
find prolific ways to motivate and reward drivers. In 2. Two-year contract extensions: Offered as
order to recognize or reward good drivers, it is essen- an incentive mechanism for better performance.
tial to have an extensive incentive or recognition pro- 3. Quality performance payment scheme:
gram that clearly defines and measures good driving Based on driving quality (including customer ser-
behaviour. vice), presentation of the vehicle, secret surveys
through bus travel, and vehicle inspection by the
Having a driver incentive program establishes that authority. The score for each parameter leads to
the company values their drivers, which in turn can
payment and deduction.
result in higher driver retention rates. As competition
for bus drivers remains high, along with a rising driv- (Source: Transport for London- London’s Bus Contract-
er turnover rate, being able to preserve qualified and
ing and Tendering Process)
good drivers will positively impact the SPV’s bottom
line.

In the case city, bus operators are only informed of Case Study: Driver incentives
driver misdemeanours after deduction of penalty in public transport
from payment. The operator could instead be pro-
vided access to view driver performance in real-time Go-Ahead Singapore (service provider) signed an
through the ITMS, allowing them to take prompt ac- MoU with the National Transport Workers’ Union
tion. (NTWU), to focus on safe driving and customer
service skills. The salient features of this agree-
The operator contract does not contain a clause ment include:
mandating recognition or reward of drivers through 1. Competitive salary
incentives based on performance monitoring. A solu- 2. Performance-related incentives: Bonus
tion could be to include a clause instructing the au- payments will be awarded based on accomplish-
thority to evaluate driver performance on the basis of ments in providing safe, reliable and comfortable
driver performance indicators, and provide monetary bus journeys.
or non-monetary benefits on monthly basis. 3. Flexible benefits: To encourage person
al well-being and development
4. Increased maternity and family care leave
5. Free transport: Travel concessions for rides
on public bus and MRT services.
6. Career progression opportunities: The op-
portunity to upgrade their skills through training
programmes, and for career advancement.

26 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

Driver Performance Indicators

An index (Figure 7) has been created to help rate driv-

er performance, and decide on incentives or improve-
ments based on whether their performance is satis-
factory or dissatisfactory. Non-monetary incentives
are recommended as previous studies have proven
that they are more effective than monetary incen-
tives, and also as it would not place any additional
financial burden on the authority.

Harsh Harsh Sharp Over Stop Driver Performance Indicators

acceleration braking cornering speeding skipping
1 <=1500 <=1500 <=1500 <= 200 <=150 Driving Skills 3 2 1
2 <= 800 <= 800 <= 800 <= 100 <= 100 Harsh acceleration
3 <= 200 <= 200 <= 200 <= 50 <= 50 Harsh braking
Sharp cornering
Over speeding
Stop skipping
Uniform Habit Behavior Responsiveness Driver Behavior 3 2 1
1 no uniform drunk Rude and abusive negligent Driver appearance
half uniform (only smoking, Action without (Uniform)
2 ignorant
shirt or pant) using phone consequence Driver habit
Complete uniform attentive Quick thinking (Smoking,
3 Polite listener drinking)
(batch, shoes) driver and action
Behavior towards
passenger
*Driver
1 less km traveled in given fuel Unsatisfactory (needs responsiveness
1
improvement)
average km traveled in given
2 Average (can do Fuel efficiency 3 2 1
fuel 2
better)
3 more km traveled in given fuel 3 Satisfactory
Daily fuel reading

Figure 7: Driver performance index

Some such non-monetary incentives are:

Points to purchase merchandise: Establishing a Company newsletter acknowledgement: Well-per-

point program so drivers can earn points or coupons forming drivers could be acknowledged in the com-
that can be used to purchase merchandise of their pany newsletter, with descriptions of their safe-driv-
choice. ing incidents.

Recognition through certificate and awards: Recog- On-the-spot acknowledgement: Encourage cus-
nizing drivers by awarding them certificates and tro- tomers to acknowledge and praise a driver who is
phies to motivate them to perform better. seen to ‘do the right thing’

Responsibility
Positive towards Effective
Motivation
competiveness passenger service delivery
safety
Figure 8: Benefits

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 27

FARE DETERMINATION
-soham munshi
 CHAPTER TWO
Public transport pricing is complex due to the diverse The Role Of Pricing In Public
goals of sustainability, lack of overlap between insti-
Transportation
tutions in charge of infrastructure and transport op-
The Simpson – Curtin rule states that each 3% fare
erations, and requirement for integration between
increase reduces ridership by 1%. The fare model of
multiple transport modes.
any transportation system starts with a concept of
equality between the revenue and expenditure of the
This study aims at outlining price/fare determination
system. Improvements in price typically have 3 or 4
models for public transport that can maximize fare-
times the effect on profit as proportionate increase in
box revenue. The public transport system is a ser-
volume.
vice-based system for the public, hence pricing and
fare should be affordable for every citizen. Moreover,
the public transport system operates on economic

=
viability rather than financial viability- an objective Revenue (Number
Expenditure ( Payments
which prevents the system from being a profit-mak- made to bus operators,
of trips sold
fare collection costs,
ing enterprise for the transport authority. multiplied by
station customer service,
technical fare).
staff salaries, and fund
Pricing is a fare-box revenue system, and is one of the cost.
major sources of revenue for the enterprise. There-
fore, the determination of fare/price is crucial and Figure 1: Technical fare calculation
must take into consideration passenger willingness to
pay, and the socio-economic profile of the region. In
India, a large section of the population belong to low
income groups, and so public transport fares must Major factors for fare
be affordable. The transportation costs in an Urban determination
Transport System (UTS) are generally met by the There are various conditions and factors that need
provider of the System. The cost or price depends on to be considered according to the varying scenarios
various factors including infrastructure, geographical of different locations where the transit system has to
conditions, and administrative barriers. These costs operate. These factors make it more convenient for
may be either fixed or variable. the transit authority to determine the fare. The major
factors to be considered are:
What is fare/pricing in Price of Fuel: Oil is the major economic controller of
transportation? any country. Fuel price plays a significant role in de-
Fare is typically dedicated to a transit system’s op- termining the bus fare as it is the primary facilitator
erating cost, though the generated amount rarely of bus movements.
covers this cost. The increase in fare-box revenue
generally depends on transit pricing and fare change, Competition: Many urban transport system have
which may also respond to forecast or actual operat- networks which ply on the same route, thus creating
ing costs. It is the pricing policy which should balance a competitive market to determine the fare.
out the value of service, with a user’s willingness or
ability to pay. Season: According to geographical condition, the
climatic condition also varies. This climatic variation
affects fare price. For example, fare can be increased

30 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

or reduced in harsh summers. Holiday or peak travel the marginal external cost (including congestion, air
season that attracts high demand for travel service pollution, noise, accidents and maintenance cost of
can also impact fare. the infrastructure), for a given infrastructure
Penetration Pricing Market Skimming
Demand and Supply: The bus fare changes according
Influence of Elasticity
to demand and supply. When demand is high or low, Value Pricing

the price can be accordingly higher or lower. Cost-Plus Pricing Loss Leader

Contribution Pricing Psychological Pricing

PRICING
Taxation: Most countries run on taxes paid by citi- STRATEGIES
Target Pricing Price Leadership
zens and enterprises. Tax rates impact fare prices as
Marginal Cost Pricing Tender Pricing
an increase in tax causes an increase in costs, and the
Absorption/full cost Pricing Price Discrimination
changed amount is to be borne by the traveller.
Destroyer Pricing/ Predator Pricing

Distance: Prices are calculated according to the dis- Figure 2: Various pricing strategies
tance travelled.

Pricing Strategies
Pricing of most public transport in urban areas is the
System
responsibility of the Urban Local Bodies (ULB). Till
now the ULB’s decisions on UTs fares determination Stakeholders
are primarily implemented by the by short-term po- The various stakeholders in the running of a public
litical, fiscal, and administrative expediency. Looking bus service are ULB, SPV, users, consultant, and fi-
after the rapid growth in UTs and its deficits, strin- nally state government. Generally in ULB, the munic-
gency in public subsidy budgets have demanded a ipal commissioner is the Chairman of all city bus ser-
more comprehensive view of UTS pricing. Although vices. The State government is the approval body for
it might seem that the whole city bus industry uses changes and implementation of the project. Public
similar pricing principles, in reality, different opera- transport is driven by the user and hence their needs
tors and business models need different approaches. are of highest priority in planning and designing a bus
One of the most important aspects in pricing is mak- system.
ing strategy, and the majorly used pricing strategies Special Purpose Vehicle
A company is established
Special Purpose whichVehicle
Vehicle is joint
for UTS are: A company is
Special
venture of state government
Special
established
Purpose
Special
which
andPurpose
Purpose
is
ULB
joint
called
Vehicle Vehicle
A company is established
as SPV which looks after the operationswhich is jointof
1. Cost-plus pricing: total cost + mark-up venture A company
of state
venture
venture
government
ofA
of
company
state
state
is established
isand
government ULB
established
government
and which
called
ULB iscalled
which joint
system. is joint Consultant
as SPVaswhich
venture
SPV looks
whichof after
state
looks the theand
operations
government
after ULB
andof ULB
operations called
ofcalled Planning and designing of the
2. Competitive pricing: deciding fare based on as SPV which
as SPV lookslooks
which afterafter
thesystem.
operations
the operations
system.
Urban Localsystem. Body
of of
Consultant
Consultant
Planning
infrastructure and system.
Consultant
and designing
Consultant of the of the
system. Planning and designing
that of competition A local government which
Urban Local Body governs all
Planning
infrastructure andand
Planning
infrastructure
infrastructure
designing
system.
and system. of the
designing
and system.
of the
the cityUrban Local
transport Body
system. infrastructure and system.
3. Value-based pricing: deciding fare by what A localAgovernment
local government
Urban
which which Urban
governs Local
governs
Body
allLocal Body
all User’s
The main user for whom the service is
A local
Athegovernment
citythe
local transport
government which governs
system.
city transportwhich governs
system. all all
customer believes it is worth the city transport
State
the city Governmentsystem.
transport system.
User’sUser’s
The main
made for.
User’s
The user for
User’s
main whom
user the service
for whom is
the service is
Price skimming: reducing initial high price as market for running State
The main authority
State the
State
the
is
Government responsible
Government
Government
service
State system .
Government
made The main
for.
made
made
The user user
for.main
for. for.
made
for whom the service
for whom is is
the service

grows The main

The
The
for
authority
main
main
running
The
the is responsible
authority
authority
the
thethe
the authority
main
for running service
is responsible
isthe
system
service responsible
is .responsible
system .
BRTS
Penetration pricing: initial low price which is raised as for running for runningthe service
the system
service .
system .
BRTS BRTS
service gets more established BRTS BRTS

Marginal Cost Pricing: prices are equal to the sum of

the marginal resource cost (extra cost of driver time,
fuel, wear and tear of vehicle, all before taxes) and Figure 3: Various stakeholder’s in city bus service system

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 31

Fare approval process
The process from determining fare to approval of fare
was studied. Generally, SPV or ULB initiates the pro-
cess, and proposes a new fare based on their current
ridership and the change in the calendar year. Based
on the framework of the ULB, the report of new fare
is discussed with the appointed consultant to ULB/
SPV. Once the report of fare is done, it is further for-
Fare Revision
warded Formula-
to Municipal Once a who
Commissioner Yearis the chair-
man for city bus service system. After going through
the report, the ULB through Municipal Commissioner
sends it to the state government for final approval.
Once the state government Changes likednew
approves, the to fare
fuel price change in same
Fuel Charges proportion ( effected monthly).
system is implemented.

Fare calculation

To revise fare of a bus services, a formula

Changes based
liked to on
change in wholesale price
fuelOther Charges
charges, and change in wholesale price index is
index(effected annually).
used
Fare Revision Formula- Once a Year

Changes liked to fuel price change in same

Revised Fare=Base Fare+1.2*(( Base Fare*0.5*change in fuel price)+(base
Fuel Charges fare*0.5*change
proportion ( effected monthly). in whole
sale price index)).
Fare Revision Formula- Once a Year

Changes liked to fuel price change in same Changes liked to change in wholesale price
Fuel Charges proportion ( effected monthly). Other Charges
index(effected annually).

Figure 4: Fare revision formula, once a year

Revised Fare=Base Fare+1.2*(( Base Fare*0.5*change in fuel price)+(base fare*0.5*change in whole
Changes liked to change in wholesale price sale price index)).
Other Charges
index(effected annually).

Fare change Changes Informed

Revised Fare=Base Fare+1.2*(( Base Fare*0.5*change in fuel price)+(base fare*0.5*change in whole
AJL Report done if Any Rejected About
sale price index)). Approval/Rejection
Generated

For Review No
COE

AMC For
Review
Approval

STATE For
GOVT Approval
Yes

Figure 6: Swim lane

32 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

Suggestions Model 1: Fare model of Metro,
BRT and City Bus Services
This model is to define fares for a Metro rail project,
based on the BRT fares.Tables 1 and 2 show the range
Modelling is for processes that can be controlled. It
from base fare to maximum fare, the fare model on
helps in understanding how a process would behave
which the fare is determined, and the average km
under various conditions. Simply put, it identifies
travelled by a passenger in each mode of transport.
what output can be expected for a given input. Fur-
To determine the metro fare and its escalation, BRT
ther, analysing how the process behaves at extreme
base fare is considered, the change of fare in each
conditions or unstable conditions gives insight into
stage is observed, and the same increase of fare
how stable the process could be, and under what
in percentage was applied to determine the corre-
conditions. This helps to understand how to control
sponding fare for the metro. This establishes an INR 5
a process. Several models have been considered to
min fare, and INR 25 as max fare. This metro fare can
project the impact on fare by the variation of differ-
be used in further analysis to determine the integrat-
ent factors.
ed fare system for all public transport in a city.

AMTS BRTS Metro

Fare Model Stage wise Station + Distance N.A

Base fare INR .3 INR. 4 INR. 5 (assumed)

Maximum fare INR. 23 INR. 29 Rs. 25 (assumed)

Avg km travelled by
5 km 6 km 7 km
Passenger

Cost of operation per KM INR. 40-50 INR. 55-60 N.A

Discount on passes Fixed rate % based N.A

Table 1: Fare comparison of all urban transport mode

AMTS Current BRTS OLD BRTS FARE METRO

Sr. No KM
In INR In INR In INR In INR
1 0-2. 3.00 4.00 2.00 5.00
2 2-4. 7.00 7.00 5.00 8.00
3 4-6. 8.00 9.00 6.00 9.00
4 6-8. 11.00 10.00 7.00 10.00
5 8-10. 12.00 11.00 8.00 11.00
6 10-14. 13.00 13.00 11.00 15.00
7 14-18. 15.00 14.00 12.00 16.00
8 18-22. 17.00 20.00 14.00 18.00
9 22-26. 18.00 22.00 15.00 19.00
10 26-32 20.00 25.00 17.00 21.00
11 32-38. 22.00 27.00 19.00 23.00
12 38-44. 23.00 29.00 21.00 25.00
Table 2: Fare comparison at each stage

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 33

Model 2: Impact of fare change (14%) increases ridership by 93%, and a large fare
change (50%) changes ridership by 27%. Considering
on ridership
that the average passenger travels around 6-8km,
In this model, the impact of fare change on ridership,
the change in fare by 30% will change the ridership by
and vice versa is looked at. Here, elasticity is calculat-
44%, thus making this a viable option.
ed by percentage of change in ridership, and percent-
age of change in fare. This model will help understand
This model is made to determine the integrated fare
how the change in fare will change ridership.
for each mode of transport and the gap funding re-
quired to make it stable. In Table 3 it can be seen that
To illustrate, Table 5 shows that a minimal fare change

BRTS Fare In INR INTEGRATED REMANING Gap Funding to BRTS

Sr. No KM AMTS METRO AVERAGE FARE ( BUS) FUND
CNG DIESEL ELECTIRC In INR In INR CNG DIESEL ELECTRIC

1 0-2. 3.00 4.00 5.00 6.00 5.00 5.00 5.00 2.00 -2.00 -3.00 -4.00

2 2-4. 7.00 7.00 8.00 9.00 8.00 8.00 8.00 1.00 -6.00 -7.00 -8.00

3 4-6. 8.00 9.00 10.00 11.00 9.00 9.00 9.00 1.00 -8.00 -9.00 -10.00

4 6-8. 11.00 10.00 11.00 12.00 10.00 11.00 11.00 0.00 -10.00 -11.00 -12.00

5 8-10. 12.00 11.00 12.00 13.00 11.00 12.00 12.00 0.00 -11.00 -12.00 -13.00

6 10-14. 13.00 13.00 14.00 15.00 15.00 14.00 14.00 1.00 -12.00 -13.00 -14.00

7 14-18. 15.00 14.00 15.00 16.00 16.00 15.00 15.00 0.00 -14.00 -15.00 -16.00

8 18-22. 17.00 20.00 21.00 22.00 18.00 20.00 20.00 3.00 -17.00 -18.00 -19.00

9 22-26. 18.00 22.00 23.00 24.00 19.00 21.00 21.00 3.00 -19.00 -20.00 -21.00

10 26-32 20.00 25.00 26.00 27.00 21.00 24.00 24.00 4.00 -21.00 -22.00 -23.00

11 32-38. 22.00 27.00 28.00 29.00 23.00 26.00 26.00 4.00 -23.00 -24.00 -25.00

12 38-44. 23.00 29.00 30.00 31.00 25.00 28.00 28.00 5.00 -24.00 -25.00 -26.00

Table 3: Integrated fare model (average fare)

BRTS Fare In INR INTEGRATED REMANING Gap Funding to BRTS

Sr. No KM AMTS METRO AVERAGE FARE ( BUS) FUND
CNG DIESEL ELECTIRC In INR In INR CNG DIESEL ELECTRIC

1 0-2. 3.00 4.00 5.00 6.00 5.00 5.00 7.00 4.00 0.00 -1.00 -2.00

2 2-4. 7.00 7.00 8.00 9.00 8.00 8.00 14.00 7.00 0.00 -1.00 -2.00

3 4-6. 8.00 9.00 10.00 11.00 9.00 9.00 17.00 9.00 0.00 -1.00 -2.00

4 6-8. 11.00 10.00 11.00 12.00 10.00 11.00 21.00 10.00 0.00 -1.00 -2.00

5 8-10. 12.00 11.00 12.00 13.00 11.00 12.00 23.00 11.00 0.00 -1.00 -2.00

6 10-14. 13.00 13.00 14.00 15.00 15.00 14.00 26.00 13.00 0.00 -1.00 -2.00

7 14-18. 15.00 14.00 15.00 16.00 16.00 15.00 29.00 14.00 0.00 -1.00 -2.00

8 18-22. 17.00 20.00 21.00 22.00 18.00 20.00 37.00 20.00 0.00 -1.00 -2.00

9 22-26. 18.00 22.00 23.00 24.00 19.00 21.00 40.00 22.00 0.00 -1.00 -2.00

10 26-32 20.00 25.00 26.00 27.00 21.00 24.00 45.00 25.00 0.00 -1.00 -2.00

11 32-38. 22.00 27.00 28.00 29.00 23.00 26.00 49.00 27.00 0.00 -1.00 -2.00

12 38-44. 23.00 29.00 30.00 31.00 25.00 28.00 52.00 29.00 0.00 -1.00 -2.00

Table 4: Integrated fare model (new fare determined)

34 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

when we consider the average fare the gap funding
required ranges from INR 2 to INR 24. Thus to make
sure the gap funding is reduced to nil, the min fare
determined through this model ranges from INR 7 to
INR 52 (table 4), when we split the fund by 50% in
between two modes of transport.

