Local Transport Authorities Research Articles

A novel modelling approach of integrated taxi and transit mode and route choice using city-scale emerging mobility data

The modelling of mode and route choices of public transport passengers is an essential component of travel demand modelling and transportation planning. Traditionally, choice models are trained using data from revealed and stated preference surveys which are not only cost and time intensive but also suffer from bias due to limitations in sample size. In this article, we present a novel approach utilizing a combination of emerging data sources for non-private modes, namely public transit smart card data, taxi GPS trajectory data, and taxi trips transaction data in order to calibrate an integrated taxi and transit mode and route choice model. We apply our approach for a case study of the taxi and public transport system of Singapore using data sets obtained from the local transport authorities. We solve the first mile and last mile data gaps by overlaying the individual transport nodes against geospatial land use data in order to identify their actual origin and destination points of each journey. To model the behavioural inter-dependencies between the choice of taxi and transit options, we tested a two-level nested logit model and a cross-nested logit model. Along with the commonly included exploratory variables such as in-vehicle travel time, transfer time and number of transfers, our model also incorporates differences in travel cost and separate mode specific constants for peak and off-peak periods. Generic and mode-specific in-vehicle travel time and cost coefficients are tested in the utility functions for the transit and taxi alternatives. Willingness to pay estimates are calculated and compared against similar estimates from Singapore. We also present an application of the model by predicting the mode split between taxi and transit under selected transit and taxi fare change scenarios. Our modelling methodology is highly generalizable and can be applied to other cities with similar data availability.

Mapping the overlapping paratransit route in Medan City using GIS

Paratransit is one of Public Transport in Medan City which operates in mixed traffic without a fixed schedule. This paper describes mapping of paratransit network services condition in Medan, Indonesia. Paratransit travel routes are analysed using a geographic information system that maps public transport routes. Analysis of GIS is used to explore paratransit routes, overlapping paratransit, paratransit services in terms of spatial planning. The results of the analysis can be used by the local transport authorities to improve the existing paratransit route. There is a lot of paratransit route overlapping, especially along Sisingamangaraja Road and Gatot Subroto Road, which is 19 paratransit along approximately 15 km.

Travel Behaviour and Barriers to Active Travel among Adults in Yaoundé, Cameroon

The literature on urban travel behaviour in Africa is sparse, limiting our understanding of how urban transport policies respond to human and planetary needs. We conducted a cross-sectional household telephone survey on 1334 participants, using a 24 h time-use diary, to investigate travel behaviour and barriers to active travel (walking and cycling) in Yaoundé, Cameroon. We found that two-thirds of all participants reported at least one trip; the median (IQR) numbers of trips per capita and per participant with trips were 2 (0–3) and 2 (2–3), respectively. The main trip modes were shared taxi (46%), walking (27%), private cars (11%), and motorcycle taxis (10%), with 25%, 56%, and 45% of all participants reporting the use of active, motorised, and public transport, respectively. The mean (IQR) trip duration was 48 (30–60) min; for participants who reported trips, the daily overall and active travel durations were 121 (60–150) and 28 (0–45) min, respectively. Women were less likely to travel, making fewer and shorter trips when they did. Participants in less wealthy households were more likely to travel. The primary barriers to both walking and cycling were the fear of road traffic injuries and the inconvenience of active travel modes. Therefore, local urban transport authorities need to improve the safety and convenience of active mobility and promote gender equity in transport. Restrictions to movements during the COVID-19 pandemic and the relatively small survey sample might have biased our results; thus, a representative travel survey could improve current estimates. More generally, high-quality research on travel behaviours and their correlates is needed in low-resource settings.

Potential accessibility to the workplace by public transit and its social distribution in Lille, France: A scenario-based equity appraisal

In this paper, we appraise the social equity of urban mobility policy following Levinson and Krizek's (2018) and Zelinski's (1971) principles of “mobility revolution” and “time geography” and building on recommendations from the European Consortium on Transport Equity analysis (TEA COST Action, 2012). From the database of professional trips made within the 85 municipalities of Lille metropole in 2016, we calculate and set the potential accessibility to the workplace by public transport (PT) at the municipal level, as the ‘good to redistribute’. This allows us to identify the municipalities the most lagging behind, based on the household motorisation rate as well as the potential jobs reachable via the PT system. Then, starting from general observations on sociodemographic differences among commuters to access the job market, we aggregate this indicator at the scale of commuter groups – by gender, household structure, educational background, socio-professional category, and immigration status, defining the ‘members of the society’. Lastly, to test our results and in consultation with local transport authorities, we simulate a reduction of the PT commuting times from the least served municipalities of 10% and then 25%. We analyse the effects of our scenarios on the number and value of the accessible jobs gained, per commuter group, as well as considering different subsets of the municipalities (targeting those with low levels of car ownership). Interpreting results in the light of our decision rule, an extension of the Sufficiency approach, we conclude that transport-oriented policy alone is not the panacea to address social equity and that cross-sectoral solutions are needed, particularly when considering impedance factors and car dependent households.

