Collaborative Optimization Model for the Design and Operation of Feeder Bus Routes Based on Urban Metro

Abstract

The collaborative development of conventional buses and urban metro has become an important research topic for the priority development of urban public transport. The topic of collaborative optimization of feeder bus route design and operation is studied in this study. The objective function is to minimize the total travel time of passengers and the operation cost of feeder buses. The improved particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithm is used to solve the collaborative optimization model, and the effectiveness of the model and algorithm is verified through the case study. The research shows that it is feasible in model construction and algorithm to carry out collaborative optimization of feeder bus route design and operation. Compared with the multiple-to-one (M to 1) mode, the multiple-to-multiple (M to M) mode can better satisfy the needs of passengers from different places of departure and destinations to achieve a more reasonable and realistic goal. The case study is based on two metro stations and 16 feeder bus stops on Fuzhou Metro line 2 to obtain two bus routes and a corresponding operation scheme. Under the same topology road network, the operation time of the improved PSO algorithm is much shorter than the DFS algorithm, the total cost error of the feeder bus is 0.04%, and the departure frequency error is 4.6%, which is within the reasonable error range. Therefore, the collaborative optimization model proposed in this study is feasible and effective in optimizing the feeder bus routes and operation.