KM 0-2. 2-4. 4-6. 6-8. 8-10. 10-14. 14-18. 18-22. 22-26. 26-32 32-38. 38-44.

Old Fare 2.00 5.00 6.00 7.00 8.00 11.00 12.00 14.00 15.00 17.00 19.00 21.00

New Fare 4.00 7.00 9.00 10.00 11.00 13.00 14.00 20.00 22.00 25.00 29.00 29.00
Fare
50% 29% 33% 30% 27% 15% 14% 30% 32% 32% 34% 28%
Change %
%
26% 46% 39% 43% 48% 85% 91% 43% 41% 41% 38% 47%
Ridership

Impact of Fare Change on Ridership

35.00 100%
90%
30.00
80%
25.00 70%
20.00 60%
50%
15.00 40%
10.00 30%
20%
5.00
10%
0.00 0%
0-2. 2-4. 4-6. 6-8. 8-10. 10-14. 14-18. 18-22. 22-26. 26-3 2 32-38. 38-44.
Old Fare New Fare Fare Change % % Ridership

Table 5: Impact of fare change due to pricing

KM 0-2. 2-4. 4-6. 6-8. 8-10. 10-14. 14-18. 18-22. 22-26. 26-32 32-38. 38-44.
Old Fare 2.00 5.00 6.00 7.00 8.00 11.00 12.00 14.00 15.00 17.00 19.00 21.00
New Fare 3.00 6.00 8.00 11.00 13.00 16.00 19.00 20.00 22.00 25.00 29.00 29.00
Fare
33% 17% 25% 36% 38% 31% 37% 30% 32% 32% 34% 28%
Change %
% Ridership 39% 78% 52% 36% 34% 42% 35% 43% 41% 41% 38% 47%

Impact of Fare Change on Ridership

35.00 90%

30.00 80%
70%
25.00
60%
20.00 50%
15.00 40%
30%
10.00
20%
5.00 10%
0.00 0%
0-2. 2-4. 4-6. 6-8. 8-10. 10-14. 14-18. 18-22. 22-26. 26-32 32-38. 38-44.

Old Fare New Fare Fare Change % % Ridership

Table 6: Impact of fare change due to pricing

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 35

Model 3: Fare determination for change the bus operational hours to determine the
new passes best fare for passes. In Tables 7 and 8, we can see the
This model will help in determining whether new change in fare as we change the operational hours,
passes can be introduced in the system. The model thus showing which fare is best suited according to
considers the operational hours of buses i.e. the first a city
bus that plies on the road till the last bus, which is
from 6am to 11pm in the studied case. Here, we can

FARE DETERMINATION FOR NEW PASSES

For travelling in BRTS only For Full day/ Half Day Pass Fare
Formula = Max Fare* Operations hours of Bus( for half day pass consider half hours of operation)

10% Discount
Pass Max Fare In INR Operations hours Fare In INR for using only Fare to Be Paid In INR
BRTS

Full day 29 17 493 49.3 443.7

Half day 29 8.5 246.5 24.65 221.85
Integrated Fare for AMTS and BRTS

Max Fare of
Fare to Paid In Fare transfer to Each Organisation(
Pass BRTS/AMTS which Operations hours Split Fund
INR AMTS/BRTS) In INR
ever is highest.

Full day 29 17 493 50% 246.5

Half day 29 8.5 246.5 50% 123.25
Table 7: Fare determination for new passes with maximum operational hours considered

FARE DETERMINATION FOR NEW PASSES

For travelling in BRTS only For Full day/ Half Day Pass Fare
Formula = Max Fare* Operations hours of Bus( for half day pass consider half hours of operation)

10% Discount
Pass Max Fare In INR Operations hours Fare In INR for using only Fare to Be Paid in INR
BRTS

Full day 29.00 8 232.00 23.20 208.80

Half day 29.00 I4 116.00 11.60 104.40
Integrated Fare for AMTS and BRTS

Max Fare of
BRTS/AMTS which Fare to Paid Fare transfer to Each Organisation(
Pass Operations hours Split Fund
ever is highest in In INR AMTS/BRTS) In INR
INR

Full day 29.00 8 232.00 50% 116.00

Half day 29.00 4 116.00 50% 58.oo

Table 8: Fare determined according to certain operational hours

36 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

Model: 4 Incentive schemes and the mileage, this benchmark decided is 5km/l in
A key component to encourage consistency in fuel the case city. So, when a bus driver drives the bus in a
efficiency is motivation, and a good way to motivate way which increases fuel efficiency, operational cost
drivers is through incentive schemes to encourage of each bus is reduced. This can contribute to fare re-
continued performance. In this model, the fuel effi- duction
ciency benchmark is considered by the ULB or transit
authority. Considering the type of bus, load capacity,

Fuel Efficiency Reduced in Change in Change in Increase in fare

Incentive in %
by Driver Km/l Operation Cost Fare Ridership box revenue

5 7 2

Table 9: Incentive model

Pricing is one of the most important business-relat- price model must be thorough. Such an analysis must
ed decisions a public transit operator can make. Thus, be based on the type of activity, competition, regula-
the analysis which supports choice and adoption of a tions, and expectations of target customers.

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 37

FARE COLLECTION AND
TICKETING
-Shivangi
 CHAPTER THREE
Fare collection refers to the collection of fare in a Types of ticketing
transport system in return for a ticket or pass to per-
mit travel. Fare collection and ticketing systems play There are four types of ticketing used in the studied
an important part in the success or failure of any pub- case: QR printed ticket, smart card, mobile ticket, and
lic transport system. Overpriced fare and improper web ticket. Paper tickets are printed on Handheld Ter-
collection methods may result in dissatisfaction and minals (HHT) or Point of Sale (POS) machines. They
disappointment of passengers, while affordable fares are also used to recharge smart cards. Turnstiles and
and ease of use can attract more ridership and also fare validators are used to regulate passenger entry
ensure revenue generation. Generally, there are two based on fare media, and to validate fare media.
types of fare collection processes: on-board, and
off-board. Off-board systems emerged as a means
of handling large passenger volumes efficiently and
without the inconvenience of on-board collection.
Most rapid transit systems including BRT and metro
collect fares at the station, before passengers enter POINT OF SALE MACHINE
ELECTRONIC TICKETING TURNSTILE CARD
MACHINE VALIDATOR
the vehicle.
Figure 1: Equipment used
Any fare collection system must incorporate a mech-
anism to ensure payment by users. There are two pri-
Printed ticket
mary means of ensuring compliance: barrier control
Printed paper tickets or QR ticket are a leading meth-
which requires users to cross a physical barrier such as
od of fare collection in any public transport systems.
turnstiles which allows entry on basis of fare media;or
In most paper-based systems, printed tickets are gen-
proof of payment which has an ‘open system’ and al-
erated to passengers in return for a cash payment of
lows users to move through freely on showing a proof
the fare. The paper ticket used in the studied BRT sys-
of payment such as ticket.
tem use QR codes, and are printed on HHT or POS

System
machines. It takes 30 sec to generate one tickets, and
on an average, it takes every 10th passenger around
300 seconds (5 minutes) to get a ticket.
Rapid transit systems are designed to cater to large
passenger volumes. Managing peak-hour volumes Card based ticket
has been a challenge for public transport agencies The BRT system issues a pre-paid, chip-based smart
around the world. In the case city, off-board ticket- card with a 5 year validity and with maximum re-
ing system is used in the BRT system. Fare collection charge amount up to Rs 10,000. In addition to tran-
has been outsourced to two agencies which provide sit fare, the card can be used for parking payment,
manpower for ticket sales and collection of fares, and utilities bill payment, amusement parks and enter-
to deposit collected fare with the respective agency. tainment payments. There are five different named
These agencies, which are on a 2 year contract, han- cards- instant, personalised, handicapped (10% dis-
dle 60% and 40% of the stations each. count on transit fare), blind (free travel), and student
(40% discount). in the case city, the transit cards are
issued at BRT stations, city civic centres, the SPV of-
fice, and few retailer outlets.

However, of the 158 stations in the BRT system, only

30 stations issue cards.

40 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

 4 Board the bus

Scan 5 6 Security check

ENTRY

1 Scan 3

EXIT
Avg-5 mint-10th customer

2 Ticket counter De-Board the bus

card form

Figure 2: Movement pattern in the BRTS station with a printed ticket in the case city

4 Board the bus

Scan 5 6 Security check

ENTRY

1 Scan 3
EXIT
Avg-1 mint-Per customer

2 Ticket counter De-Board the bus

card form
Stand in queue to recharge the card

Figure 3: Movement pattern in the BRTS station with a travel card in the case city

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 41

 ISSUE OCCUR

Analysis 22
28
3
3
Despite the apparent advantages of the smart card, 4
only a small fraction of BRT travellers use them. To 37
understand the reason for this under-utilisation, a 23

survey of 100 card users and 100 non-users was con-

ducted in the case city. The surveys was carried out 0 5 10 15 20
NO.OF RESPONDENT
25 30 35 40

in and around a high, medium, and low footfall BRT NOT ANY UNAWRE TO APPLY LOCATION SERVER DOWN OFFICE CLOSED
MORE NO OF DOCUMENTS TIME TAKING PROCESS NON AVAIBILITY OF THE FORM
station each.
On an average 15 lakh fare transactions occur per Figure 6: Analysis of card issue applying process in the case city
week, of which 10 lakh are paper tickets, 2 lakh are
transit cards, and the rest are mobile or other ticket From the survey in the case city it was identified that
modes. It is identified that of the 1.5 lakh daily fare nearly half the respondents found the card difficult
transactions, only 30,000 are smart card transactions. to use as they had experienced instances of being
It therefore emerges that out of the total 2.5 lakh unable to recharge their cards due to equipment or
cards issued thus far, only 30,000 are used daily. This server failure. Another substantial section of respon-
is only 12% of the total cards issued. dents were unhappy with the time it took to get a
card issued.
ISSUES WHILE USING

6
1200000
TICKET ANALYSIS
9
998193

1000000 5
1 33
TYPES OF TICKETS

800000
27

600000 14
6
143507
151318
156895

400000
140964
143549

142316

119644

181462

200000 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35
29525

30065
29721

29220

29844

25628

NO.OF RESPONDENT
7459

DID NOT FACE ANY ISSUE UNABLE TO CHECK BALANCE PENALTY CHARGES NON FUNCTION OF THE MACHINE
0
RECHARGING OF THE CARD LOW BALANCE IN THE CARD NON AVAILIBILITY OF THE FORM
16th SEPT 17th SEPT 18th SEPT 19th SEPT 20th SEPT 21st SEPT 22nd SEPT 16TH-22ND
DATES SEPT

JANMITRA CARD USER QR TICKET USER Figure 7: Analysis of card issue using process in the case city
Figure 4: Ticket analysis for ticketing type used in the case city
CARD ISSUANCE
Therefore the reasons for non-usage can broadly be
300000 categorized into two: problems during card issue, and
242792

250000 problems during card usage.

182480
175700
162877
NO.OF USERS

200000

150000
The process analysis in Figure 8 shows that the main
64084

60312

100000
reasons for delaying in issuing the card is at the ap-
45168
18916
12823

50000
2172
1919

proval and transfer stage, and at the data entry and

836
434

402
253

0
INSTANT STUDENT HANDICAPPED BLIND TOTAL
form forwarding stage.

TYPES OF PASSES
BRTS AMTS TOTAL CARD

Figure 5: Card Issuance in the case city

42 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

 Not Everyday
CUSTOMER Apply for form
Informed Jan Mitra
card submitted/Abse
of card
nce of staff & received
rejection
less no of forms
No
Collects form
BRTS STATION, and forwards to 21 days
CITY CIVIC ICICI Bank for
data Entry

Data Entry at
office/Forwards
BANK
the Forms along
with Data mail
to DGM
Form Approved Delay in print
Reviews
SPV on the /sending to the
and
Availability of Ahmedabad
approval
the time Yes through courier

Uploaded Informed
BANK Send to
Scanned of
ICICI Bank
Virtual cards Customer

MAIN BRANCH prints and

forward to
Banks

BANK Enter the

Distributes to
Programme
the Outlets
Code

1 Day 1-2 Day 1 Day 3-5 Day 1 Day 7 Day 1 Day 1-2 Day

Figure 8: Swim lane showing process for availing passes in the case city

Suggestions
System-based proposal
Fare collection and fare validation are an essential uses off-board ticketing, but the city bus service prac-
part of the BRT service. In a BRT system with limited tices on-board ticketing), or fare media.
physical space for stations in a centre median, provid- A simple solution for this tangle could be to issue tick-
ing infrastructure space for fare collection is a major ets to city bus users off-board at the BRT station, but
challenge. Depending on how the fare system is con- use a QR code scanner device on-board the city bus to
figured, there may be some time lost while paying for validate these tickets. This will prevent entry into the
off-board tickets. In the case city, it was observed that system without some kind of ticket.
several BRT stations are also used by the city bus ser- Establishing kiosk machines will reduce manual de-
vice. This causes a degree of chaos at boarding and pendency for ticketing, and reduce long queues at the
de-boarding, and revenue leakage as both systems ticket counters in the peak hours.
do not use the same fare rates, fare systems (BRT

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 43

Transit card proposal ken down in Figure 9. The new system could include
In order to improve distribution of smart cards, a a single point of data entry into a server to cut the
distributor model such as what is used for SIM cards time it currently takes due to data entry at multiple
could be implemented. This would include increas- points. If the system also has a database of schools
ing area-wise the number of points where the card is and colleges in the city, it would make it easier to ver-
available, or can be recharged. The kiosks suggested ify student card applications. Utilising a fast courier
could allow card recharge and checking of balance, in service to deliver the cards to the applicant could also
addition to purchase of tickets. cut time. These measures would compress the time
Steps must also be taken to reduce time taken to issue taken to process the card from 21 days, to 8
a smart card. The suggested process for this is bro-

Existing practice Existing practice Proposed Proposed

Roles & Responsibility Roles & Responsibility Roles & Responsibility Roles & Responsibility
Absence the security for Absence
all the BRTS Assign the security for allAssign
station for all the BRTS station
the security the BRTS station for all the BRTS station
the security

Tickets are not collectedTickets are not collected Collect

Collect all the printed tickets all the
from printed tickets from passenger
passenger
Check the validity Check the validity

Validity of tickets are notValidity

checkedof tickets are not checked
Incentivecollection
Incentive on salary on maximum on salary on maximum collection
of printed ticket of printed ticket
Torn & folded tickets areTorn
being&collected
folded tickets are being collected
On a month end On a month end of
Daily entry Daily entry of
analysis of tickets analysis
theoftickets
tickets the tickets
Absence of responsibilityAbsence of responsibility
in security person. in security person.
generated is done generated is done collected
collected
Station wise data Station wise data
Figure 9: System based proposal

System reload with data Informed

Apply for for automatic verification card
CUSTOMER of
card and glance approval by received
rejection
DJM on the day

Data entry at the

station
BRTS STATION
only/Forwards the No 8 days
CITY CIVIC
Forms along with
Data mail to DGM

Reviews
SPV and
approval

Yes Uploaded
Improved Courier
BANK Send to Scanned
service
Bank Virtual cards

prints and Informed

MAIN BRANCH
forward to of
Banks Customer

BANK Enter the

Distributes to
Programme
the Outlets
Code

1 Day Same Day 1 Day 1 Day 3 Days 1 Day 1Day

Figure 10: Proposed fast process

44 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

 Offers on tapping Radio jingles

Montly Offers Insitution

Free rides on making Retailer store

Cashbacks Hoardings
Hoardings

Figure 11: Proposed advertising mediums

From the survey it was identified that many citizens include newspaper advertisements, radio jingles,
are unaware of the smart card, its various discount hoardings, information at retail stores, outreach to
schemes, how to go about getting the card, etc. To educational institutions, among others.
counter this, awareness and adoption strategies can
be deployed. Some measures taken for this could

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 45

DEPOT MANAGEMENT
-Trisha Swarup
CHAPTER FOUR
Depot is a place in which buses are parked, sheltered of inbound and outbound inventory, and maintain a
and maintained. Bus depots consist of various facil- logbook or register of all stock and goods. Inventory
ities which allow washing of buses, regular mainte- is recorded manually, but depot D1 also uses a soft-
nance which includes servicing, repairing and fuel- ware, ‘UDAAN’, for this.
ling. It also includes basic infrastructure such as crew
resting room, toilets, and parking spaces for visitors Depots D1 and D2 have the same operators. There
and staff, offices and conference room for adminis- are occasions where exchange of inventory happens
trative functions. between these depots, utilising the recovery van.

Bus depot categorisation can be done on the basis When new stock is to be purchased, quotes are tak-
of size, and number of buses it can accommodate. en from three suppliers. Selection is made based on
Small depots hold up to 80 buses, medium depots price and quality, and once approval is received from
80 to 200, and large depots, more than 200. For the the operator head office, a purchase order is sent to
smooth functioning of the depot and making its per- the supplier. The bought goods are delivered to the
formance level up to the set benchmarks, daily op- depot, copies of the bill are maintained at the depot
erations should be planned efficiently. These perfor- and at the head office, then payment is made to the
mance types differ from depot to depot. (Rao, 2017) supplier.