A Multi-Perspective Assessment of the Introduction of E-Scooter Sharing in Germany

Electric scooter sharing (e-scooter sharing) is a new urban micro-mobility service that is expected to shape individual urban mobility. The introduction of e-scooter sharing systems poses challenging questions for cities and transportation planners regarding their effects on their transportation system. This study addresses the question concerning the strategies which are applied for the introduction of e-scooter sharing systems in different operation areas in Germany. An interview study with 21 stakeholders with different backgrounds (local transport authorities, public transport providers, e-scooter sharing operators, municipalities, associations, planning offices and consulting companies, and other mobility providers) was conducted to reflect upon the introduction of e-scooter sharing systems in Germany and stakeholders’ involvement in planning. The qualitative content analysis provides insights into the stakeholders’ assessment of the introduction process and thus contributes to a multi-perspective understanding on the topic. Derived hypotheses and recommendations further contribute to knowledge sharing and learning from experience. The paper concludes with a description of three introduction styles: protective, pro-active, and laissez-faire.

Problems of carsharing integration in urban transport systems of Russian megacities

Background: Transport problems of Russian megacities are mostly consequences of motorization increasing and inefficient transport policy provided by local transport authorities. At the same time, the structure of urban transport markets is changing because of new business models of transport sharing emerging and development. Different models of sharing could be an important part of urban transport systems, but it requires initiative both of transport companies and local transport authorities.
 Aim: to assess the state and determine the prospects for the development of the Russian carsharing market as a whole, as well as its largest segment (the carsharing market in Moscow).
 Methods: methods of statistical analysis, graphical representation of information, summary, methods of analysis of industry markets (concentration index, Herfindahl Hirschman index).
 Results: In this article barriers for the development of transport sharing in Russian cities are identified, and forms of sharing integration in urban transport cities are developed.
 Conclusion: The results obtained can be used by local authorities responsible for public transport services and the development of transport policy in Russian cities, as well as transport organizations engaged in multimodal transportation of passengers in megacities.

Evaluating Performance of Public Transport Networks by Using Public Transport Criteria Matrix Analytic Hierarchy Process Models—Case Study of Stonnington, Bayswater, and Cockburn Public Transport Network

To mitigate car traffic problems, the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) issued a document that provides guidelines for sustainable development and the promotion of public transport. The efficiency of the policies and strategies needs to be evaluated to improve the performance of public transportation networks. To assess the performance of a public transport network, it is first necessary to select evaluation criteria. Based on existing indicators, this research proposes a public transport criteria matrix that includes the basic public transport infrastructure level, public transport service level, economic benefit level, and sustainable development level. A public transport criteria matrix AHP model is established to assess the performance of public transport networks. The established model selects appropriate evaluation criteria based on existing performance standards. It is applied to study the Stonnington, Bayswater, and Cockburn public transport network, representing a series of land use and transport policy backgrounds. The local public transport authorities can apply the established transport criteria matrix AHP model to monitor the performance of a public transport network and provide guidance for its improvement.

Assessing the automotive paint evidence in Singapore via population and discrimination studies

