A preliminary assessment on the design of driverless demand-responsive transit regional systems: point-to-point vs. hub-and-spoke

Abstract

Driverless vehicles have been attracting the attention of many researchers due to their potential positive impacts on current travel patterns and transport sustainability. In a regional context, driverless demand-responsive transit (DRT) systems are expected to benefit both passengers and operators, currently affected by low service levels and cost inefficiencies. Low-cost DRT systems may enable lower fares and consequently attract more users. The use of a hub-and-spoke (H&S) DRT solution can be viewed as a cheaper alternative to point-to-point (without the use of hubs) services, though there is an absence of literature contributions comparing DRT systems with these two designs. In this paper, we perform a preliminary assessment on how a H&S design can impact the performance of a driverless DRT regional system, considering the perspectives of the system’s operator and of its passengers. For this purpose, we rely on a methodological approach through which a H&S design based on a hub location model is compared to a point-to-point design. The approach is applied to analyze system operations in a region in central Portugal. The results indicate that a H&S design can increase the profits involved in the operation of the system, especially when compared to a point-to-point system without ride-pooling. However, profit increases come with a cost for passengers in terms of travel times and distances.