In the Indian context, bus depots are hapazardly or-

Depot Operation
ganized. Depots are freely accessible, and anyone
Depot operations start at 6:00 am. First, bus and crew
can freely move to any part of the depot. Such move-
scheduling is done by the Schedule Supervisor who
ments in the depot lead to safety and security con-
allocates drivers to designated buses, and hands over
cerns and cause various problems. All depots must
a log sheet to drivers. Once the driver makes sure bus
have segregated roles and activities for the entire
condition is good, it is driven to the depot gate where
operation, and there should be well defined scope of
the security guard records bus number, bus route, and
work for all personnel involved in the depot
kilometre reading on the in-and-out register. When
the bus returns to the depot, the guard records the
kilometre reading, and collects the log sheet in which

System the driver has listed bus or trip issues. This log sheet
is given to the Depot Manager who assigns work to
all the particular department relevant to rectifying
Depot the issues. Bus maintenance is done every night from
There are five depots in the case city, D1, D2, D3, 11:00 pm to 6:00 am. If any breakdown occurs during
D4, D5, where bus maintenance and management is the trip, the driver informs the Point Supervisor, who
done. Data about these depots is listed in Table 1 informs the concerned depot operator. This informa-
tion is transferred to the breakdown team, who goes
Inventory Management on the incident spot for repair. If an immediate solu-
All depots have inventory stores where all equip- tion is not possible, a spare bus is sent from depot to
ment, tools, and spares are kept in stock. When work replace the damaged one.
starts in the maintenance pit, tools and other re-
quired material are dispatched from this store. There Depot Management Software
are two store in-charges at each depot- one for day Depot operations include processing and storing a
shift, and another for night shift- who keep all records
48 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS
 DESCRIPTION Depot A Depot B Depot C Depot D Depot E

Operators Chartered, Tata Chartered Ashok Lelyand Maruti Travel time

Area of Depot 7,345 m.sq 13,981 m.sq 13,588 m.sq. 12,523 m.sq 9,138 m.sq

Size of depot Small Medium Large Small Small

Average bus per depot 45 total (41 on road) – Total : 88, 83 on route Total- 18(9 buses on road) Total : 60 buses, 57 on road Currently : 50 ; On route: 46 –
1618(Diesel), 1621(Auto Gare) 32 (on proposal) CNG(fuel)

Spare bus per depot 4 5 9 3 4

Total drivers, late fine if 78, 200rs to 500rs 100, 200rs and 500rs 120 drivers (25 drivers trained) 87 65 , 500rs fined per day if trip loss
drivers comes late.
Contract time 7 years 7 years 7+2 years 7 years 7+3 years extendable if
performance is good
Qualification and Training (6-7 days), ITI, Diploma 10th ,12th , graduate Mechanical , Electrical, Diploma ; Training -7days, earlier B.com, B.A, Diploma ; 4 days
Training or experienced Training- Chennai experience, expertise in mechanic training(if they join salary are paid
work for 4 days)
Employee per depot 60 45-50 50-60 100 45

Bus kilometers per day 250km -300km(covers both shift) 250km 40km- Swap, 200km fast charging 200km-250km(115 liters to 144 190km-225km
– 150 litres liters)
Refuelling van/ station Yes 4(Reliance), earlier- Indian oil 1hour (less than 3 minutes to swap a yes No, 175km to 250km(Sabarmati
corporation battery), 2 hour (6hour complete CNG Adalaj, Adani)
charging)

Bus oil changing 60,000km 60,000 12 battery at a time(battery life – 7- 27000km 10,000per km
8 years)
Washing area 1 2 2 washing bay 1 Pressure nozzel

No of buses washed per 5 bus per day 10-12 2 buses deep cleaning per day 5-6 5-10 deep cleaning
day
Recovery van 1- turn around time(half an hour) 2(Narol- Naroda, Ghuma- 1 2 1
Maninagar)

Table 4 .1 Description of Depots

Table 1: Description of depots

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS |

49
range of data including about fleet, store recording external. Depot may have several bays for wet wash-
or keeping, office administration, and information ing, which is equipped with water hoses, and pressure
about fuelling. All this information can be recorded washers. The main components included are washing
in the Depot Management System (DMS) software. brush, storage tank for water etc.
The can record data on administration, inventory, op- Depots have maintenance pits where all inspection
eration, and scheduling. Reports generated through related-work is done: routine servicing, mechanical
DMS can be used and analyzed for decision-mak- repair, painting etc. There is a pit chamber under the
ing, to enhance performance, and to achieve bench- maintenance area where the bus underside mainte-
marks. Depot Management System involves modules nance, adding oil, removal of coolant system, heavy
for HR Management, Roster Management, Inventory jacking, and brake repair are done. Every depot
Management, Maintenance Management, and Re- should have body painting zone.
ports. Currently, only the Roster Management mod-
ule is used. Staff facilities
There should be basic facilities for staff in every depot
Daily management of buses such as resting room, toilets, canteen, and dispensary
Each depot has a re-fuelling station. The case city has for drivers and depot staff. Canteen facility should be
a mix of Diesel, CNG, and Electric buses in each de- available in the depot for the bus drivers and employ-
pot, and appropriate re-fuelling or recharging facili- ees of the depot. Basic utilities like water, electricity,
ties. waste disposal, electrical line, fire alarms, and com-
After the end of a shift when a bus reaches the depot, munication systems should be present. Of the case
it is inspected for fuel details, tyre pressure, mechani- city depots, 3 have resting rooms, all have toilets, and
cal problems or parts malfunction. After this, washing only one has a canteen.
and technical works begin.
Cleaning may include wet and dry, and internal and

50 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

Analysis
The process for depot operations was analysed, more recovery vans, but some depots of the case
as illustrated in Figure 1. As stated in the Bus De- city do not meet this criterion. As a result, there
pot Design guidelines developed by Shakti Foun- is delay in the breakdown team reaching the in-
dation, every depot should have at least two or cident spot.

Prepare schedule
Supervisor allocate bus to drivers

Break No
Driver He takes bus He takes bus down
Starts it’s
Driver checks to route operation
to gate During
the bus trip

Writes km and Yes

Security takes sign on in
and out register

Depot
manager
(mechanics)

Point Informs to
supervisor point
supervisor

Informs to
Operator
operator

Break down
team

6am-11pm

Figure 1A:Figure
Process
4.1 A-mapping for depot
Process Mapping operation:
for Depot swimlane
Operation:Swimlane

Supervisor

Starts it’s
Driver
operation

Security

Depot Bus sent to

manager Maintainance area
(mechanics)

Point
supervisor No

Informs to operator
Operator

Breakdown team Yes

Break down goes on spot Delay Break
team down

6am-11pm
Figure 4.1 B- Process Mapping for Depot Operation:Swimlane
Figure 1B: Process mapping for depot operation: swimlane

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 51

It was also observed that currently inventory is merely
stacked in one room. This makes it difficult to locate
a particular object. As per ABC analysis done, Figure
Suggestions
2 shows that items categorised A are consumed 80%
of the time, B-items are 15%, and C-items 5%. Figure Improving inventory with lean
3 shows the haphazard arrangement of these items
in the store. management by 5S Tools
5S is a system for organizing work spaces in a way
that work can be done more efficiently, effectively,
and safely. This methodology focuses on putting ev-
erything where it belongs and keeping the workplace
clean and safe, which makes it easier for people to do
their jobs without wasting time or risking injury. 5S
techniques involve: Sort, Set-in-order, Shine, Stan-
dardize, and Sustain.

Sort
The results of the previously described ABC analysis
can be used to sort inventory. A refers to highest
consumption, B to medium consumption, and C re-
Figure 4 2 Percentage of consumption of inventories
fers to low consumption. This can be segregated
Figure 2: Percentage of consumption of inventories accordingly to ease access and usability. The front
of the store can be designated for fast pick-up, and
items can be placed stack-wise. This suggested ar-
rangement of store and stacking mechanism are il-
A Highest consumption lustrated in below in figure 5.
A B C A A A B B A
B Medium consumption While sorting of items in the store, red-tag areas can
be defined. Red tags can be attached to inventory
C Low consumption
that are defective, dead, or obsolete stock.
Set-in-place recommends that every item should
Figure 3: Existing layout of inventory store-mixed form
have a designated places to make it quicker to iden-
Various issues identified in depot management in- tify and an item for a particular work. Currently, it
clude lack of recovery vans, improper arrangement of is been observed that items are lying on the floor,
inventory, and lack of designated lanes for bus park- or even outside the store in a dis-arranged manner.
ing. Inventory standardization can be done using label
boards on the racks, and mark contents of each rack
on the encompassing cabinet.

Figure 4.3 Existing layout of inventory store- mixed form

52 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

 Sustain
C C C C C C C C C This step is meant to maintain the pace generated at
start of any events or project. A management team
B B B B B B B B B should be created to encourage employees. Incen-
tives can be implemented to encourage efficient
A A A A A A A A A working.

Highest consumption
A To sustain the 5S techniques, phase-wise process can
Medium consumption
be implemented:
B

Low consumption PHASE 1: Team and management team should be

C
trained to adapt and implement 5S. This can be done
by conducting a short-term certificate course with ex-
A B C
ternal instructors.

A1 B1 C1 PHASE 2: Displays, label-boards on the racks, and

other communication material should be placed to
publicize success, and incentive should be given for
better work.
A2 B2 C2

PHASE 3: Evaluation of 5S can be done to improve the

efficiency of work. Weekly review meetings should be
A3 B3 C3 conducted to identify 5S strengths and opportunities.

Figure 4 .5 Proposed inventory sorting method

Figure 4: Proposed inventory sorting method

Shine
The current inventory arrangements are untidy, and
make the objects look dirty. For efficient and effective
workflow, the workplace needs to be clean. A proper
cleaning schedule must be prepared so that it meets
standards, and can be monitored by the concerned
Supervisor. Daily and weekly cleaning schedules
should be prepared.

Standardize
Once the first three steps of 5S are done, things
should look well-defined and be in designated places.
All the extra items like old obsolete stock is placed in
the red zone area, everything is organized, cleaned,
and equipment is in good working condition. The ob- Figure 4. 7 Racks addressing sign board, 5S Manual, www.lean.o
jective of standardization is to establish best practic-
es and to encourage team member to actively partic-
ipate and share their creative ideas.

Figure 5: Racks addressing sign board, 5s manual, www.lean..org

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 53

 ROLES RESPONSIBILITIES
Assistant manager • Surprise inspection and impose penalty if seen hindering
the 5S regulation.

Depot manager • Supervision of entire functioning or work of depot.

• Assign works to different department if there is any issues
regarding bus.
Supervisor • Setting schedule for cleaning the inventory store and
maintainence areas of depot
• Assisting housekeeping staff for any cleaning related
work.
Operator • Monitoring and checking their buses , drivers
• Supervising store –in- charge ,whether every items are
recorded manually or on excel.

Store in charge • Sorting of material

• Red tagging n defective items , dead stocks.
• Determining and setting inventories in order
Table 2: Proposed roles and responsibilities
Table 4 .3 Proposed roles and responsibilities

Designated parking lanes for

buses
As per the Bus Depot Design guidelines, every depot
should have designated parking lanes where drivers
park the buses at the end of the day, and collect it at
the shift’s beginning. It was observed that none of the
depots in the case city have designated parking lanes,
and some have congested parking.
As per this observation, every depot should have des-
ignated parking lanes. It has been observed that every
bus has an identifying code, and buses can be parked
in numerical order according to this code. This is to be
done using label boards on the racks, and mark con-
tents of each rack on the encompassing cabinet.

54 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

 Inventory store
Fuelling
Washing bay Administrative block Security cabin
pump
Maintainence pit

PARKING LANES

Code wise
Staff facilities like canteen
Parking area
,restroom, toilet

Figure 6: Proposed layout

Placement of buses
It was observed that there was haphazard placement
of Figure
buses in4.7the
Proposed modelhinders
depot, which for designated bus lane
the movement
of the vehicles. It is advisable to park buses at a 60
degree angle instead of 90 to allow an ideal mix of
easy parking, smooth manoeuvring, and better space
utilization.
A suggested layout for D1 is illustrated in the figure 6
Total Area for parking in the depot is 3,600.25 sqm.
In this layout, buses can be parked in 3,094 sqm. This
leaves 506 sqm for another 9 buses, or any other re-
quired activity in the case city.

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 55

 BUS MAINTENANCE &
INCIDENT MANAGEMENT
-Shambhavi Kumari
 CHAPTER FIVE
“Bus service is an efficient and cost-effective mode •
•
Total no. of scheduled buses – 236
PPP model for maintenance

of public transport. A bus service can accommodate Workshop Name of the

No. of
No. of Contract cost
large number of users without increasing the volume Sl. No.
location contractor
Type of buses buses
(running)
drivers per km

of traffic on the roads. It also uses the pre-existing 1. W1

O1
•
• Old diesel
New diesel
41 80
INR. 62

roads and thus, requires very minimal setup, time and O2

•
• Electric
Old diesel
9 18 INR. 68

2. W2 O1 87 700 INR. 62
cost. But these urban modes of transport do require • New diesel
3. W3 O3 • CNG 60 87 INR. 64
proper maintenance in order to run smoothly” (Shak- 4. W O4 • Diesel 50 85 INR. 62

ti - Sustainable energy foundation, 2016). This study Table 1: Maintenance operator details for workshops
is an in-depth analysis of the bus maintenance and Table 1 shows the scale of maintenance work being
Source – Primary survey dated 24/09/19

incident management practices being carried out in carried out by the operators for different types of
the case city with a comparative approach to the best buses. The buses run an average of 250 km per day,
practices and available guidelines for the same. The and the daily maintenance work and general check-
aim of the study is to find out loopholes in existing ing is done at night after the buses complete their
practices to give recommendations that can be incor- scheduled trips. The contract cost for electrical buses
porated in the existing systems. is slightly higher than the diesel buses as they require
battery swapping after every 40 km. The general and

System preventive maintenance checklists being followed

are also different for each type of bus. The workshops
also have spare buses that are used as a replacement
Bus maintenance in the studied scenario is sub-con- if there is any issue with the scheduled bus on ground.
tracted to the bus operator which is contracted by A comparative study of all the workshops and the work
the BRT SPV. Maintenance of buses is done at the of respective operators shows that the infrastructural
workshops. All the workshops of the case city were components are an integral part of the maintenance
studied to come to a comprehensive outcome. All the processes. Table 1 shows the departments involved
maintenance activities such as rectification of issues, in the maintenance activities. Coordination between
oiling of parts, cleaning etc. is done at the workshops. these departments is necessary to cut short the time
The infrastructure and services available at the work- being taken in work allocation, documentation, and
shop also play a key role in the efficient maintenance routine maintenance work. Proper work allocation
of buses, in addition to facilities such as a good inven- and its documentation often becomes a challenge for
tory, equipment, garage and inspection setup. the operators. As a result, daily general checking is
often neglected which further increases the frequen-
cy of breakdown of buses.
Buses for Maintenance
Maintenance Location
The studied case fleet is mix of diesel, CNG, and elec-
tric buses. This proposes many new challenges to the The maintenance of buses is carried out at mainte-
process of maintenance as the buses which run on nance workshops. Out of the five built workshops
CNG or electricity have a different mechanical set- of the case city, four are functional. The mainte-
up as compared to the traditional diesel buses. This nance work is given to workshops through tenders.
becomes quite critical in the case of electric buses Their work is inspected by the BRT SPV officials on a
which require the assistance of an electrician for the monthly basis, and through random checks. All 4 bus
maintenance of the electrical components. operators handle the operations and maintenance
at their respective workshops based on the mainte-
nance modules of their parent companies. But the

58 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

inspection of their work is based on a standardized 1. Maintenance schedule
procedure followed by the authority. Lack of set re- 2. Maintenance regime
gime for daily, weekly and monthly maintenance by 3. Bus cleaning
the operators often makes it difficult for the author- 4. Inspection by authority
ities to inspect their work.The maintenance of buses
is carried out at maintenance workshops. Out of the Maintenance Schedule
five built workshops of the case city, four are func- There are two maintenance categories- reactive and
tional. The maintenance work is given to workshops preventive. Reactive maintenance is required in case
through tenders. Their work is inspected by the BRT of breakdowns and other unscheduled bus-relat-
SPV officials on a monthly basis, and through random ed issues. These can cause huge costs due to their
checks. All 4 bus operators handle the operations and uncertain nature and can be prevented by routine
maintenance at their respective workshops based on maintenance activities. Focus on required preventive
the maintenance modules of their parent companies. maintenance can help reduce the frequency of break-
But the inspection of their work is based on a stan- downs in buses and would eventually make them
dardized procedure followed by the authority. Lack more fuel efficient. Apart from breakdowns and other
of set regime for daily, weekly and monthly mainte- incidents, preventive maintenance would also pre-
nance by the operators often makes it difficult for the vent the issue of bus shortage.
authorities to inspect their work.
Workshop Layout
The workshop operators have separate checklists for
N
Housekeeping storage preventive maintenance and daily general checking.
Battery swap technology

There are decided criteria of work for each type of

maintenance, but the documentation of maintenance
work done is given less emphasis. The workshop man-
Shade

ager employed by the bus operator is responsible for

work allocation, tracking, and documentation of the
maintenance activities. The documents available
on-site were mostly related to rectification of bus is-
Inventory
• Land for workshop has been provided by AMC and the
Entry
sues, and preventive maintenance of buses based on
storeroom
development has been done by contractors
counter set kms. General checking of buses is not a common
practice amongst the operators.
Depot cum workshop Entry
Entry

Figure 1: Typical layout of a depot Source – Primary survey dated 24/09/19

Observation
Separa
unavai
The maintenance activities were observed and Daily Weekly Monthly
analysed on the basis of time being taken for general Daily m
only to
checking, productivity of mechanics, regime being
followed for maintenance, trends in maintenance re- No pa
• General checking • Detailed • Scheduled
lated issues, and the rectification process. Following of doors, horns, checking of all activities like
of insp
maint
are the key components of maintenance considered wipers, electrical the functions like engine oiling etc.
components, etc. engine, AC
for the study: • Rectification of motor as per No r
issue if incident checklist first
recorded and extin
cleaning

Figure 2: Preventive maintenance schedule followed by operators

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 59

 Observations
Preventive maintenance plan
Separate checklists for all categories
Maintenance of large number of buses every day re-
unavailable in maintenance log
quires a dedicated regime. Roles and responsibilities
should be well defined as well as communicated to
Daily maintenance targeted the concerned staff members. This would not only in-
only to rectification of incidents crease the productivity but would also facilitate the
record maintenance process. Feedbacks should be
No pass/fail criteria and summary taken from the mechanics of concerned departments
of inspections recorded in in order to keep a track of condition of buses.
e maintenance log book Log sheets are given to the drivers of both the shifts
g etc. to write the issues they face while driving the bus.
Major incidents are also written by the drivers on the
No records of maintenance of
log sheet. These log sheets are submitted by the driv-
first aid box and fire
ers in the workshop once they finish their shift.
extinguisher

Figure 3: Observations

Source – Primary survey

dated 25/09/19

Figure 4: Swimlane depicting work allocation process

The site observations show that the work allocation ends once the checklists are submitted to the work-
process starts once the log sheets are submitted by shop manager after completion of work. The driver’s
the drivers to the entry counter. These log sheets are log sheet, summary of complaints and the filled-up
then handed over to the workshop manager who checklists are recorded as maintenance documents
then creates a summary of issues. Based on the type to show the authorities at the time of inspection.
of incidents, concerned maintenance departments The detailed weekly and monthly preventive main-
are verbally notified by the workshop manager com- tenance plan include oiling of engine, gear etc. after
pleting the work allocation process. Issues are re- completion of certain kms.
solved under the inspection of department heads and
checklists are updated. The daily rectification process

