On the planning of zone-based electric on-demand minibus

Abstract

An on-demand transportation system can enhance traffic efficiency through its flexible services. In this study, we introduce a planning problem for an on-demand electric minibus service within urban areas. We are considering a zone-based operation, meaning that the on-demand minibus is restricted to picking up or dropping off passengers within a single zone for each trip, and the minibus does not stop in other zones. For this zonal electric minibus system, we plan the service level for each zone, the construction of dedicated charging piles in each zone, and the optimal size of the bus fleet. To model the planning problem, we propose a mixed-integer nonlinear second-order cone program. Additionally, we introduce an adaptive discretization algorithm to expedite the problem-solving process. Our numerical tests illustrate the planning for the on-demand minibus system in Manhattan. Furthermore, these tests underscore the benefits of the proposed on-demand minibus system. The most important findings of this study are: (i) the proposed mode replaces more trips with cars, thus reducing the traffic flow and alleviating traffic congestion; (ii) the service zone division, the setting of the fare, and the number of seats in minibus play an essential role in the revenue of the on-demand minibus system; (iii) considering endogenous zone selecting, number of dedicated charging piles, and mode choice in each zone is essential to the planning of the on-demand minibus system.