Various studies on differentiation of the automotive paints have been published in support of the evidential value of automotive paint comparisons [1–5], and were based on the automotive populations in the regions outside of Singapore. However, the frequency information of the automotive paint characteristics in the previous studies may not be directly relevant to the situation in Singapore. To obtain the local frequency information of the automotive paint characteristics, a population study based on the automotive distribution in Singapore was necessary to apprehend the variations in the distribution of vehicle makes and colours, the visual and microscopical features, and the chemical compositions of the paint samples. This was facilitated with the data obtained from the local transport authority, the surveys conducted on random vehicle samples on the road, and the analysis of the existing collection of automotive paint samples taken from the laboratory’s vehicle paint database that closely resembles the vehicle population of Singapore.A discrimination study involving comparative analysis of 256 automotive paint samples from six colour groups was performed to evaluate the discriminating power of the laboratory's standard paint examination protocol: visual and microscopical examinations, Fourier Transform Infrared (FT-IR) Spectroscopy and Scanning Electron Microscopy with Energy Dispersive X-ray (SEM/EDX) Spectroscopy. Visual and microscopical comparisons of the physical characteristics in these paint samples yielded 54 indistinguishable pairs. When further subjected to FT-IR analysis, 51 pairs were distinguished in terms of their chemical compositions. The elemental compositions of the remaining three indistinguishable pairs were compared using SEM/EDX, and one pair remained indistinguishable. A combination of these analytical techniques yielded a discriminating power (DP) of 0.99981. The DP in this study is in support of the DP values reported in the published studies [1–5].

Teaching sustainable development through entrepreneurial experiences

Purpose The purpose of this study is to address the challenges of teaching sustainable development to computer engineering students. Part of the problem is that they perceive the topic as irrelevant for their future profession. Design/methodology/approach To address this challenge, we introduced a project element into a course on sustainable development where the students developed applications for sustainable mobility together with the local public transport authority, an academic institution and a multinational telecom company. Findings The findings conclude that the course changes improved the overall student satisfaction while succeeding in anchoring sustainable development in a context which the students can relate to. The collaboration was also perceived as fruitful by the external stakeholders who encouraged the students to stay in touch for their bachelor theses and internships. Research limitations/implications The theoretical implication is a first attempt in integrating sustainable development education with entrepreneurial experiences, whereas the practical implication is a description of how the integration can be realized. Practical implications The contribution is therefore of value for both educational researchers to open novel research opportunities and for teachers to describe new possibilities for sustainable development education. Originality/value The contribution describes how entrepreneurial experiences can be used to motivate engineering students in mandatory courses on sustainable development and ethics. The approach is novel in that the approach has not been described earlier in this context.

Impact of physical distancing due to novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) on daily travel for work during transition to lockdown

The outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in change in both commute and personal travel patterns. Though, in India, lockdown was implemented from 25th March 2020, due to self-awareness and pandemic risk perception, change in commuter behavior was observed from the beginning of March 2020. The period from 15th to 24th March 2020 is considered as the transition phase of COVID-19 outbreak in India (i.e., between no lockdown and lockdown period). This study attempts to use a decision tree approach to investigate the modal preference of 1542 commuters in association with socio-economic and travel characteristics, and safety perceptions with respect to public and private modes during transition to lockdown due to COVID-19 in India. About 41% of commuters stopped traveling during the transition to lockdown phase, 51.3% were using the same mode of transport and 5.3% of commuters shifted from public to private mode. The study findings reported different interactions of factors influencing the decision to use public or private modes of transport for daily commuting during pandemic situations like COVID-19. Interestingly, safety perceptions (associated with personal health) of commuters did not play a significant role in their mode choice behavior during the transition phase. Though people perceived public transportation as unsafe over personal vehicle use, the actual commute patterns did not validate this due to a possible reason that commuters do not have enough alternative modes. Given the uncertainties in the decision making of the commuters regarding their travel behavior due to physical distancing, the insights from this study are important to policymakers and local transport authorities to understand the change in travel patterns.

Transferring sustainable urban mobility policies: An institutional perspective

This study develops an institutional framework for the transfer of the sustainable urban mobility policies from developed to developing institutional settings. Drawing on new institutional economics approach, the study investigates the institutional structure of the urban mobility field with a view to propose a policy transfer framework. The framework is then used in transferring sustainable urban mobility policies from London to Istanbul. On its way to establish a more sustainable urban mobility system, the city of Istanbul, which is the economic capital of Turkey, grapples with many urban mobility problems such as rapid motorization, chronic traffic congestion, air and noise pollution and a fragmented governance structure. London's recent Mayor's Transport Strategy published in March, 2018 which sets out a comprehensive set of policies aiming towards a more sustainable urban mobility is used as a benchmark document for transferring policies to Istanbul. The policy transfer study, commissioned by the local transport authority of Istanbul, is undertaken by a team of experts, consultants and academics which include the author of this study as well. The transfer process is carried out by translating policies into the institutional structure of the policy borrowing city, namely Istanbul. The fragmentation in the policy and governance levels in Istanbul, acting as a major barrier for direct transfer, is addressed by the proposed institutional policy transfer framework. Overall, the study aims to open up new avenues for an institutionally-informed transport policy research. More specifically, the study provides novel conceptual tools for the analysis of the policy transfer studies involving disparate institutional settings.