60 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

 Maintenance Work Inspection
Maintenance Work Inspection

Bus cleaning Inspection of work

Sr. No. Performance
Asst. Manager -
Appraisal time period
Inspection of work
Sr. No.
Mode Performance
of appraisal Apprais
Asst. Manager - parameter parameter
Cleaning of buses on regular basis is
workshop a crucial part of
of subordinates workshop of subordinates
1. Bus Monthly random 1.
Physical Bus
Checking Monthly
maintenance activities as it vitally affectsRandom the health
and
Maintenance checking
Random and
Maintenance checkin
Field Officer 2. Field Officer
Staff behavior Through random Physical checking
of people using public transport. monthly inspection monthly inspection
checking
2. Staff
during operation
behavior Through
8 in nos. 8 in nos. checkin
The operators have sub-contracted anAssisting agency during
for hours, Complaint call
Assisting during and letters from
housekeeping. Both dry Field andSupervisors
wet cleaning are work
inspection done Field Supervisors inspection work passengers
10 in nos.
on a regular basis, though the
Sr. No.
records
Deficiencies
or checklists 10 in nos.
Fine/Km
Observations
Observatio
are not maintained. On 1.an average, one employee Sr. No. Deficiencies Fine/Km
Fire extinguisher missing/beyond expiry date 25
1. Fire extinguisher missing/beyond expiry date 25
is responsible for cleaning 2. two buses each day. Deep
Placing advertisements or religious poster 25
(without permission) outside or inside bus2. Placing advertisements or religious poster 25
cleaning is done every fifteen days. Outer cleaning Visual
(without permission) outsideNoordedicated
inside bus Fines levied
3. Dirty vehicle 50
is done with the help of an equipment which has inspections logbooks for during Visual
50 inspection inspection
4. Modification of bus design or paintwork3. 50Dirty vehiclecarried out bus to track is mailed to
automatic brushes that roll 5.
on to the surface of the 4.
Missing bus body panels – exterior and interior
based on
50Modification of bus design ormaintenance
paintwork 50
operators during carried o
bus, cleaning it throughout. 6. Records should
Damaged tire be main- 5.
checklists history
Missing bus body panels – exterior and interior 50
100
billing based o
checklists
tained for cleaning of buses and the cleaning regime 6. Damaged tire 100
Source – BRTS RFP, 2017, Google Images
should be documented with a checklist for the clean-
Table 2: Fines for maintenance related issues
ing process.
The case city BRT system has a dedicated mainte-
nance department to look after the maintenance
work of operators. The assistant workshop manager
Maintenance work inspection is the head of the department and field officers and
field supervisors work on ground. Monthly and ran-
The service contract model for operation and main-
dom checking is done on site by the field officers and
tenance can effectively work only if the authorities
they are assisted by field supervisors. Fines are lev-
keep a check on the work of private operators. There
ied if breach of Service Level Agreement is observed.
should be a dedicated inspection module to track the
These fines are documented and are also commu-
condition of buses. Enforcement measures such as
nicated to the operators so that they improve their
fines etc. should be in place and the operators should
work.
be made aware of it. The higher authorities should
make sure that the field staff who oversee workshop
visits, work inspection of operators are doing their Record analysis of maintenance
job responsibly. Thus, it becomes important to have issues
coordination between higher authority and subordi- The maintenance and incident history of buses
nates of maintenance department of the public body.
Maintenance Work Inspection should not only be recorded, but must also be anal-
ysed to identify gaps and therefore improve preven-
tive maintenance. On the analysis of complaints, it
can be figured that most of the issues related to bus
Sr.are
No.of breakdowns
Performance Appraisal
and shortage. Bustime periodis usu-
shortage Mode of ap
Asst. Manager - Inspection of work ally a resultparameter
of lack of daily maintenance. This study
workshop of subordinates has identified
1. Bus that despite the system
Monthly random in place of Physical an Che
inspection regime,
Maintenance fines and other
checking enforcement mea-
Random and sures, there remain gaps in the bus maintenance pro-
Field Officer monthly inspection 2. cesses. Lack Staffofbehavior Through random
proper documentation, general check- Physical che
8 in nos. ing and feedback analysis of the buses contribute during
checking to opera
Assisting during the increased frequency of breakdown complaints.hours, Comp
Field Supervisors and letters f
inspection work
Use of maintenance management software has now passengers
10 in nos.
Figure 5:Sr.
Roles become frequent in service Observations
delivery by the govern-
No.and responsibility
Deficiencies of the staff in hierachical order Fine/Km
1. Fire extinguisher missing/beyond expiry date 25 OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS |
SERVICE 61
 ment. If used sustainably, technology can help save Management Software which is one of the compo-
time and improve productivity. nents of the intelligent transit management system.
Depot Management System (DMS) software has There are analytical tools in the management soft-
been put into place by the authority to make the work ware that analyses the incident data in order to give
convenient for operators. It is a part of the Intelligent the graphical representation of frequency and tim-
Transit Management System (ITMS), but due to lack ings of incidents. The data is analysed, and operators
of enforcement and service level agreements, it is not are informed about the outcomes. Time based anal-
being used currently. The dashboard has a range of ysis of incidents is done to find out the timings when
components including daily maintenance and bus incidents majorly take place and the field officers are
insurance details. The dashboard, if properly used, appointed based on that.
can help in increasing productivity and would lead to
proper documentation of maintenance work for in- Major Incidents
spection. This would be beneficial for both authority The analysis of complaints recorded in past one year
and operators. shows that most of the complaints were related to
driver behaviour. Incidents of over speeding and skip-
ping stops clearly indicate the need for routine driver
Incident management training programs. Though driver’s training programs
are currently in place, but it should be done regularly
Maintenance of buses is important in order to prevent and not only at the time of hiring. The training pro-
incidents while buses are on route. Despite all main- grams should be directed towards low performing
tenance measures, accidental incidents are bound drivers. Apart from driver behaviour incidents, a sur-
to happen. These incidents are categorized into two vey carried out on the sample size of 55 passengers
types- mechanical failure, or due to driver behaviour. indicates that there is unawareness amongst users
about the ways to file incident related complaints. It
Incident Categories often discourages them to use the system as they are
The incidents which happen due to the rash and neg- concerned about the driving techniques since, they
ligent driving on part of the driver can be attributed to do not know the ways to inform authority about the
poor training of the drivers or them getting no incen- same.
tives to drive safely. Fatigue on the part of the driver
or misinformation are also reasons for rash driving.

Incident Data Analysis

The incidents are recorded by passengers through
Suggestions
mails and complaint helpline number. The incident
The maintenance and incident management re-
once recorded is cross checked through the Incident
CC gimes currently in place have several gaps such
as lack of pro-active approach in work allocation,
Bus Incidents Driver behavior events improper documentation of maintenance work,
• Accidents • Harsh braking and therefore less time for general checking of
• Breakdown •
•
Over speeding
Skip stops
the buses.
• Harsh acceleration

Major Minor

Complaints can be recorded through:

Calls Mails
Source – Incident Management Manual, CCC
Figure 6: Incident categories in case city bus rapid transit

62 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

Work allocation regime based on tenance manager after completion of rectification
work, and feedback would be recorded in the work
token system order. Use of coloured tokens would help save time
in work allocation and documentation of complaints,
A token system can be integrated in the work alloca- pro-active analysis would help in tools and spare
tion process so that the departments would be ready parts being ready, and time would be saved for gen-
with the work orders and the inventory tool kit, and eral checking.
maintenance work could start with minimum delay
once the bus reaches the workshop. Each mainte-
nance department will be represented by coloured
tokens. The tokens
Proposed Work would be collectedRegime
Allocation by the main-
| Token System

Driver finishes shift Submits log sheet Work order

to workshop generated by
manager via workshop manager
online medium

Issues Tokens, checklists Drivers hands Token handed Work allocated to

• Work allocation starts only after the driver reaches submitted to over the bus to over to driver at maintenance
maintenance concerned entry counter departments
workshop
• Shortage of time for general checking of buses manager department head
• Proper work orders not generated for work Colored Tokens Benefits
allocation • Saved time in documentation and allocation of
• No proper documentation of summary of complaints
maintenance work done • Pro-active analysis would lead to tools and spare
AC Tier Body Paint parts being ready
• Saved time for general checking

Figure 7: Proposed work allocation regime for token system

RACI Matrix
Dimension Maintenance
Drivers Entry counter Workshop Manager department heads Mechanics
Process

Submitting log sheet to

workshop manager via
online medium
R I A
Work order generation
and work allocation R A I
Token handed over to
bus drivers R R A
Maintenance
department heads R A I
informed
Issue rectification
A R
Checklist submission,
work order updating A
token collection

Figure 8: Proposed RACI matrix for work allocation regime

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 63

 Grading of Buses Based On Bus Condition

Gradings of the buses – Parameters

Work orders Sl. No. Parameters A B C

1. Breakdowns Less than 15 Less than 20 More than 20

Apart from the work allocation process, there is no
2. Avg. repair time Less than 1 hr. 1.5 hrs. More than 2 hrs.
definite format for creating summary of incidents
Bus condition
and for documentation of work done. Maintenance 3.
Mfg. Yr.
2017-2019 2014-2016 2012-2013

measures taken are not being recorded which makes

*Gradings to be updated every 3 months
it difficult to track any repetitive issue. The complete
process can be simplified if a definite format is fol- Time bound high Non time bound low
footfall footfall
lowed for the complete process and feedbacks of me- - Going for work, - Going to temples,
chanics involved in each rectification process in also college etc. parks etc.

recorded.
at | Productivity Tracking Figure 10:Proposed work order format- productive tracking

W1 – A SLAs for maintenance work

W2 – B
Date: Unique incident code: W3 C documentation
W4 – D
Bus No:
Unique incident code –
Issue: Workshop code + Bus no.+ It is very necessary to track the work of mechanics
……………………………………………………………
………….
Incident no. in particular
month
working to resolve breakdown complaints. Such feed-
Assigned to:
back can help simplify future issues in the absence of
*Gujarati
Regional language can be
Inventory Used:
used in work order for these personnel, and a summary of events will help
convenience
order
Mechanic Feedback: keep track of work history. There can be QR codes for
……………………………………………………………
ion of
en for issues
…………………………………………………………… both mechanics and buses. Data recorded in the work
……………………
echanic orders can be categorised according to these codes,
pdating on
Start time:
Finished time:
allowing retrieval of bus or employee-specific infor-
Source – Primary survey dated 25/09/19, Ranip
mation at a later stage.
Figure 9:Proposed work order format- productive tracking
The mechanic QR would help track the work done by
Grading of buses for route each mechanic, and can be analysed over a period to
allocation track productivity of the maintenance department. It
would also make the process of inspection easier as
A system of categorization of buses can effective- they can directly identify the responsible staff mem-
ly limit the logistical burden that the incidents of ber for any maintenance issue. There should be Ser-
mechanical failure put on the concerned transport vice Level Agreements mandating regularity of data
department. Buses which frequently breakdowns updating. This data can be integrated with the oper-
should be put to routes with low footfall of com- ating software the SPV is using in order to make it
muters. Buses having the least breakdown and thus rapidly accessible.
graded the highest should be put on routes where
the commuters are time bound, for example, going
to office, schools, colleges etc. and on the routes with Bus Logbooks
high footfall. The previously described maintenance
records can help in the grading of the buses. Informa- Maintaining bus logbooks should be an important
tion can also be collected using work orders contain- aspect of maintenance, as well as incident manage-
ing information such as the number of the bus, the ment. This logbook should have all the information
date, the issue, and the parts used from the invento- about the status of the bus such as work orders is-
ry, and mechanic feedback. This will help document sued, records of the maintenance work, reports of all
the maintenance work and thus understand the is- the inspections etc. The logbook should also contain
sues being faced. the paperwork of the bus such as registration and in-
surance as well as pollution reports.

64 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

 Logbooks for each bus having important details

Documents Included
• Work orders issued for bus
Creating passenger awareness
• Daily & monthly checking
records
and involvement
• Mechanic Feedback for the
bus
It is important to create trust amongst passengers us-
• Gradings of the bus

Uses
• PUC details
ing the service. Since most of the city transit models
• Insurance details
• Easy inspection
• Performance evaluation of
are on service contract basis, it is necessary to make
the bus the passengers aware that the authority is actively in-
• Facilitate bus allocation
process volved in the management and operators are bound
• Easy data updating on DMS
by contract to provide safe and high quality service.
Figure 11:Proposed work order format- productive tracking Complaint helpline numbers should be communicat-
Source – Google Images
ed to passengers and there can be a feedback system
Driver training based on through the same number so that drivers can direct-
performance-based analysis ly be graded by the users. This would also make the
commuter feel that the system is safe and reliable.
“In most public transport corporations, a training re- Signage can be put up inside the bus so that passen-
gime for the newly recruited drivers exist which are gers can immediately contact the authority when
conducted by their contractors”. (India, 2018) These necessary.
Passenger Awareness | Feedback System
training regimes along with the safety rules should
emphasize on the passenger’s response. All buses Complaint Helpline

should have the contact numbers of the transport of- Helpline no.:
XXXXXXXXXXXX Bus Ticket

fice complaint desk where the commuter can report XXXXXXXXXXXXX

any incidents of rash and negligent driving. These Visible signage

mentioning helpline
Helpline no. can be
mentioned on

complaints must then be cross-checked by the trans- number tickets

Uses
port authorities. Drivers found guilty of these inci- How was your ride? Selection of
drivers of the
Ø

Option of user feedback Rate out of 5 and send

dents should be fined. through compliant
helpline number
the rating to month
Driver’s training
Ø
XXXXXXXXXXX
Incentives etc.
Rewards and Recognition Ø

Month Figure 13: Creating awareness amongst passengers Source – Google Images

Parameters

Operator of the month

• Documentation
• Maintenance records Operator of the month Driver of the month
• Fines on maintenance work and incidents

Mechanic of the month

• No. of incidents resolved (Major, minor) Employ of the month
• Timely feedbacks and documents

Driver of the month Instructions

• Frequency of driver behavior incidents ……………………………………………………………………
• Fuel efficiency of buses (Grade –wise) ……………………………………………………………………
……………………..
Important Instructions
• Instructions from AJL
• Fines etc. Signature

Source – Google Images

Figure 12: Parameters for rewards and recognition

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 65

INTEGRATION OF FEEDER
-SHRAVAN ENGINEER
 CHAPTER SIX
A feeder system is one which connects the pe- does not drop off people to their destinations. This
ripheral area to the trunk line or the main line of phenomenon of people preferring private vehicles
a Public Transport system. In simple words, feed- and shunning PT due to its poor connectivity will
er feeds the system with riders from those areas lead to low usage of the PT and its infrastructure.
where the main trunk does not reach. Feeder routes
typically serve an area within a zone, especially There are five broad ways through which the feed-
outside of the direct catchment area of the BRT, er systems can be integrated into the system in or-
where zones are normally a bit larger. (ITDP, 2017) der to increase the demand for the PT. (ITDP, 2017)
Services or Transport systems which run up and down Physical or locational integration of feeder – this is
the corridor or the path they have, are called “trunk-on- physical ease with which feeders can be integrated
ly” systems, often in this scenario the designers or with the PT and how easily can they be accessed. This
the operators of the service think that the informal integration can be carried out keeping in mind the
public transit operators will provide them the riders, land use patterns and efforts of transport planning.
acting as unofficial feeder systems. (EMBARQ India)
Hence, a formal feeder system, which caters to Service or by timetabling – feeders can be in-
the demand of the people for transport and also tegrated with the system in such a way that
helps in realising the goal of shifting people from it reduces the waiting time for the riders by
private vehicles to Public Transport, becomes synchronising the timetables with the PT
a very important component in the case BRTS.
Integrated ticketing – by aligning fare policy across
The public bus runs along a linear trunk line, while oth- each mode of transportation and their operators is
er modes of transportation i.e., walking, cycle, auto another way of integrating feeders, which will in turn
Figure 1
rickshaws, two wheeler, para transit, and other modes help the riders to get one ticket for a single journey.
of transportation which carry the riders into the sys-
tem of the public bus become feeders for public bus. Identity – enhancing the identity of the PT along
with its feeders is another way of integrating the
feeder. This can be done by closely relating mul-
tiple modes of transport of the same system.

Institutional – the feeders can be integrated

from within the institution which can then en-
able better coordination, and ensure consisten-
cy in the workings of and planning for the system.
Figure 1: Illustration showing first & last mile connectivity

Feeder systems basically cater to those areas

where the main PT of the city cannot reach. Peo-
ple around the system will only use the PT system
that connects the whole city. If there is no feeder,
people in areas not along the main trunk line will
have a growing dependence on their own private
vehicles. This also stands true if the main PT line

68 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

System Since 2017, Koperasi Wahana Kalpika minivan
operators are being integrated as feeders. Riders
buy a ‘Friend of KWK’ card on a monthly basis to
avail the services of these vans, along with unlim-
ited transfers. The revenue generated from these
Case study – Trans Jakarta, Jakarta, cards and their subsequent subscriptions went to
Indonesia TransJakarta, then paid the KWK members and
Jakarta as a city was and still is very heavily de- the owners. In return, the operators of these min-
pendent on Public Transportation. Since the ivans had to cut off the routes that competed with
1940s, modes shifted from trams to mini buses. the BRT.
In the 1970s, the Jakarta Government created two
organisations- PT Metro Mini and Kopaja, who These initiatives have led to TransJakarta becom-
handled routing and fare for the minibuses of the ing one of the leading BRTS organisations across
city. This was also done to reduce the number of the world, with almost 5 lakh people using the
point of contacts for the government in case of BRTS daily
any enforcement. These buses were handled by
private players who hired drivers to drive their
buses around the city. This led to the city being
Current scenario in the case city
overrun by buses, and private players becoming
rich. The people of Jakarta were by now reliant on The Bus Rapid Transport System in the case city did
the only mode of transportation, the minibuses, not have a formal feeder system until recently. The
that was available to them. (ITDP, 2017) system carries, on an average, 1.70 lakh to 1.80 lakh
riders a day who fulfil their first and last mile by walk-
Table 1
In 2004, the first government-run transportation ing, hailing a shuttle auto, auto rickshaw, private two
system, TransJakarta, was launched. It was a Bus wheeler, or sometimes even the city bus service of
Rapid Transit system was limited to a single 12.90 the city.
km long corridor. This, in addition to the lack of a Mode of communication used Mode of communication used to
feeder system, limited the number of passengers to reach BRTS station from the reach Destination from BRTS
place of Origin station
using it. In 2016, after years of deliberation, that
Access Mode Percent Egress Mode Percent
Kopaja got integrated as a feeder system with the
Walking 79.80 Walking 73.40
BRT. The buses provided feeder services which City Bus Service 4.30 Cycling 1.10
extended the reach of the BRT, and pooled in Auto Rickshaw 13.80 Auto Rickshaw 21.30
more riders to the system. These buses were also 2-wheeler 2.10 2-wheeler 3.20
Total 100.00 Total 100.00
allowed to use the BRT corridor.
Table 1: Access and Egress modes from BRTS in the Case City
The Kopaja bus operators had to follow certain Table 1 mentions the mode of transportation used by
conditions: people of the city to reach the BRT stations, or reach
• Owners and drivers were to be paid by the their destination from the BRT station. Almost 80%
BRT operator on kilometre basis. walk to the stations in order to catch a bus, while
• Ownership of the buses and their oper- 73% walk to reach their destination from the BRTS
ations and maintenance were with the private stations. Another major mode used is that of the au-
player. torickshaws, where 14% people use them to reach
• The feeder buses had to be upgraded to the BRTS stations, and 21% use them to reach their
current standards.

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 69

 destinations. These modes are preferred or used Initiatives to incorporate feeder
more as there is no formal feeder transport that can
cater to the first and last mile connectivit. (Islam,
system in the city
ure 2 Brussel, Munshi, & Grigolon, 2018)
The authorities acknowledged the fact that Bus Rap-
Predominant reasons for not using PT id Transit System needed a feeder system in order to
2% provide first and last mile connectivity. Hence, two
10%
projects were conceived- first, a Public Bicycle-Shar-
Not cost effective
ing (PBS) project under the Smart City , and second,
the implementation of e-autos as feeder autos.
Bus stops not at a walking distance
28%

60% Circuitous route The PBS project has been divided into phases, with
Phase 1 focussed on the western region of the city,
Not suitable for carrying heavy load
with almost 500 bicycle stations and 2,000 bicycles to
be deployed on a permit basis. The bicycle operators
Figure 3 will have to buy a permit from the authorities in order
Figure 2: Reasons for not using Public Transport Figure
Predominant factors for shifting to PT to distribute their cycles in the city.
Along with the permit criterion, a Non-Motorised
2%
Transport (NMT) policy has also been drafted, which
the operators will have to follow. The payment for
22% If bus quality is improved
these cycles will also be integrated with the Common
42% If journey time is reduced Mobility Card of the city.
If there are bus stops at walking distance
34% For the e-auto service, authorities have identified four
If fares are reduced
clusters in the city where the autos will run perpen-
dicular to the BRTS main line. These autos will charge
the riders INR 5 to INR 25, depending on the distance
Figure 3: Factors for shifting to Public Transport travelled by them. This is less than fare of the exist-
ing auto-rickshaw service. This project is being imple-
A leading newspaper in the case city had conducted
mented on a Public-Private Partnership basis.
surveys in order pin down the reason for people not
using the Bus Rapid Transport System. It was found
that 60% people found the bus stops too far for them
to walk and reach. Another survey which was carried
out to assess the willingness to shift to the Bus Rap-
id Transport System found that 34% people said that
they would if the service had bus stops were within
walkable distance.

