Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Determination of the number and locations of time points in transit schedule design — Case of a single run

  • Published:
Annals of Operations Research Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

An analytical model for the determination of the number and locations of time points as well as the amount of slack times in transit schedule design is developed. The model considers a bus route with a special passenger demand pattern in which all boarding passengers coordinate their arrivals at each stop in such a way that they never miss their intended bus, and therefore designing the schedule separately a single run at a time, becomes possible. The model employs the dynamic programming method to deal with the trade-offs among various cost components associated with the schedule quantitatively, and yet is flexible enough to incorporate the existing rules of thumb as well as transit operators' policies. Numerical examples that illustrate the applications of the model are given. The model, although not quite applicable to bus routes with general passenger demand patterns, is useful in the analysis of the contributing factors to the design of an economical, reliable, and operational transit schedule, and is likely to be adaptable for more realistic cases.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. V.F. Hurdle, Minimum cost schedules for a public transportation route (I) theory, (II) examples, Transportation Science 7(1973)109.

    Google Scholar 

  2. S.C. Wirasinghe, Re-examination of Newell's dispatching policy and extensions to a public bus route with many to many time-varying demand, in:Proceedings of the 11th International Symposium on Transportation and Traffic Theory, Tokyo (1990).

  3. C.W. Boyd, Notes on the theoretical dynamics of intermittent public passenger transportation systems, Transportation Research 17A(1983)347.

    Google Scholar 

  4. P.N. Seneviratne, Analysis of on-time performance of bus services using simulation, Journal of Transportation Engineering 116(1990)517.

    Google Scholar 

  5. J.G. Strathman and J.R. Hopper, Empirical analysis of bus transit on-time performance, Transportation Research 27A(1993)93.

    Google Scholar 

  6. L.J.S. Lesley, The role of the timetable in maintaining bus service reliability, in:Proceedings of the Symposium on Operating Public Transport, University of Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, UK (1975) p. 36.

    Google Scholar 

  7. M. Abkowitz and I. Engelstein, Methods for maintaining transit service regularity, Transportation Research Record 961(1984)1.

    Google Scholar 

  8. M. Abkowitz, E. Amir and I. Engelstein, Optimal control of headway variation on transit routes, Journal of Advanced Transportation 20(1986)73.

    Google Scholar 

  9. U. Vandebona and A. Richardson, Effect of checkpoint control strategies in a simulation transit operation, Transportation Research 20A(1986)429.

    Google Scholar 

  10. G.F. Newell, Unstable Brownian motion of a bus trip, in:Statistical Mechanics and Statistical Methods in Theory and Application (Plenum Press, New York, 1977).

    Google Scholar 

  11. S.C. Wirasinghe, Cost based approach to schedule travel time on a public transportation route, in:Proceedings of the 12th International Symposium on the Theory of Traffic Flow and Transportation, ed. C.F. Daganzo, Berkeley, CA (1993) p. 205.

  12. Th.H.J. Muller, Trip time control in public transport: Simulation and experiments, in:Proceedings of the 20th International Scientific Conference on Transport Planning and Traffic Engineering, Budapest (1989).

  13. A.M. Oliver and M.B. Uren, A computer simulation model of the E3 bus route: A detailed description, Technical Note TN42, Department of Operations Research, London Transport Executive (1972).

  14. M.A. Turnquist and L.A. Bowman, The effects of network structure on reliability of transit service, Transportation Research 14B(1980)79.

    Google Scholar 

  15. P. Andersson and G. Scalia-Tomba, A mathematical model of an urban bus route, Transportation Research 15B(1981)249.

    Google Scholar 

  16. S.R. Pells, An approach to the simulation of bus passenger journey times for the journey to work, Transportation Planning and Technology 14(1989)19.

    Google Scholar 

  17. R.P. Guenthner and K. Hamat, Distribution of bus transit on-time performance, Transportation Research Record 1202(1988)1.

    Google Scholar 

  18. M.A. Turnquist, A model for investigating the effects of service frequency and reliability on bus passenger waiting times, Transportation Research Record 663(1978)70.

    Google Scholar 

  19. R.P. Guenthner and K.C. Sinha, Maintenance, schedule reliability, and transit system performance, Transportation Research 17A(1983)355.

    Google Scholar 

  20. S.M. Ross,Introduction to Probability Models (Academic Press, New York, 1973).

    Google Scholar 

  21. J.D. Hunt et al., Using variable demand auto assignment to implement mode split models in Edmonton and Calgary, in:Proceedings of the 8th Annual International EMME/2 Users Conference, Seattle (1993).

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Civil Engineering, University of Calgary, 2500 University Drive NW, T2N 1N4, Calgary, Alberta, Canada

    S. C. Wirasinghe & G. Liu

Authors
  1. S. C. Wirasinghe
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. G. Liu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Wirasinghe, S.C., Liu, G. Determination of the number and locations of time points in transit schedule design — Case of a single run. Ann Oper Res 60, 161–191 (1995). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02031945

Download citation

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02031945

Keywords

Search

Navigation