Economic and service comparison of conventional bus and automated transit—a case study

Abstract

The paper discusses the findings of an automated guideway transit (AGT)--bus comparative analysis carried out for the city of Trenton, NJ, for 1985. Four transit modes were originally assessed: demand-responsive bus, light rail, scheduled bus and automated guideway transit. Two of these, light rail and demand-responsive bus, were eliminated as relatively ineffective in the area concerned. The other two systems, conventional bus and AGT, were examined in detail as extreme alternatives. Area-wide AGT represents the ultimate in urban mobility while conventional line-haul buses offer easily introduced short-term improvements. The analysis showed that while AGT would offer a high level of mobility to compete with car travel and could enhance future development in Trenton, investment requirements were prohibitive. The analysis of the fixed-route bus system network showed that a significant increase in use could be achieved by increasing frequencies along certain corridors for a relatively modest investment. /TRRL/