The ridership as well as share of private vehicles in

the city did not show the trends expected at the time
of conception or even implementation of the BRTS
project. Until 2015, the ridership had stagnated to
1.30 lakh riders per day. In the same year, there was a
13% rise in the number of private vehicles in the city.
The leads to the conclusion that the city’s BRT had
not met the expectations of citizens in terms of con-
nectivity, scheduling, timings, fares etc.

70 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

PT as a mode of Feeder
Analysis
Case Study: ‘Seamless Transportation for The case city faces challenges in employing a formal,
Kochi’ recognised feeder system from which the riders can
Kochi Metro Rail Limited (KMRL) recently signed seamlessly transfer onto the main line or the trunk
a Joint Declaration of Intent with auto-rickshaw line of the PT. What the case city also faces is a chal-
drivers of the city to integrate them with the Met- lenge in the competition from IPT modes of transport,
ro service in order to provide first and last mile wherein a large portion of the riders in the city prefer
connectivity to the riders. The charges for feed- IPT modes over the PT in the city. The riders also face
er routes will be INR 20/- and when it operates a problem of connectivity to and from the BRT sta-
as share auto, if two commuters are there, then tions. Hence, keeping in mind the ridership patterns
each will pay INR 10. If there are three commut- and the demand from each area of the city, two sug-
ers, each will pay INR 7/- . There will be swipe ma- gestions are put forward- integrating IPT modes with
chines installed with the help of Axis bank, after the BRTS of the city and hence further providing the
which the KMRL will integrate the e-auto system riders with door to door service, and the electric bus-
with Kochi-1 which is a prepaid card which can es which can be used as a feeder bus service with a
then be used for cashless travel in autos too. The fixed tariff. These buses will run perpendicular to the
feeder services will operate its fleet through the trunk line and will penetrate the city deeper, in addi-
identified routes with a specified number of ser- tion to having shorter, circular routes with transfers
vices & trips. (Hari, 2019) onto the trunk line.
These autos can also operate as regular auto rick-
shaws, hence not limiting the income generation
for the auto driver.
KMRL has approached these auto drivers by giv- Suggestions
ing them a dream of better life, quality of living
etc. The drivers who have decided to integrate Integrating IPT
with the system, must form a Society. This So-
ciety will include all the drivers as its members, IPT as mode of transport cannot be ignored in the
hence giving them benefits like education loans city. Their importance and ability to reach locations
for their children, empowering women by setting where city buses can’t reach have been far too long
up stitching units for them, and also providing the been ignored. Hence, integrating them with the
drivers one meal a day. (Hari, 2019) BRTS can be a major stepping stone in the direction
towards a seamless transportation in the case city.
Also, with the advent of Metro rail in the city, first and
PT as a mode of Feeder last mile connectivity issue needs to be addressed be-
fore it begins its operations.
As pointed out earlier, the case city has 13% access
to BRTS through IPT mode, and 21% egress from An analysis was done for different modes of trans-
BRTS to IPT. This indicates that the city is reliant on port in order to understand the cost and time taken
IPT for first and last mile connectivity. During a re- to reach a destination from the origin. Three possibil-
cent auto-rickshaw strike in the city, it was observed ities were examined –
that BRT ridership at few stations had increased up 1. An auto from the origin location till the near-
to 70%. est BRTS station, then getting off at the BRTS station
Thus, establishing the fact that IPT has major impact nearest to the destination, and hailing another auto
on the city. till the final destination.

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 71

 Description Particulars 2. Riding a two-wheeler from origin to destina-
Cost of uber auto (from Point A to Point B) (in INR) 15.00 tion
Cost of BRT ticket (Point B to Point C) (in INR) 7.00 3. Riding a car from origin to destination
Cost of uber auto (Point C to Point D) (in INR) 25.00 The analysis was conducted between 6:30PM and
Total (in INR) 47.00 7PM on three different days, on a route that was 6
Round trip cost (in INR) 94.00
km one way, and so 12 km for a round trip. The cost
e3 Per km cost (in INR)
Per annum cost (in INR)
7.84
33,840.00 analysis of each of these scenarios is detailed in Ta-
bles 2 to 6 , but excluding cost of parking and cost
Table 2: Scenario 1 - IPT and BRTS
incurred while procuring and paying up loans for the
purchased vehicles.
Description Particulars The average time taken for each of these trips was 60
Fuel cost 70 minutes, 20 minutes, and 25 minutes respectively.
Mileage (km/L) 30
Per km cost 2.34
Distance 12
From this analysis, it is evident that car is the most ex-
Fuel cost per month 840.00 pensive option of the three, and using a two-wheeler
Fuel cost per annum 10,080.00 is the cost effective as well as time saving.
Fuel cost for 5 years 50,400.00
Table 3: Scenario 2 - Two-wheeler In auto-rickshaws, authorities have an opportunity
to make a brownfield investment and integrate and
formalise them as feeder system for the BRT of the
Description Particulars
city. The next step is to give proper identity to the
Total cost over 5 years 1,03,125.00
Salvage value 10,000.00
auto-rickshaw drivers, have them physically as well
Net cost 93,125.00 technologically integrated with the system, and pro-
Net cost + fuel cost 1,43,525.00 viding them with swipe machines to enable the riders
to use their common mobility cards.
5 Cost per km
Per trip cost
6.64
79.74 By integrating the auto rickshaws, the total time tak-
Table 4: Scenario 2 - Two-wheeler cost analysis en for the journey analysed can be reduced by 15 min-
utes.

Description Particulars For integrating IPT mode into the system, it is im-
Fuel cost (in INR) 70.00 portant to have the IPT integrated physically, techno-
Mileage (km/L) 10 logically, and administratively.
Per km cost (in INR) 7.00
Distance to be covered (round trip in km) 12
Fuel Cost per month (in INR) 2,520.00
Physical Integration
Fuel Cost per annum (in INR) 30,240.00
Fuel Cost for 5 years (in INR) 1,51,200.00 For physical integration, the authorities need to pro-
Table 5: Scenario 3 - Car
vide IPT stands at walkable distances from the origin
points of the riders. These must preferably between
Description Particulars 100 and 300 meters from residential or commercial
Total cost over 5 years (cost of car, areas. The autos can also be given the permission
maintenance, PUC etc.) 6,83,250.00 to run as shared autos in the city, hence increasing
Salvage value 1,00,000.00 the number of riders catered to, while reducing the
Net cost 5,83,250.00 amount of pollution generated per rider.
Net cost + fuel cost 7,34,450.00
Cost per km 34.00
Per trip cost 408.03
Table 6: Scenario 3 - Cost analysis for Car

72 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

Technological Integration Electric buses as feeder for the system

The IPT modes need to be integrated with the city The studied BRT acquired 300 electric midi buses,
BRT system’s mobile application, with autos/IPT be- each able to carry 50 passengers and with a range
ing shown on the application just like one could see of 200 km per charge. These could be used as feed-
vehicles on an Uber or an Ola application. From this er buses, which penetrate within the city, and collect
application, riders could book their entire journey, riders from locations which are not being served by
from origin to destination. Once a trip is booked, the BRT trunk.
the passenger would board an IPT vehicle from the
origin to the nearest BRT station, board a bus to the A 2015 study of the catchment area of this BRT sys-
BRT stop closest to final destination, and board an tem identified that almost 65% of the potential BRT
IPT vehicle from this point to final destination. This users walk 10 minutes to or from a bus station. In or-
would save time and money for the rider, while also der to cater to the demands of people who live further
augmenting incomes for both the bus service provid- away from the catchment area of the BRTS stations,
er and the private IPT operators. The auto drivers can midi buses or the electric buses can run perpendicu-
also be provided with a Point of Service machine or a lar to the trunk lines and bring riders into the system.
tap-in tap-out machine in order to integrate with the Therefore, these midi buses will not only cater to the
case city’s Smart Card initiative. population living within walkable distance, but also
those that live further away.
Administrative Integration A hub and spoke model would work effectively to de-
fine routes. The BRT stations can act as hubs, while
For administrative integration, authorities need to midi buses going around and picking customers from
recognise the importance of IPT as a mode of trans- the feeder routes will act as spokes.
port, and work with these private operators to give
riders in the city a seamless, quick, and efficient trans-
port system. The private IPT operators become mid-
dlemen in the said system. In order to keep them in
the system, authorities can augment the farebox rev-
enue of IPT operators by providing them INR 1.50/-
per trip made via the Application or for a trip paid by
the Smart City Card. INR 1.50/- is 37% of the base fare
of the BRT system of the city.

This will lead to more riders coming using system. It

will also help in increasing usage of the application
and the usage of the Smart Card, as now the private
operators will also market and urge riders to use
them.

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 73

 Table 7
Figure 7
Description Particulars
Total Kms 4.92
Expected time taken by a bus (Stops + buffer)
(in minutes) 30
HUB Expected headways (mins) 5
Number of buses required 6
Avg. bus speed (km/hr) 20
Capacity of the bus 50
Passengers catered to in one hour 300

Table 8
Number of trips before charging required 41
Total trips 244
Figure 4: Point to point VS hub & spoke model
Table 7: Analysis of feeder route 1
As Figure 4 shows, point-to-point (linear) grid or
mesh approach between 8 points needs 16 routes. In Description Particulars
contrast, hub and spoke does the same work with 8 Running kms of one bus (in kms) 200
Distance to charging station (in kms) 6
routes. Connectivity, time, and savings- all three are
Hence number of trips including the trip
taken care in the hub and spoke model.
to the charging station 39
Hence, feeders can be planned for short feeder routes
Number of trips completed in one hour 2
around the BRTS corridor while also keeping in mind
Hours of operation by one bus on a
the charging requirements of the buses. single charge for feeder service 20
Running kms of one bus (in kms) 200
Feeder route 1 Distance to charging station (in kms) 6
Table 8: Number of trips and hours of operations per bus on feeder
A ‘willingness to shift’ survey was conducted on 40 route 1
people in a predominantly residential area of the For feeder route 1, which will have headway 5 min-
case city, of which the farthest point was 1 km away utes, the number of buses required will be 6, and the
from a BRT station. 72% of the surveyed respondents number of passengers catered to will be 300 per hour
agreed that unavailability of feeder is one of the ma- at maximum capacity. These buses can make a cumu-
jor issues hindering their usage of BRT. At the same lative of 244 trips in total, and can run for 20 hours
time, 80% respondents said that they would use BRT each.
if there was a feeder available to them. According to
Feeder route 2
Figure 8
the survey and interactions with residents of the area,
a feeder bus every 5-10 minutes that drops directly to
the BRT station would be ideal. The second feeder route selected is in an area which
is a mix of residential and commercial. It is one of the
busiest commercial areas of the case city, but has no
BRT connectivity. Hence, connecting the same to the
BRT network will pool in riders who regularly visit the
area for work, education etc. The route also touches
one of the major attractions of the city, a lake, which
is surrounded by retail as well as commercial outlets.
Feeder route 2 will have headway 5 minutes, and will
require only 4 buses as it is a shorter route than route
Figure 5: Feeder route 1

74 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

 1. The number of passengers catered to will be 200 Bus prioritisation – Traffic Signal
Figure 9
per hour at maximum capacity. The selected buses
Priority
can make a cumulative of 252 trips in total, and can
run for 20 hours each.
Bus prioritisation is prioritising buses over other ve-
hicular traffic at by the use of technology or physical
infrastructure to influence the external environment
within which buses operate to improve commercial
speed for buses and mitigate the impact of other road
traffic.
Bus priority is needed because there is too much traf-
7 fic on the network and too little capacity for it all to
flow freely. Giving buses priority over cars recognises
Figure 6: Feeder route 2 the bus’s greater efficiency in the use of road space.
Description Particulars
Emphasis is placed on maximising the through-put of
Total Kms 4.92 people, rather than the number of vehicles.
Expected time taken by a bus (Stops + buffer) Few examples of bus prioritisation are –
(in minutes) 30 1. Segregated bus lane
Expected headways (mins) 5 2. Kerbside segregated bus lane
Number of buses required 6 3. Queue jump lane for buses
Avg. bus speed (km/hr) 20 4. High occupancy lane for carpools, buses etc.
Capacity of the bus 50 5. Traffic signal prioritisation for buses
Passengers catered to in one hour 300 As of now, in the case city, BRT buses are given pri-
Number of trips before charging required 41
ority in terms of segregated median lanes which can
Total trips 244
only be used by the BRT, as well as the city bus service
Table 9: Analysis of feeder route 2
on few routes. BRT buses also get traffic signal pri-
More feeder routes can be planned with shorter ority wherein in one traffic signal cycle at a junction,
round trips in order to increase the headway of the BRTS can pass twice. Every junction has different
buses, while not forgetting the limitation of 200 km waiting times associated with it according to traffic
per bus before the batteries require charging. These density at the junction.
feeders can fill gaps left by the city bus service, and
augment the demand for BRTS of the city. Hence, waiting times at each junction varies from 40
seconds to 110 seconds for one. As there are more
than 150 such junctions in the BRT corridor, the time
taken by each bus during peak hours to complete one
trip increases. This also leads to another problem of
bus bunching, wherein buses get bunched together
because of delays in the schedule.

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 75

igure 10 Table 10
If TSP is
Time taken in seconds implemented at
Names of intersections at each intersection each intersection
Intersection 1 90 90
Intersection 2 45 25
Intersection 3 110 70
Intersection 4 40 20
Intersection 5 50 20
Intersection 6 60 30

Table 12 Intersection 7
Time taken (in seconds)
70
465
30
255
Time taken (in minutes) 7.75 4.25

Figure 7: Traffic Signal Prioritisation Table 10: Time saved at each intersection due to TSP
It is through Traffic Signal Priority (TSP) that time, Description Particulars
money, and fuel can be saved for BRT in the case city. Per hour consumption (in Litres/hr) 5
TSP basically prioritises buses over other vehicles, Per minute fuel consumption (in litres/min) 0.08
giving buses more time to go through an intersection Per bus idling fuel consumed for the trip (in litres) 0.65
If tsp is implemented, savings in fuel (in litres/hour) 0.35
and reach the destination faster.
Therefore, savings in fuel consumed 0.29
Per day fuel saving (in litres) for all buses 413
A trip from Station A to Station B was undertaken at
Table 11: Fuel saved due to TSP
Table 11
a peak traffic hour in order to assess how much time a
bus stands still at junctions, waiting for the green sig-
Description Particulars
Consumption of Diesel when only engine running (litres/hr) 4
nal. The route chosen had 7 intersections on the way, Adding 20% for ad hoc AC load (refrigeration, maintenance
with each signal having varying time stops according cost etc) (in litres/hr) 5
Price of diesel (in INR) 68
to the traffic volume at that particular intersection. Minutes in an hour 60
Cost of idling per minute (in INR) 5.7
Cost of idling at junctions (survey junctions) (in INR) 43.9
If the number of rounds of green signal during one Cost if TSP followed (in INR) 24.1
traffic cycle during the peak hours is increased from Savings (in INR) 19.8
Number of busses 236
two to four, the buses can reach faster, improving the
Peak hours (8-11 and 5-8) 6
headway and saving fuel while doing this. This in turn Total savings in a day 28,084.00
saves revenue for the authorities. The time saved on Consumption of Diesel when only engine running (litres/hr) 4
adding 20 % for ad hoc ac load (refrigeration, maintenance
just one trip could be improved by almost 3 minutes cost etc) (in litres/hr) 5
by implementing the said initiative. Price of diesel (in INR) 68
Minutes in an hour 60
Cost of idling per minute (in INR) 5.70
The monetary savings per bus from such an interven- Cost per hour per bus (in INR) 340.00
tion would be INR 19.80/-. If all buses of the fleet save
Table 12:Cost Savings due to TSP and cost incurred for the idling
3 minutes in an hour during the peak hours, the total
time at each intersection
savings in a year would be INR 1,01,10,240/- .

Fuel consumption saving from applying this TSP mod-

el for the surveyed bus was 0.29 litres per minute.
If all buses of the fleet save 3 minutes in an hour during
the peak hours, the total savings in a year amounts to
1,48,680 litres

The time, cost, and fuel savings are illustrated in Ta-

bles 10, 11, and12.

76 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

The ridership levels in the city even without a feeder At the same time, the electric midi buses can work
system in place was an astounding 1.80 lakh, which as feeders too. Shorter trips are the way forward for
implies that whenever the feeder systems are incor- feeder buses, with the hub and spoke model where
porate, the ridership will grow exponentially. Though BRT stations are the Hubs.
there are steps being taken by the authorities with
respect to getting the feeder system is place, one And finally, a small measure in the greater picture,
can always look to integrate a system which has been Traffic Signal Priority, which according to the analysis
widely accepted by the people as the official mode can not only save significant trip time, but save cost
of transport for short to medium trips, i.e., auto rick- and fuel for the authorities.
shaws. The authorities could consider a brownfield
investment, and take steps into that direction rather
than bringing in a new infrastructure all together and
incurring huge capital cost while also increasing the
number of vehicles on the already congested streets
of the city.

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 77

REVENUE MANAGEMENT
-PRIYANKA AGARWAL
 CHAPTER SEVEN
Revenue Management is concerned with de- The organization is being run on financial grants from
mand-management and addresses broad- the State government, and bulk of the operational cost
ly three decisions: the format in which a prod- is provided by the city MunicipalCorporation every year.
uct is to be sold, the price to be set for it The fare-box revenue is not reliable or sufficient,
including calculations of profit or discount, and and several mechanisms are being deployed to in-
the time, market, and quantity to be launched. crease it through various strategies aimed at in-
creasing usage of public transport by citizens.
Revenue management in public transport is a cru-
cial issue due to the limitations in sources of rev- In the case city, the Municipal Corporation fund-
enue. There are two types: fare-box, and non- ed about 50% of the capital cost incurred for
fare-box. The fare-box comprises of ticketing, the development of the BRT system. Viabili-
concessions, and payments received directly from ty Gap Funding from the Central government
passengers. Non-farebox comprises of sources such was the thrust for the project’s implementation.
as advertisement revenue, land value capture meth-
ods, cross-subsidy, commercial development, etc. The annual sources of income for the organiza-
tion are categorised as direct and indirect income.
Fare-box revenue contributes to about 90% of to-
tal revenue generation in public transport, and is Funding for Case city BRTS
the most important source of revenue in the sector.
Public transportation is meant to serve all of so-
ciety without discrimination, with equity being
Central
more important than generating profit. The scope Government
of fare-box is thus limited to the minimum price Municipality 35%
of the ticket as decided by the state government. 50%

Governement
The NationalUrbanTransportation Policy (NUTP) man- of Gujarat
dates the formation of an Urban Transportation Fund 15%
which has three distinct prospects of potential revenue:
(a) Taxes and charges on vehicle owners Figure 1: Distribution of Fund for Initialisation of BRTS
(b) Direct and indirect beneficiaries and
Sources of Income in the Organization
(c) Central and State Government allocations
Direct Incomes Indirect Income
Advertisement License Fees Grant

System ATM Rent Income

Bus Fare Income
CCR Income
Interest Income
Penalty Income
Tender Fee Income
Land or inventory are the major assets of rev- Grant for Repairs and Maintenance
Donation
Income
enue generation under non-fare-box revenue.
However, in the case city the BRT service is adminis- Table 1: Sources of Revenue in the Organization
tered by an SPV under the city’s municipal corpora-
tion,and such assets are owned by the city government. Direct income sources contribute nearly 65% of
the total revenue. The total revenue generation for
the studied SPV has been ranging between Rs. 57.7
Crores- Rs.67.4 Crores, and is projected to reach
around Rs. 95 Crores by the year 2025.

