Intermodal Passengers Terminals: Design Standards for Better Level of Service

Abstract

Intermodality is an integral part of the sustainable mobility and its enhancement is of vital importance particularly, in high congested urban areas. The weak links in the overall Intermodal passenger transport chain are considered to be the Intermodal Terminals, as often inadequate planning leads to the reduction of the level of service of the means using the station, thus resulting in partial or total disdain for its users and the shift of the latter to other transport modes, mostly to private vehicles. Instead, an integrated design with emphasis on Intermodal Terminals which acts as the interface between the different modes not only increases the proportion of commuters who use urban public transport but also consolidates the overall public transport system of an urban area. Thus the main objective of this paper is to investigate how the provided level of service of passenger Intermodal facilities affects the commuters’ behavior regarding the modal choice. Towards this objective a categorization of the various terminals is attempted, considering their specific characteristics in terms of the means that they serve as well as the commuters that use them, in order to establish general design rules for each category. In this categorization all urban and suburban Intermodal public transport Terminals as well as Intermodal Terminals between means of public transport and private cars (Park and Ride facilities) were considered. Finally, a case study was executed based on a kind of a Revealed Preference Survey for the Intermodal Terminals of the city of Athens, in order to examine the impact of their operation on the number of interchanges between the various transport modes. The results of this study provide some useful points how a better organization of passenger Intermodal facilities affects the commuters’ behavior.