CHIC Graphic and CHIC Services: RATP-Developed Software Packages for Time-Scheduled Design

Abstract

For decades now, RATP managers have applied strict rules and methods in the design of surface transit network route schedules so as to adapt each service to customer requirements, taking traffic conditions into account, which are especially problematic in the Paris region. At this point, it is useful to briefly recall the organization and the methods which have been taken into account in the running of the CHIC project.

The RATP is the leading public transport authority in the Paris urban region and it handles more than 2 billion trips per annum, of which 770,000 are handled by the coach network which operates more than 4,000 buses on more than 200 regular routes. For each route, service planning and scheduling are centralized several times per year to take customer requirements and operating condition variations into account. To design this software, the RA TP developed CHIC GRAPHIC and CHIC SERVICES softwares. These softwares are a global infrastructure assistance for design and analysis of route graphs, printing operating documents, run-cutting process building and printout of service timetables, as well as the production of data processing files for applications in progress.