80 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

 Total Income Generation of Organization 2015 – 2025 (In Crores)
120.0

100.0
86.9 95.3
74.6
80.0 67.4
62.0
57.7 57.7 59.6
60.0 61.2 55.4
59.0
54.8

40.0 35.7
29.3
19.2
20.0
8.5
3.0 0.8
0.0
2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2025

Indirect Income Direct Income Total

Figure 2: Total Income Generation of Organization 2015-2025

However, expenses are higher than income and predicted to continue in the same pattern, as result of which the
organisation runs at a deficit.
Deficiency of Fund in Organization 2015-2025 (In Crores)
200
174.9
180

160
141.1
140 129 125.7
117.8
120
98.5 95.32
100 86.9
74.6
80 67.4
62
57.7
60

40

20
40% 66% 76% 70% 73.3% 139%
0
2014-15 2015-16 2016-17 2017-18 2018-19 2024-25

Income Expense

Figure 3: Deficiency analysis in the Income of the Organization 2015-2025

Though projected deficit by 2025 is 139%, a study cate that selling advertisement rights are a common
of income and expense numbers since 2017 in- and substantial source of revenue. Gujarat Develop-
dicates that the actual quantum of deficit is al- ment Control Regulations (GDCR) define the kinds
most constant. The gap has not grown narrow- of permission, and licenses that are to be acquired
er though there has been increase in fleet size. for setting up of advertisement which every agency
providing advertisement service have to abide by.
Reviews of other similar transportation systems indi-

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 81

 Sources of revenue
The major source of revenue of the studied system is ticketing, followed by advertisement license fund. The
latter is currently INR 1.5-2 Crores per year, and being a part of non-fare-box has a direct possibility of improve-
ment through intervention.
Advertisement License Fees (In Crores)
2.00
1.79
1.80
1.62 1.62
1.60

1.40 1.30

1.20

1.00
0.84
0.80

0.60

0.40
.17
0.20

0.00
2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2025

Figure 4: Advertisement Revenue since 2015 through advertisement license fee

However, an analysis of the trends show that by 2025, the advertisement revenue would go down to just INR
0.16 Crores if the interventions are not made without delay.

Analysis
Advertisement scenario
Looking at the current scenario of advertisement rights in BRT of the case city, there is visible stagnation in
revenue, and the strategies that could have been adopted to increase the revenue.

2016 – Advertisement Rights Tender

2016
Rights Tender 2018 - Advertis
2018 - Advertisement Rights Tender

Specified location on Specified location

Selected Flyovers
bus shelter Specified location on bus shelter bus shelter bus shelter
under Corporation

rridor Glow Cubes on Corridor Glow Cubes on Corridor Glow C

Figure 5: Components of Advertisement Tender

82 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

 Per Bus shelter (In Lakhs)
1.19
1.18 1.18
Advertisement rights are distributed through licens-
1.18 es for each different type of advertising space: glow-
1.17
cubes along the bus corridor, bus stations, flyovers.
The license for each is for two years, and the license
1.16
fee is defined annually. The total annual revenue from
1.15 this fee is currently about INR 3.2 Crores. On analy-
1.14 1.14 sis of the data since 2016-2017, it is observed that the
1.14
revenue from this source for a single bus shelter has
1.13 increased by only INR 4,000. This clearly shows the
need for revision of the existing model.
1.12
2016 2017 2018 2019

Figure 6: Per bus shelter revenue generation 2016-2019

Advertisement market scenario

To understand the actual ability of the bus shelters to mercial Zone (MC) and High Commercial Zone (HC).
capture revenue, a market study of the existing ad- The advertisement rates in these zones also depend
vertisement rates for different kinds of spaces in the on the size of the hoardings. Once the size and rates
case city was carried out. were identified, they were compared with the exist-
A sample of 45 BRTS bus shelters were identified for ing area available on the BRTS bus shelter.
the study. The market of these stations are catego-
rized as: Low Commercial Zone (LC), Medium Com-

Sample Study for market HC:

Existing Rate of Hoarding Advertisement = Rh (per sqm)

Existing Rate of BRTS bus shelter advertisement = RS
Area available for advertisement on a bus shelter = A
Thus, Rh ≈ R s / A
i.e Rate of advertisement on a shelter = Rh * A
No of bus shelter in HC zone = p

Thus, rates of advertisement in BRT bus shelters in HC zone = p*Rh*A

The rates for other parts of the city, and the net pos- space available for advertisement on a BRT shelter in
sible revenue can be calculated through variations of the same location, it is seen that the possible revenue
this formula. is much higher than that currently extracted by the
SPV. Thus, it is very much important to carry out the
Thus, rate for advertisement in a city is majorly de- revaluation of available advertising space.
pendant on its location. On imposing the market
advertisement rates of a particular location on the

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 83

Suggestions Identification of factors
In the field of advertisement, the pricing for any out-
door asset such as a hoarding or billboard is done
Looking at the low demand for advertisement in bus
based on the Gross Rating Point (GRP) of that asset.
shelters, an effective model has to be thought of to
GRP defines the kind of viewership that would be
expand the limits of advertisement. By looking at the
available. This GRP for road advertisement is calcu-
various strategies adopted in India and worldwide to
lated on the basis of various factors such as ridership,
increase the non-farebox revenue generation – ‘Leas-
location, traffic, and area.
ing out of advertisement rights in the form of semi –
naming rights’ has been studied as a solution.
Since the BRT advertisement possibilities have dif-
ferent assets such as glow cubes, bus shelters, FOBs,
Semi – Naming rights leasing was first implement-
the area available for advertisement is an important
ed in sports stadium where stadium stakeholders
consideration.
auctioned rights to prefix or suffix a brand’s name to
the stadium’s name. This was then adopted by Delhi
The factors identified to form the formulas are:
Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) for metro stations, a
a. Surface area
practice later followed by Mumbai and Hyderabad.
b. Daily footfall at location
Upto 2018, DMRC has given semi-naming rights to
c. Neighbourhood land value per sqm
almost 56 stations gaining revenue of about INR 2-2.5
d. Road width adjacent to the station
crores per year from each station. These rights in-
clude advertisement rights inside the station, as well
as painting and modelling the station as per the look
and feel of the Brand. The ratio thus obtained will then be multiplied by
the existing naming rights value of the comparative
Valuation of the BRT station station.
semi-naming advertisement To illustrate, consider a BT station with surface area
rights 85 Sqm, with daily footfall of more than 5,000 pas-
In order to prepare the RFP for semi-naming rights it sengers. The station lies in a high density commercial
is important to identify the value of advertising the zone along a road of width of 12m with slow moving
brand name, and select the space that could be used. traffic.
Valuation will be done in two parts –
This is compared with Sikandarpur metro station in
1. Value of advertisement space: by compar- Gurgaon as it shows similar dynamics of road traffic
ing the rate of a hoarding for advertisement in the and market. The major difference is the available
neighbourhood surface area, which is 3,000 Sqm.
2. Value of semi-naming rights – by comparing
an implemented case in a different city

For valuation, a BRT bus shelter has been selected

and compared with a metro station in Gurgaon with
similar dynamics of location, area, traffic. This meth-
od has been derived from ‘Market Value Method’
used in the field of branding for valuation.

84 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

 Benchmarking station with respective to Sikanderpur Metro Station (Gurgaon)
Area of the Daily Footfall Surrounding Traffic (Road Total Ratio Advertisement Rate
Station Market Width)
(commercial land
value / sqm)
Surface Area Branding would Market derives the Traffic based on
paintable and be done outside viewership of the road width would
place logo customer give its
viewership
Weightage 20% 10% 50% 20% 100%
P (Sample BRTS
85 Sqm INR 1,80,000.00 INR 2,500.00 16m 1288.20 1 INR 1,10,89,876.00
bus shelter)
Sikanderpur 3,000 Sqm INR 22,00,000.00 INR 3,000.00 16m 2323.20 1.8 INR 2,00,00,000.00
Table 2: Benchmarking of sample station for brand valuation
On application of formulaas shown in table 2, we get:
Bus station naming value = (1: 1.8)* 2 crores (value of Sikanderpur Metro Station)
Thus, naming right value of the examined BRTS station =INR 1.11 crores

Therefore, the formula derived is:

{Area of the Station (20% ) + Daily Footfall (10%) + Surrounding Market (commercial
land value / sqm) (50%) + Traffic (Road Width) (20%) } of required bus shelter X
{Area of the Station (20% ) + Daily Footfall (10%) + Surrounding Market Y
(commercial land value / sqm) (50%) + Traffic (Road Width) (20%) } of metro station

Components of semi – naming Scalability of semi – naming

rights rights model
Semi-naming rights in a BRTS Station would be limit- The formula could be repeated for comparison with
ed to 5 components, as illustrated in the below figure any other existing scenario in the city with a location
7. of same dynamics.
For the price determination of BRTS station within
the same market area, a price for single station can
be identified and multiplied accordingly. For different
market space, the ratio of advertisement rates can be
taken and then multiplied.
Specified location on bus shelter Glow Cubes on Corridor

Brand Logo Brand Paint Brand Name Advertisement Posters

Figure 7: Components of Semi – Naming Rights

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 85

Summary of proposed contract for semi naming licence

The basic process flow from Issuing Tender to kind of Payment Mechanism to be adopted:

Contracts “Semi-Naming Rights Naming Rights +

1 License for 5 years
Advertisement” for a station Advertisement Rights

Bundling / Non- Valuation of

Invite selected players Bundling of stations Advertisement rights

Electricity, Maintenance
Area demarcation
Terms and Conditions and repair responsibility of
to be given by AJL.
licensee

10% increase in
License Fee every
year
Figure 8: Summarised procedure for semi-naming rights

2 Comparison with Market

Rate as per Location

1 Characteristics of existing
License for Advertisement Rights
3 Derivation of
Probable Rate

“Semi-Naming Rights”
Strategy

6 Leasing Process of Rights

4 Identification of Elements
to be in Semi-Naming Rights 5 Analysis of Brand Value
of AJL to set the tender
Figure 9: Strategies for semi-naming rights

86 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

Semi- naming rights players
The suitable player of the naming rights willing to in- they could be easy targets to sell naming rights, and
vest would be identified and RFP would be floated ac- strategy could be developed
cordingly. For example, a BRT station near the airport accordingly.
could approach flight operators to purchase naming
rights.
As per global trend report 2014, almost 65% of
semi-naming rights around the world are bought by
financial institutions and telecom operators. Thus,

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 87

INTELLIGENT TRAnsit
MANAGEMENT SYSTEM
-mITHIKA MaTHEW
 CHAPTER EIGHT
Intelligent Transit Management Systems (ITMS) operations and support decision-making. The sys-
are the integrated application of communica- tem enables real-time monitoring of the fleet, as-
tions, control, and information processing tech- sists in rapid mitigation of incidents, enables better
nologies to a transit system to improve its oper- resource management, and supports better monitor-
ational efficiency. This is achieved through the ing of Service Level Agreements (SLA) and Key Per-
collection, communication, analysis, and utilisation formance Indicators (KPI) of subsidiary contractors.
of data through devices and a connected network.
The bus operators who handle operations of parts of
ITMS is beneficial to all stakeholders of Mass Rapid the fleet on contract have access to easy and accurate
Transit. The city government which owns the public billing through ITMS. It helps them with better re-
transit system and provides the service to its citizens source management- both employee and inventory-
are able to offer better service delivery and customer and streamlines daily operations such as scheduling.
satisfaction. The improved operational efficiency is The public transport users are provided real-time
also a big cost-saver. It also helps create an invaluable information on the bus service through ITMS,
archive of data about the city and its citizens, which which enables trip-planning, makes it easier to
can be applied laterally for future development. provide feedback and get complaints redressed,
and are able to save a significant amount of time.
The bus service operator uses ITMS to streamline

Chairman, MC

City Government BRT ownership and decision-making Executive Director, Dy MC

Smart City SPV ITMS commissioning, financing

General Manager

BRT service operations Deputy General Manager (IT)

BRT SPV decision-making and
management, ITMS
monitoring Assistant General Manager (ITMS)

Control Room and Process Analyst

ITMS systems operations,
ITMS management, and
Contractor maintenance; data retrieval, VPSD DMS
AVLS AFCS Network
Consortium analysis, and archiving; Expert Expert
Expert Expert Expert +
report generation +BI + BI EMS

ITMS daily operations CCC In-Charge

Sub-agent to
ITMS Contractor Field
AVLS IMS Surveillance
1/50 Call Centre IT
Technicians 1
Technicians(3) Technicians(5) Technicians(5) Technicians(2) Technicians(2)
(6)
Figure 1: Organisation chart of ITMS in SPV

90 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

System The ITMS system is formed of several com-
ponents- software systems, hardware devic-
es, and managing facilities, as listed in Figure 2.
The Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system in the case city
is administered by a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV)
which handles several of its functions, including Vehicle Planning, Scheduling,
ITMS, through service contracts. The ITMS project and Dispatch (VPSD)
is financed as part of the city’s Smart City Mission,
while the design, development, supply, implemen- This software sub-system is used to define and assign
tation, operation, maintenance, and management the route, stops, and other details of the bus sched-
of the ITMS project is handled by a consortium of ule. It is used to execute policy for the BRT system,
contractors hired by the BRT. Though the SPV has working with the number of buses and staff, required
management personnel dedicated to ITMS, the dai- km per operator, peak times and routes, and other
ly operations and management including data ex- Service Level Agreements to define and implement
traction and analysis are handled fully by the con- number of buses per route at a time of the day, fre-
tractors. Thus, though the city government and quency, headway, shifts, breaks etc. The system al-
SPV have accountability of the project, the in-house lows dynamic planning of hundreds of buses through-
operational responsibility of ITMS is limited as it is out the day. The system is operated by the VPSD
handled by contracted operators, who also have Expert- a transportation planner- working within the
daily contact with a treasure trove of the city’s data. SPV, but employed by the ITMS Contractor.

Vehicle Planning, Scheduling, and Dispatch (VPSD) Automated Fare Collection System (AFCS)
Depot Management System (DMS) Incident Management System
Systems Automatic Vehicle Location System (AVLS) Enterprise Management System (EMS)
Passenger Information System (PIS) Business Intelligence System (BI)

Optical Fibre Network On Board Unit (OBU)

Handheld Ticketing terminal (HHT) Driver Display Unit (DDU)
Point of Sale terminal (POS) 2-way communication device
Devices
Fare Validator LED boards
Turnstile Public Address system
LCD screen Mobile Digital Video Recorder (mDVR)
CCTV

Facilities Command Control Centre (CCC) Data Security Centre (DC) Data Recovery Centre (DRC)

Figure 2: Components of ITMS

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 91

 Route, Stops, Schedule

PIS
Route, Stops,
Schedule, Depot Fleet, Crew, Dispatch

DMS VPSD
Route, Stops
(latlong), Schedule Route, Stops,
Schedule, Depot
AFCS
Route, Stops, Depot,
VPSD Ticketing/ridership data DMS Schedule, Dispatch

Route, Stops, Depot, AVLS

Schedule, Dispatch Login, GPS data
AVLS
Reporting data
GPS data
Reporting data All sub-systems, BI reports
All sub-systems, BI reports

Figure 3: Integration of VPSD and DMS with other software sub-systems

Depot Management System the Passenger Information System (PIS). The devic-
(DMS) es which support this system on each bus are Driver
Display Units (DDU) and On-Board Unit (OBU). Data
This software module is operated from each bus on the health of these devices can also be extracted
Depot by each Depot Manager. It has 4 modules in through this system.
this particular case. The Roster Management module
functions complementary to the VPSD software, and The AVLS system in the case city’s CCC is monitored
is used for scheduling buses and staff as per the re- by 3 technicians, who check route selection and ad-
quirements conveyed through VPSD. The beginning herence, device health, co-ordinate first response,
of each trip from the depot is also marked in this. Cur- cross-check trip adherence with on-ground person-
rently, only this module of DMS is utilized by the bus nel, and generate daily reports on trips, vehicle us-
operators in the case city. age, breakdowns or other events.
The remaining modules are HR Management- to
GPS data
monitor crew employed, crew available, and pay-
VPSD
roll, Maintenance Management- to track cleaning Route, Stops, Schedule, Depot

and maintenance of buses and their parts, Inventory Actual KMs

DMS
Management- to manage inventory in the depots, Driver, vehicle dispatch
Incidents
bus parts etc
IMS
AVLS
Automatic Vehicle Location ETA

PIS
System (AVLS) Tracking buses

CCC
2-way communication with driver
AVLS is used to track and monitor buses on the net- Reporting data
work. The system is enabled by a GPS unit on each All sub-systems, BI reports
bus, which transmits live data to the Command Con- Figure 4: Integration of AVLS with other ITMS sub-systems
trol Centre (CCC). Each bus is tracked on a live GIS
map at the CCC. The AVLS monitors bus location,
speed, stops, driver behaviour such as over-speed-
ing or sudden braking. It checks schedule adherence,
gaping or bunching of buses. This data feeds into

92 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

Passenger Information System Enterprise Management System
(PIS) (EMS)
This system is used to supply information on bus EMS monitors the ITMS network of devices and op-
schedules including live Estimated Time of Arrival tical fibre cables. Distinct modules monitor different
(ETA) to passengers. At bus stations, this data ap- functions. Sitescope monitors all devices on the net-
pears on LCD screens which list the bus number and work, which includes the cables and station devices.
route, and ETA in 3 languages. On-board, LED screen Other modules monitor health of switches, perfor-
and Public Address system convey approaching stop, mance of software applications, health of servers,
current stop, and next stop to passengers. This sys- patch and software update management.
tem also feeds data into the mobile application and
website, enabling customers to plan their trips based Business Intelligence System (BI)
on real time information, and daily schedules
BL receives data generated by the various other ITMS
sub-systems for analysis and report generation. Var-
Incident Management System ious combinations of data can be compared to study
(IMS) the functioning of the bus system. BI is used to build
reports from operations data to perform multi-di-
Any event which deviates from the actual is consid- mensional analysis enabling better decision-making
ered as an incident and registered in the Incident for higher operational efficiency. Customised reports
Management System. It manages the multi-agency, and dashboards can be put together as per adminis-
multi-jurisdictional response to any disruption. These trative requirements, where the analysed data is vi-
may be incidents concerning the bus such as break- sually represented. Types of reports and dashboards
downs or malfunctions, device or network related, used in the case BRT are listed in Fig 5.
external events such as accidents, driver behaviour.
Incidents may be registered manually by CCC techni-
cians, or automatically for events programmed for it
Dashboards Reports
Convenience Alighting and boarding
Automated Fare Collection Schedule adherence stats-morning, evening
Economics time-wise, using
System (AFCS) Executive smartcard
Fare stage Average age of incidents
Collection of fare in the BRT system is automated Incidents Average daily ridership
and off-board to reduce passenger dwell time within Penalty Average travel speed
the system. It consists of fare media, fare reader, and Vehicle utilization Average user waiting time
Violation analysis Best/worst operator
entry regulation device. In the studied case, these
% of violations Bus accidents
are paper tickets with QR codes, Handheld Terminal Hourly KPIs Equipment SLA
(HHT) and Point of Sale (POS) machines, and turn- Bus details performance
stiles and flap gates. The AFCS tracks every ticket IMS details Driver compliance report
sold and therefore every passenger using the sys- Open and closed Origin-Destination
tem and all the revenue collected. The system makes incidents- operator Volume to capacity ratio
wise Incident resolution time
management of revenue transparent as it is centrally
Sales
tracked. This system allows ease of implementation
of fare matrix. The CCC technicians assigned to AFCS
Figure 5: Dashboards and reports in use
generate reports on ridership and revenue, station
staff, bank reconciliation, observe device health and
monitor transaction errors.

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 93

Analysis
Bus Scheduling pot Manager to substitute a spare bus for a malfunc-
tioning one and upload data accordingly on DMS.
Bus scheduling is achieved through two of the sub- However, even these schedules are prepared for 30
systems- VPSD and DMS. While trip scheduling is days at a time so drivers can request leave in advance,
done though VPSD, bus and driver scheduling are and Depot Manager only need make daily changes if
done via DMS. The process unfolds back-to-back with a certain bus or driver is unavailable, rather than in-
the input in VPSD triggering need for input in DMS. put an entire new schedule every day which would be
Risks to the prescribed schedule caused by external time consuming and cumbersome.
factors are minimized by creating schedules post an- The bus scheduling process is thus fairly smooth and
alysing daily operations data, by assigning trips from responsive to real-time conditions. The visible flaw is
the CCC but allowing bus and driver assignment from the under-utilisation of DMS by the operator, as only
the Depot, and by live-monitoring on AVLS which al- the Roster module is in use. This could be corrected
lows dynamic planning and changes in schedule. by mandating full use of DMS software provided by
the SPV in the bus operator contract.
Risks to the process from the Depot end include bus
malfunction and driver absenteeism. As buses are al-
lotted from the Depot rather than the CCC assigning
a particular bus to a particular route, it allows the De-

Depot
VPSD Expert DGM, ITMS GM, SPV Bus Driver Bus Operator
Manager

Demand and
operations R A C C
data analysis

Scheduling R C A C I I

Assigning
vehicle and I I I R I A C
crew

Trip begins I I I R R A

Figure 6: Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, and Informed personnel for bus scheduling.

94 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

Bus monitoring scribed Standard Operating Procedures to deal
with possible events. However, it is observed that ac-
The fleet of buses are monitored based on the daily tual practices differ from the written down ones. As
operations policies defined through VPSD and DMS, seen in Figure 7, a major difference in operations is
and the Service Level Agreements and Key Perfor- that the CCC connects with operator in case of an
mance Indicators detailed through contracts with the event who then coordinates with driver, as opposed
various operators. Breaches of these standards are to directly informing the driver.
registered as incidents. The CCC technicians are pre-

Prescribed SOP Actual

-Event automatically logged in -Event automatically logged in IMS as
Driver behavior
IMS as breach of SLA breach of SLA
-Harsh braking
-Over speeding
-Operator to call driver and -Incident penalties marked in daily log and
-Skipped stops
communicate occurrence of communicated to operator during billing
-Sharp cornering
event

-Vehicle highlighted in map

-Vehicle highlighted in map
Bus breakdown -CCC to check with driver and -CCC informs depot which communicates
then depot with driver and provides solution

-CCC informs equipment -Incident raised automatically or manually

operations team
Device -ITMS operator dispatches field staff to
malfunction -If OBU is replaced, respond
corresponding update to be
made in AVLS -OBU not fixed during trips

Figure 7: Integration of AVLS with other ITMS sub-systems

Technical CCC Contracted

DGM GM, SPV Bus driver
Expert Technician Operator

Checking and correcting

schedule adherence, R A R I R
stops

Correction of bunching,
gaping etc R A R I R

Incident redressal I R I I A R

Report generation A R R C I C I

Report review R R A R

Figure 8: Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, Informed personnel for bus monitoring

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 95

The reports generated from monitoring the system is by the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM).
and fleet are generated daily and keep the SPV ad- Service Level Agreements in the ITMS contract detail
ministrators up to date. However, the bus opera- how many pieces are allowed to be damaged time,
tors are only informed of their penalties along with the allowable downtime, and levels of critical breach,
billing once in 10 days, and do not receive reports and the associated penalties. The devices can be cat-
unless they specifically request it. This too could egorized as Station Devices and On-Board Devices.
be corrected by including a clause on regular up-
dates from ITMS on the bus operator contractor. Station Devices

Device Maintenance and The Station Devices in the studied case are Hand-
Management held Ticketing terminal (HHT), Point of Sale terminal
(POS), Fare Validator and Turnstile, Passenger Infor-
mation System LCD screen, CCTV Camera, Station
The various hardware devices are core components
Server.
of the ITMS system. If each of these devices do not
continuously function with precision, the data gener-
Each station is meant to have 2 HHT devices. Howev-
ated and therefore the entire system is compromised.
er, 20% of the units require correction in a day. How-
Devices are monitored through various ITMS sub-sys-
ever, if a HHT is available for less than 99% of the shift
tems that they contribute to, or by the users of the
time, it is in critical breach of the SLA. As total oper-
physical devices. Maintenance is handled by the con-
ational time is 17 hours (1020 minutes), the machine
tractor consortium, with division of responsibility
cannot be down for more than 10.2 minutes. This is
according to level of fixing required. Initial ground
combated by having spare devices in each station,
support and basic fixing is handled by one member
and ensuring technicians reach the station to fix the
of the consortium is titled L1 support, while the other
device immediately. The current downtime is up to 2
consortium member which designed and implement-
hours.
ed the system handles escalated levels of fixing re-
quired, which is titled L2 support. L3 for maintenance
The POS machines are currently being phased out as

Source: Toolkit on Intelligent Transport

System for Public Transport & BRTS’

Figure 9: Station devices and communication

96 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

cost of replacement of their printer head has been Bus Devices
deemed infeasible.
Malfunction of these devices cause loss in revenue, Devices on board the bus are the On-Board Unit
and error in revenue collection and ridership figures. (OBU), Driver Display Unit (DDU), PIS LED boards,
These devices are monitored through AFCS and EMS. Public Address system, and mobile digital video re-
corder (mDVR).
Each station has 4 turnstiles of which there are about
6-10 malfunctions daily. If one device is unavailable The DDU is the device through which the driver logs
less than 99.5% of the operational time, it is a critical in and out at the beginning and end of shift. The DDU
breach of SLA. This means it should not be damaged contains the GPS and GPRS and transmits data to the
for more than 5.1 minutes in a day. back-end. Together they compose the On-Board In-
telligent Transit System (OBITS). There is one OBITS
Malfunction of these gates can lead to difficulty in unit on each bus in the case BRT service. There are
passenger entry, revenue leakage, customer and rev- currently about 60 devices defective on a daily basis,
enue data not being recorded, and failure in crowd though critical breach of SLA is if device availability is
control. The measures to make up for this currently less than 99% (10.2 minutes).
in place are the flap gates, physical verification and
crowd control by employed personnel, and availabili- OBITS malfunction can prevent tracking of a bus
ty of technical staff for repair. which affects monitoring of bus and driver behaviour,
affects km recording and incident registering, caus-
The process for fixing of devices is described in Fig es incorrect information to be transmitted in the PIS,
8.10. When a device goes offline, the station is con- and errors in the reports generated and compromises
tacted to check if it’s a power supply issue or a device data used to improve operational efficiency.
malfunction. If a device malfunction is identified, L1 The buses with malfunctioning devices are currently
contractor dispatches field technicians. Currently, monitored through station CCTVs, and DC officers
there are only 6 technicians available per shift, though present at route-ends recording the end of each bus
the ideal would be 8 per shift. This reduces efficiency. trip. Scheduled timings are displayed on the PIS in-

Incident closed

Incident closed Incident closed

Alert Inform L1 field
raised staff
CCC
Yes

Insufficient number of Is device Yes Device

technicians. malfunctioning? fixed/replaced
L1 ITMS
Is fibre
contractor malfunctioning?
No

Station Station staff Is there

contacted electricity?
No

Electrical technicians
SPV informed
BRT SPV dispatched and issue
fixed

OFC Vendor
informed,
vendor
issue fixed

Figure 10: Process for station device maintenance

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 97

stead of actual. Reports are adjusted manually by Every bus has a PA system, but malfunctions can only
CCC staff to make up for possible errors. be registered through manual complaints. This is not
regularly monitored.
There are 3 PIS LED boards on each bus, 2 out-
ward-facing, and 1 inward-facing. Of these, boards on The devices are only fixed when the buses return to
122 buses are in regular disrepair as they are old de- depot, so a damaged device remains non-functional
vices integrated into the current system, but are not all day, therefore always resulting in a breach in SLA.
included in the maintenance required by the current The list of malfunctioning devices are extracted from
Contractor Consortium. These devices warranty peri- AVLS by the L1 manager, and passed on to the 3 tech-
od have lapsed. Critical breach of SLA is when device nicians who visit each depot between 11pm and 3am.
is unavailable for more than 5% of operational time However, the technicians are able to repair only 12-15
(51 minutes). Passengers are expected to identify sta- devices each night as opposed to the 20 they are al-
tions from station signage. lotted. Cases L1 cannot fix is escalated to L2, and then
OEM. The process is detailed in Fig 10.

Source: Toolkit on Intelligent Transport

System for Public Transport & BRTS’

Figure 11: Station devices and communication

98 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

 Device incident No spare
generated by replacement
CCC Incident closed
AVLS noted
technician

Alerted of Consolidates list of Prepares

L1 manager incidents and
Alerts L2
device repair
assigns technician No
malfunctio report
n
Examine Is it L1 Fixes device
L1 s device maintenance? and
technician at depot Yes Whatsapps
root cause.

Can only be done after Schedules

L2 11pm. Only 3 staff, unable technician
manager to complete all scheduled.

L2
technician

OEM

Figure 12: Process of on-board device maintenance

Report Generation
ularities in device health affect accuracy of data and
Daily reports are generated against fixed KPIs and therefore manual intervention is necessary to correct
benchmark criteria on heads such as bus availability it. Therefore, visual representation on the BI dash-
and utilization, scheduled trip adherence, revenue, boards are also incorrect.
ridership, and device status and emailed to SPV up- Though SPV officials have access to the various inter-
per management. Weekly review meetings are held faces and dashboards they rely on ITMS Contractor
to brief on the data generated and analysed. Irreg- staff for data extraction and analysis.

Suggestions
Clauses in Operator Contract drivers on a monthly basis.
Maintenance schedule shall be defined in the soft-
ware and updated daily, weekly, monthly, as per type
Despite the DMS system being designed to ease
of maintenance. Inventory shall be defined and regis-
depot management, only the roster management
tered, and daily updates of inventory movement shall
module is used diligently. Operators continue with
be made. Updates shall be monitored by CCC staff,
their own systems to manage HR, Maintenance, and
Assistant Manager-Operations-SPV, and are subject
Inventory. It is however necessary for AJL to be aware
to random ground checks by SPV authority and field
of these aspects as well, so an ideal way to mandate
staff. SPV shall arrange training of designated depot
this would be to include a pertinent clause in the op-
staff to operate software. Non-compliance with pre-
erator contract. The clause could be along the follow-
scribed update schedule shall result in penalty.
ing lines:
The data generated through ITMS is valuable and val-
The designated bus operator staff shall ensure data
id and bears more weight when utilised
is entered in Depot Management Software provided
by SPV. Roster shall be prepared for 14 days at a time,
and corrected on a daily basis prior to fleet dispatch.
HR shall be updated with accurate information about

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 99

 to improve operational efficiency. This can be helped breakdown incidents shall be shared with operator
to some extent by sharing relevant reports extracted for internal performance monitoring by operator and
at the CCC with the operator, to enable checks and to improve operational efficiency. Reports shall be
balances. This too could be a provision in the contract generated by CCC staff, checked by AM-Operations,
to ensure it happens. The clause could be along the and sent to designated operator staff.
following lines:
Daily reports on bus usage, driver behaviour, bus

Maintenance Management
module

EMS
Network and
device status Device status and location AVLS
Maintenance Device status and location
Management AFCS
EMS
Responsive maintenance
Network and IMS
history on
device status nd locati AVLS
status a
evice sub-systems
Figure 13:Ref
Device Integration
no Currentof Maintenance
Current Management
Location module withDother
Maintenance Scheduled Mean Mean Warranty Scheduled OEM
status location history Maintenance
history status and locationTime ToAFCS
Device maintenance Time history renewal
EMS
Management Responsive m Repair Before
aintenance
Network and history Failure
IMS
device status
s a nd location AVLS
Responsible Inventory e statu
DevicManager,Operator; AGM-IT, AJL Mean
Maintenance Scheduled Mean
Ref Current Current Maintenance
Location De vice sta tus and location Time Warranty Scheduled
Device AccountableManagement Project Manager,
history Operator; Time To AFCS
maintenance OEM
no status location history Responsive m Before history renewal
aintenanceRepair
Consulted DGM-IT,hiAJL
story Failure
IMS
Table 1: Data recorded in the Maintenance Management module
Informed GM,AJL
Responsible Inventory Manager, Operator; AGM-IT, SPV
Mean
Maintenance Scheduled Mean
Ref Current Location
Current Accountable Project Manager, Operator; Time Warranty Scheduled
Device history maintenance Time To OEM
no status location history Before history renewal
Repair
Consulted DGM-IT, SPV Failure

Informed GM,SPV
Responsible Inventory Manager, Operator; AGM-IT, SPV

Accountable Project Manager, Operator;

Consulted DGM-IT, SPV

Informed GM,SPV

Table 2: Responsible, Accountable, Consulted and Informed personnel for device management

100 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

It is evident from the study conducted that ITMS and The module would maintain the fields described in
the data generated and resultant potential for im- Table 1 to keep track of each device in the system,
proved system efficiency relies heavily on the devic- with data collected from other systems, or entered
es that collect and transmit this data. It is therefore manually. These metrics would help manage lifecy-
essential to have accurate knowledge on the state cle of the device better, and generate data to inform
of health of devices, maintenance procedures, war- future developments of the ITMS project in terms of
ranties, etc. To enable managing inventory of these device purchase and management
devices, a Maintenance Management module can be
designed within the Enterprise Management System.
The integration of the module with other sub-sys-
tems is as shown in Figure 13.

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 101

ADOPTION STRATEGIES
TO INCREASE RIDERSHIP
-MONIKA GUPTA
 CHAPTER NINE
“A Developed country is not a place where investment in maintaining and improving the quality
the poor have cars; it’s where the rich use of the bus service. The subsequent decline compro-
public transportation” - Mayor of Bogotá mises the feasibility of public transport and leaves
travel specialists battling to work out how to produce
At the beginning of 2015, approximately 74 per- the income required to keep up the service of public
centage of aggregate passenger-trips in India were transportation. In fact, in numerous urban commu-
via recognized public transport services (MoRTH, nities it is indistinct how travel specialists and city
2o16), provided majorly by sixty two State-owned pioneers will fund their vows to address air quality
Road Transport Corporations. There was exponen- concerns and reduce the carbon footprint of public
tial vehicular development in the country. The rate transport by moving to electric transports—particu-
of increase has been 6.2 in the last two decades. This larly increasing their capital expense.
hike was due to expansion in private vehicle develop- Vulnerability in transport frequency and its effect
ment, and has brought about decreased traffic rates on waiting times at transport stops dishearten pub-
and endemic road blocks in many urban areas. Be- lic transport utilization. In spite of the fact that most
cause of the expansion of single or low-inhabitance STUs are monetarily obliged, some are putting re-
vehicles, the decrease in the modular sector of open sources into Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS), in-
transport is a reason for concern. Expanded clog lev- cluding Vehicle Tracking Units and Passenger Infor-
els have added to the absence of quality of public mation Systems (PIS), to increase the dependability
transport administrations. on public transport.

It is difficult to choose between private vehicles and National Urban Transport Policy
public service as there are different influences. Excur-
sion quality, for example, time of outing and consis- National Urban Transport policy, 2014 clearly states
tency of outing, motivations behind outing, and sta- that there is a need to control the development in
tistic attributes such as age, gender and pay level, are transport demand in light of the fact that there is a
among the huge influences. Likewise, as the age and breaking point to the enlargement of urban transpor-
salary of an individual increases; there is a decrease tation foundation and administrations. Transport De-
in the utilization of public transport. Other secondary mand Management comprises a lot of strategies that
solid influences are out of the pocket cost of travel, impact why, when, where and how individuals travel.
nature of administration, the proximity of the bus
stop from the start point and nearness of destination
from the station.

Pulling in individuals to utilize public transport has

never been simple. Private vehicles have regularly
been the preferred choice over general transport.
The test is much more prominent in rural settlements
and smaller urban areas where factors such as ample
parking area, and congestion free driving conditions
have defended the utilization of private vehicle as a
mode of transit. As the quantum of public transport
riders keeps on falling, this in turn reduced the reve-
nue for the municipalities and hampered the overall
Figure 1: Strategies of Transport Demand Management

104 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

Workers should be made mindful about available policy to control the use of personal vehicles Utiliza-
methods of movement. They ought to be made tion of individual mechanized vehicles and its huge
mindful about quantifiable advantages or dis-ad- commitment to air contamination, ozone harming
vantages of choosing a mode regarding travel time, emissions, and petroleum derivative utilization are all
accommodation, cost, emanation rates and solace. around acknowledged.
Transport Demand Management plans to augment
the effectiveness of urban transport by reducing need At the same time, there is an earnest need to put a re-
of private vehicle use, and advancing increasingly vi- striction on the utilization of individual vehicles. Leg-
able, sound and condition well-equipped methods islature of India would bolster estimates, for exam-
of transport. Moreover, Government of India would ple, traffic quieted territories, pedestrianized zones,
monetarily support to actualize Transport Demand and vehicle constrained zones.
Management measures by urban areas. It also states

Methodology
4. Literature study
3. Issue Identification • International cases
• National cases
• Research Papers

2. Capacity Check
5. Bus Aggregator Model

1. Survey
• Rider
• Non-Riders 6. Business Model Canvas

Figure 2: Methodology

Analysis
There are two sides to the public transportation sys- ed below. The study was conducted in six Bus Rapid
tem. One is the receiving side: the public who creates Transit stations of the case city based on footfall of
the demand for service, and the other is the deliver- the station from low, medium to high density.
ing side: the administrators who meet the demand
for service. The objective of the analysis is illustrat-

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 105

 D Existing riders
E Service quality of BRTS
M
A Non-riders
N
Strategies to increase riders
D RIDERS ISSUE
IDENTIFICATION
S
U
P
Capacity Check
P
L SERVICE availability of buses at the stations in
Y peak & non Peak hours
PROVIDER
Figure 3: Objective of Analysis

Existing rider survey

The SERVQUAL instrument was used to assess the are provided.
participants’ bus service quality expectations and Assurance: The knowledge and courtesy of the trans-
perceptions. The survey had 22 attribute statements port operators’ employees, and their ability to convey
measured on a 4-point Likert-scale across five broad trust and confidence
service quality dimensions. The 4-point Likert scale Empathy: The provision of personalized attention
has been shown to produce reliable test scores. The and care to passengers
five service quality dimensions are defined as follows: Tangibility: The physical appearance of the operator’
Reliability: The ability of public bus transport opera- vehicles, staff and other infrastructure
tors to perform their services accurately
Responsiveness: The promptness with which services

Figure 4: SERVQUAL

The study brought forward different findings among were academicians, government sector employee,
the 97 respondents from 6 selected stations. Since the private sector employee, house maker and entrepre-
sample stations are in close proximity to major uni- neur. The sample was a balance between male and
versities of the city 40.7 percent of the total respon- female ranging from the age of 17 to 50 years.
dent were students, while remaining 59.3 percent

106 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

 RELIABILITY RESPONSIVENESS ASSURANCE EMPATHY TANGIBLES

Information of the Service availability and Passengers belongings Well aware about the Staff appear neat
routes changes are are secure availability of passes and smart
communicated in
BRTS buses are punctual advance Station staff are polite bus service information buses are spacious,
is readily available and safe and comfortable
BRTS bus drivers stop at Service are timely and Station staff have in- accessible
all bus stops efficient depth knowledge buses are clean
about the service Bus frequency are
BRTS buses never break Increase in service designed optimally (no BRTS station are
down during the frequency in festive Driver drives safely by additional bus required) clean
journey seasons following traffic rules
Bus route are designed
Bus drivers wait until all Disturbance causing optimally (no additional
passengers are passengers are not stop required)
comfortably onboard allowed onboard
SOURCE: Primary survey, September, 2 019

Figure 5: Parameters surveyed for quality analysis of BRTS

Bus services were perceived to be below passenger
LOWER GAPS IN RESPONSIVENESS,
expectations across all the five dimensions men-
ASSURANCE AND TANGIBLE.
tioned i.e., expectations were higher than perception
of quality of service. The radar chart clearly shows the
gap between what is expected and received by the
respondent. The parameter of assurance, tangibles,
and responsiveness of the service has very little gap
though there is scope of improvement as the service
quality is not at its optimum level.
After a deeper study it was seen that the major gap in
empathy and reliability parameters were due to the
following aspects.
Figure 6: Radar chart showing results of SERVQUAL
DECLINE IN QUALITY OF BUS SERVICES
Bus services were perceived to be below passenger expectations across
all the five dimensions mentioned.
Non-rider survey
A survey of 95 non-riders or occasional riders where It was clear from the survey that 82 percent of the
conducted at major public spaces of the case city to respondents would choose the public transport if
understand why citizens are not willing to use the the quality of the public transport was improved and
public transport service. BRTS service was used for made convenient for riders. Lack of last mile connec-
occasional trips by respondents as it has the perk of tivity is seen as the major drawback, as most of the
surpassing major traffic congestions of the city due respondents would prefer to be able to walk to and
to signal priority and dedicated right of way, which from the bus stations than use an additional mode of
cumulatively saves time for long distance travel. An- transportation.
other point of attraction was identified to be that the
buses are air conditioned. An indirect reason which This demands availability of stations or stops at a
causes the respondent to choose BRTS is the lack of maximum proximity of 800m from the initial and final
parking space in the close vicinity of the end destina- destination of each passenger.
tion.

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 107

Figure 7: Ishikawa Diagram to understand the issues faced by Non-Riders
Figure 7 is Ishikawa diagram (or Fishbone
Diagram) which lists reasons which discourage
the respondents from using the BRT service for
their commute.
CAPACITY CHECK:

To meet passenger requirements, it is necessary for There is evidently a gap between the demand and
the stock-end to be adequate. There must be the re- supply of the transit stock of the case city. An alter-
quired number of buses to be able to provide trans- native arrangement could be double-decker, or artic-
portation for the volume of passengers and at the ulated buses to carry more passengers comfortable
frequency required. It was observed while conducting in the same number of trips. Unfortunately, the case
the survey that the BRT stations of the case city were city’s BRT infrastructure isn’t designed for such flexi-
packed at peak hours and 76 percent of the respon- bility.
dents complained of congested stations and buses.

PRIVATE
VEHICLE
OWNER

Figure 8: Issues identified

108 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

Suggestions
Travel in a public sphere exists in a focused situa- clients are not identical, and a better understanding
tion where numerous potential clients have options of their identity would enable better and more tar-
extending from driving alone to working from home. geted service provision.
For an assortment of reasons, travel ridership has by
and large been declining. Despite declining ridership The market segment selected for this scenario is as
across the country, transit authorities are moving per the demographic identified- daily commuters
their organisations to discover the best strategies who can afford a private vehicle, but would shift to
for keeping up and expanding ridership. One market public transit if sufficient advantages are identified.
research apparatus - much of the time utilized suc-
cessfully in the private area - is market segmentation.
Public transit is hardly ever designed with this kind of
segmentation in mind. However, there is an expand-
ed mindfulness that all current and potential travel

Market segment Travelling from?

RESIDENTIAL COMPLEX HOSTEL & DORM

MIDDLE Travelling to?

PRIVATE INCOME
VEHICLE
OWNER

DAILY
USERS

Figure 9: Market segment identified for the case city

Figure 9 suggests that if bus stations are placed in port Aggregators’ commonly possess no advantages
close proximity to a particular kind of high-usage other than the Information Technology framework.
development, ridership would increase. However, They form agreements with private transport propri-
this assumption would be incorrect in the case city. etors for their activities. Aggregator transport man-
A previous study conducted of the case city on rider- agements contrast to State Transport U by empower-
ship and the built-form indicators in 2018 disproves ing travellers to track transport timings, bus arrival,
this assumption. The case city isn’t a Transit Orient- and guaranteeing them seating for the span of their
ed Development (TOD), development is not oriented trip.
along the BRTS corridor though such a relationship
would increase ridership.
Alternatively, new businesses have emerged in the
country of exclusive bus-pool transport. These ‘Trans-
SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 109
 Bus

Bus Bus

Bus

Bus

Bus

Bus

Figure 10: Transport Aggregator Model

110 | SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS

TRANSPORT AGGREGATOR
Transport aggregator models use calculations to plot working of the aggregator model. This includes se-
courses dependent on requests sourced from poten- lection of buses, contracting bus operator(s), and im-
tial clients, representative travel information acces- proving the app. Registration processes would again
sible from significant innovation parks, and current begin where the riders would enter the same data
routes of informal transport in the city. The model with a valid Government ID proof, choose an appro-
permits boarding for travellers along pre-ordained priate ticket bundle (weekly, monthly, quarterly) and
courses, giving direct transit availability to travellers. make the payment up front.
The model sources interest for a route through its
front-end interface- usually a cell phone application FEEDBACK AND REFORMS:
that enables travellers to hold and pay for seats for Once the model is on the road, there would be al-
a trip. In addition to seat booking, the cell phone ap- terations and changes that would be require citizen
plication builds a traveller data framework, allowing engagement because if the demands are not met as
travellers to identify most suitable trips schedules per the expectation of the riders the model would fall
and stations as per their requirements. apart.
In India there are fourteen buses pooling start-ups in A regular feedback regime in the system would be re-
Mumbai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Gurgaon. The quired followed by necessary reforms.
legitimate system for aggregator transport adminis- CHALLENGES
trations is administered by the Motor Vehicles Act of After taking necessary steps, this change should be
1988, the arrangements of which pre-date advance- communicated to create awareness among the citi-
ments in Information Technology. The Act respects zen. The challenges of the project include low regis-
aggregators and limits their jobs to that of special- tration, and infeasible routes.
ists in the booking of passes to travel, as opposed to Following points are to be considered to overcome
framework organizers in a public transport. The Act the challenges:
additionally doesn’t direct such innovation-empow- 1. A stringent parking policy
ered transport administrations to best serve the in- 2. Active marketing strategies for outreach to
terests of their target demographic. These issues are non-riders: To encourage people to avail the service,
currently being re-examined in the ongoing Amend- psychology based advertising could be conducted
ment in the Motor Vehicle Act 2019. with strategies such as, monetary incentive, acknowl-
edgment in the newspaper as ‘rider of the month’, a
DEMAND ANALYSIS: live talk show with the riders narrating their experi-
For the pilot project, hotspot destinations would be ences in the bus, etc.
identified and surveyed in major commercial, corpo-
rate and residential hubs. Registration process would
follow for the prospective rider, where one would
mention: start and end destination, and estimated
time of arrival at the final destination. Based on the
survey, an optimised route would be designed along
with the calculations of bus frequency and schedule.
After all the analysis, a fare would be determined and
various ticketing bundles (weekly, monthly, quarter-
ly) would be created to cater to variable demands of
the riders.

SERVICE PROVISION:
After the demand analysis, if the project seems via-
ble, a strong back-end team would be set up for the

SERVICE OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT: BRTS | 111

BUSINESS MODEL CANVAS

Key Partners Key Resources

Customer
Relationship
SPV • Technology Teams
Rating & feedback system
Bus Operators • Analytics Expertise
Customer support
(Also, Technology partners) • Network Between
Self-service
drivers and
Highly Automated
passengers
Meetings with regulators
Customer Segment • Brand Name & Asset
• Data
• People who own a Channels
Vehicle • Mobile App
• People who need an Key Activities • Social Media (online
convenient ride Advertisement)
• People who need a • Add more drivers • Word of Mouth,
premium affordable • Add more riders Hoardings, (offline
ride daily. • Offer help & support Advertisement)

Value Propositions Revenue

Cost Structure
Streams
FOR PASSENGERS Salary to Employees
• On demand bookings Premium Bus rides
Driver Payments
• Real Time tracking Cancellation fee
Technology
• Accurate ETA’s Development
• Cashless Bus Rides R&D
• Subsidised Fare Marketing
Legal Activities
FOR DRIVERS
Training Sessions
Better trip Allocation
Uniform
Non-monetory Incentive
“The bus aggregator model is based on demand intensity of the city.
Alternatively,a demand-centred, area-based, rtered bus system
could be created.”
Figure 11: Business model canvas for bus aggregator
CONCLUSION
A summary of the sectors studied, challenges identified and recommendations are listed below:

SECTOR CHALLENGE SUGGESTION

1. Contracts Management 1. Lack of driver 1. Driver performance

acknowledgment in the incentives based on driver
contract. performance matrix.
SECTOR CHALLENGE SUGGESTION
2. Lack of reward mechanism
in contract.
1. Contracts Management 1. Lack of driver 1. Driver performance
acknowledgment in the incentives based on driver
2. Fare Determination contract. 1. Integrated
performancefarematrix.
model for PT.

2. Fare-change vs Ridership
2. Lack of reward mechanism
model
in contract.

3. Fare model for daily bus

2. Fare Determination 1. Integrated fare model for PT.
passes.

2. Fare-change vs Ridership
4. Fuel efficiency vs Fare.
model
3. Fare Collection 1. Fare-box revenue leakage at 1. Closed station system.
BRT stations. 3. Fare model for daily bus
passes.

2. Lengthy process to avail 2. Speeding up the offline

4. Fuel efficiency vs Fare.
Smart Cards. process and introducing online
process for application of
3. Fare Collection 1. Fare-box revenue leakage at 1. Closed station system.
Smart Cards.
BRT stations.
3. Queuing at the ticketing 3. Automatic Ticket Vending
counter to generate
2. Lengthy processmanual
to avail Machine.
2. Speeding up the offline
tickets.
Smart Cards. process and introducing online
process for application of
4. Depot Management 1. Haphazard placement of 1. Structuring inventory
Smart Cards.
inventory in store. storage through 5 S’s of Lean
3. Queuing at the ticketing Management.
3. Automatic Ticket Vending
counter to generate manual Machine.
2.tickets.
Chaotic bus parking at the 2. Designated parking of buses
depots. by defining lane and assigning
4. Depot Management 1. Haphazard placement of codes to buses. inventory
1. Structuring
inventory in store. storage through 5 S’s of Lean
5. Bus Maintenance and Lack of set regime for general Token-based work allocation
Management.
Incident Management checking of buses and work regime
allocation
2. Chaotic bus parking at the 2. Designated parking of buses
depots. by defining lane and assigning
Lack of documentation of bus SLAs for data updating,
codes to buses.

5. Bus Maintenance and Lack of set regime for general Token-based work allocation
Incident Management checking of buses and work regime
allocation
 depots. by defining lane and assigning
codes to buses.

5. Bus Maintenance and maintenance activities

Lack of set regime for general Logbooks for buses
Token-based work allocation
Incident Management checking of buses and work regime
allocation
Maximum complaints related Bus grading for work allocation
to breakdown of buses
Lack of documentation of bus SLAs for data updating,
Driver behaviour incidents Driver’s training directed
towards low performing
drivers, rewards and
recognition

Unawareness amongst Passenger awareness through

passengers about BRTS helpline number signage inside
complaint helpline bus

6. Integration of Feeder 1. Absence of integrated 1. Intermediate Public

system and Bus Prioritisation feeder system. Transport as a mode of feeder
for the BRT.

2. Electric buses as a mode of

feeder bus for BRT.

2. Bus bunching and delays in 3. Traffic Signal Prioritisation.

scheduled trips.

7. Revenue Management 1. Semi-naming rights of BRT

stations for revenue
generation.

8. ITMS 1. Minimal use of ITMS 1. Incorporate ITMS clause in

components by bus Operators. Operator contract.

2. Negligent device 2. Device Maintenance

maintenance Management module in
Enterprise Management
System.

9. Adoption Strategies 1. Traffic congestion of private 1. Bus aggregator model

vehicles

The learnings cover a wide range of aspects in the BRT system, but an overall theme that emerges is to
do with the outsourced services, and regulation of them. The SPV has well-defined SLAs and KPIs, and
the service would benefit greatly from additional proactive governance.
This study has offered an entry point to investigate these possibilities.
References
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 Annexure 1
WILLINGNESS TO SHIFT SURVEY FORM
Question Options
1. Male
1 Gender
2. Female
1. 1 - 15
2. 16 - 25
2 Age group
3. 25 - 45
4. 45+
1. Daily

2. Frequently (3 - 4 times a week)

3 Do you use BRTS
3. Sometimes (1 - 2 times a week)
4. No
1. Two Wheeler
2. Car
If you've answered Daily/Frequently to Q3, how do you 3. Auto rickshaw
4
reach the stations/stops? 4. Cycle
5. Walking
6. Other modes

1. Bus stations/stops are not within walk

If you've answered Sometimes/No to Q3, what is your
5 able distance
reason of not using the BRTS?
2. Not comfortable
3. Expensive
4. Time consuming
Is unavailability of feeder system a major issue for you 1. Yes
6
not using the BRTS? 2. No
1. Yes
If a feeder service of buses that ran every 5 minutes
7 2. No
was started, would you use the BRTS more frequently?
3. Maybe
1. Punctuality
2. Comfortable
3. Cost effective
What will you look for in a feeder service provided by
8
BRTS? 4. End to end solution
5. Reliability

6. Integrated fare system

1. Travel time savings

2. Convenience
3. Less stress
What would be the biggest benefits personally of using
9
the feeder service?
4. Less chance of accidents

5. No need to worry about parking

Cost savings
Annexure 2
USABILITY OF JANMITRA CARD
1 AGE GROUP
BELOW 18
18-25
25-40
40 AND ABOVE

2 OCCUPATION
STUDENTS
JOB
BUSSINESS
WORKERS
HOME MAKER
OTHERS

3 FREQUENCY OF TRAVEL
DAILY
WEEKLY (ONCE A WEEK)
MONTHLY(ONCE A MONTH)
OCCASIONALLY
FIRST TIME

4 METHOD OF TICKETING
JANMITRA CARD
MANUAL TICKET

5 AWRENESS OF JANMITRA CARD

YES
NO

6 AWARENESS OF JANYATRA APP

YES
NO

7 FUTURE USE
YES
NO

8 DO YOU KNOW WHERE TO APPLY

YES
NO

9 TIME TAKEN IN MAKING

SAME DAY
WITHIN 15 DAYS
MORE THAN 15 DAYS
DON’T KNOW

10 PLACE OF MAKING
BRTS STATION
RETAILER SHOP
CITY CIVIC CENTRE
AJL OFFICE

11 TYPES OF CARD USING

INSTANT STUDENT
STUDENT
PERSONALISED
BLIND
 DON’T KNOW

10 PLACE OF MAKING
BRTS STATION
RETAILER SHOP
CITY CIVIC CENTRE
AJL OFFICE

11 TYPES OF CARD USING

INSTANT STUDENT
STUDENT
PERSONALISED
BLIND
HANDICAPPED

12 RECHARGE AREA
BRTS STATION
RETAIL OUTLET
JANYATRA APP

13 ISSUES FACED WHILE APPLYING

NON AVAIBILITY OF THE FORM
NOT KNOWING WHERE TO APPLY
TIME TAKING PROCESS
MORE NO OF DOCUMENTS
NOT AWARE ABOUT THE SCHEMES
OFFICE CLOSED
SERVER DOWN
NOT ANY

14 ISSUES FACED WHILE USING

NON AVAILIBILITY OF THE FORM
LOW BALANCE IN THE CARD
RECHARGING OF THE CARD
NON FUNCTION OF THE MACHINE
PENALTY CHARGES
UNABLE TO CHECK BALANCE
DID NOT FACE ANY ISSUE

15 AWARENESS ABOUT COMPLAIN PROCESS

YES
NO

16 IMPROVEMENTS/SUGGESTION IF ANY
Annexure 3
Survey of BRTS Service
Strongly Agree: 4, Agree: 3, Disagree: 2, Strongly Disagree: 1

1 Gender
Female
Male
Prefer not to say
2 Age
Below 17
Young (17-30 yrs)
Middle (31-55 yrs)
Old (Above 55 yrs)
3 Occupation
Government sector
Private sector
Entrepreneur
Businessman
Homemaker
Academician
Ridership pattern of BRTS
the form aims at both riders and non riders of BRTS
4 Do you use BRTS, if no, state the reason
Yes
Unreliable (Delays, Breakdowns)
Inconvenient
Crowded
Expensive
5 How do you travel a short distance of 500 m?
Walking
Cycling
Autorickshaw
Bus Service
Riding 2 Wheeler (motorised)
Driving 4 wheeler
6 For what purpose do you use BRTS
Travelling to school/university
Commuting for work
Shopping
Outings
Experienced insecurity due to discrimination in the BRTS station
7
or bus under any of the following heads
Caste
Religion
Gender
Age
Physical disability
Other…
Reliability
the ability of BRTS to perform their services accurately
8 Information on the route of the BRTS bus is available to the passengers
 Shopping
Outings
Experienced insecurity due to discrimination in the BRTS station
7
or bus under any of the following heads
Caste
Religion
Gender
Age
Physical disability
Other…
Reliability
the ability of BRTS to perform their services accurately
8 Information on the route of the BRTS bus is available to the passengers
9 BRTS buses are punctual
10 BRTS bus drivers stop at all bus stops
11 BRTS buses never break down during the journey
12 Bus drivers wait until all passengers board/alight the bus comfortably
13 Passengers belongings are secure (cases of theft or snatching)
Assurance
14 Station
the Staff are
knowledge always
and polite
courtesy of the transport operators’ employees, and their ability to convey trust
15 Station staff have in-depth knowledge to solve issues of the passenger
16 Driver drive safely and follow traffic rules
Personnel prevent the boarding of passengers that cause
17
disturbance (drunk passenger, or vendor with their products, etc)
Tangibility
the physical appearance of the vehicles, staff and other infrastructured
18 Staff appear neat and smart
19 Buses are spacious, safe and comfortable
20 Buses are clean
21 BRTS stations are clean
Empathy

Aware about different passes available (instant pass, personalized pass, student
22
pass, blind pass, handicapped pass, senior citizen pass, monthly ridership)
23 Bus service information is readily available and accessible
24 Staff are always on hand to serve passengers
25 Bus frequencies are designed optimally, no additional schedule required
26 Bus routes are designed optimally, no additional bus stops needed
mention the location below
Responsiveness
the promptness with which services are provided
27 Staff provide individualised attention to passengers
28 Service availability and changes are communicated in advance
29 Services are timely and efficient
30 increase in service frequency in festive seasons
Suggestion

I would appreciate if you could give me any advice or improvement or

31
issues regarding the Bus Rapid Transit System of Ahmedabad
32 Would you like to shift to BRTS, if improvements are made?
Faculty

Dr. Mercy Samuel Himadri Panchal

Associate Professor Teaching Assistant
Faculty of Management Faculty of Management
CEPT University CEPT University

Student

Kratika Narain Soham Munshi Shivangi

PG180442 PG1801021 PG180949

Trisha Swarup Shambhavi Kumari Shravan Engineer

PG181132 PG180925 PG180691

Priyanka Agarwal Mithika Mathew Monika Gupta

PG180545 PG180547 PG180550