September 2019 Land Transportation News [Transportation Systems

On 29 June 2018, the Keolis' Norwegian subsidary, Keolis Norge, was awarded a contract by Bybanen AS, the local transport authority, to continue operating the Bergen, Norway, light-rail network (Figure 1). The new contract is for an additional eight years and to also manage the maintenance of the trams. This renewed contract, which is subject to a statutory ten-day standstill period, will be effective from July 2019. Bernard Tabary, chief

The impact of truck access restriction on toll road traffic performance

The freight vehicle access restriction policy in 2011 has had an impact on the performance of the Jakarta Intra Urban Toll way (JIUT) system. Though most of the truck operators are not in favour of this policy, truck restriction has become common strategy to reduce congestion in many cities in the world. The purpose of this study is to analyse the impact of the existence of trucks in the traffic stream on the JIUT system. The analysis will show the impact of access restriction on the toll road performance from a macroscopic point of view, which is represented by the speed - flow - density model. The model will be calibrated by the data of 24-hour observation in a certain segment of JIUT. The model when the trucks are prohibited to use in that condition will be compared to the one when the trucks are allowed to travel. The difference between both models will indicate the impact of the policy. The comparison between both conditions shows a 28.17% better speed performance based on free flow speed and 28.17% higher efficiency at maximum flow rate. This study will benefit the toll operator as well as local transport authority in making decisions on similar policy in order to gain a more optimal advantage of the implementation.

December 2018 Land Transportation News [Transportation Systems

On 29 June 2018, the Keolis' Norwegian subsidary, Keolis Norge, was awarded a contract by Bybanen AS, the local transport authority, to continue operating the Bergen, Norway, light-rail network (Figure 1). The new contract is for an additional eight years and to also manage the maintenance of the trams. This renewed contract, which is subject to a statutory ten-day standstill period, will be effective from July 2019. Bernard Tabary, chief

The role of bus partnerships in Great Britain

Great Britain (outside London) is unusual in Western Europe in leaving the planning of its bus networks to the private sector, albeit from an established historic basis. It took several years following deregulation in 1986, compounded by wholesale changes in the ownership of bus operators, for new, stable, mature relationships to develop between operators and local transport authorities. The building of partnership working, founded on common interests of encouraging greater accessibility by bus, increasing patronage, and modal shift from cars – with their consequent social, economic and environmental benefits – has underpinned some impressive achievements over the last 25 years.We examine the role of partnerships in enabling and sustaining improvements in service quality and supply, and securing additional investment in network resources and facilities. This reflects lengthy direct experience of developing the partnership concept with authorities and operators and working through the variety of challenges. Added to this experience, we draw on 2015 data obtained from across Britain while revising the relevant government guidance. We consider the benefits of and obstacles to partnership, the mechanisms and components of successful partnerships, and the lessons from less successful implementations. Finally, we look at more recent changes in the partnership landscape.

Prospects in Britain in the light of the Bus Services Act 2017

The aim of this paper is not to document a specific research project, but to provide an international audience with an overview of the Bus Services Act 2017 in Britain in the light of the extensive experience of deregulation and privatisation within the British bus and coach industry since the early 1980s. It provides a range of powers, mostly permissive rather than mandatory. The general emphasis of the Act displays marked shift from the previous focus on competition as a major policy aim, to one in which partnerships between operators and local transport authorities are encouraged. Procedures for franchising are simplified, in contrast to those under the 2000 and 2008 Acts, which did not result in any franchising scheme outside London being introduced. The changes relate to a number of themes examined in previous Thredbo conferences, including aspects of competition law, service tendering, data disclosure and network planning. This paper begins by examining the historical background to the Act, then discusses its main provisions. Data requirements for research to monitor the possible effects of its implementation are outlined. It is concluded that the Act has the potential to encourage greater bus use, but the extent of this is highly uncertain.

The role of reporting mechanisms in transport policy implementation by local authorities in England

The UK Transport Act 2000 made a number of reforms, requiring all local transport authorities in England, outside of London, to produce a local transport plan (LTP). A separate annual delivery report was also required to show how the LTP was progressing, however this system of close monitoring was abandoned in 2008. This paper analyses and compares the LTP 2001–2006 and the LTP Delivery Report for three UK cities in order to obtain an insight into the importance of reporting in the implementation of local transport policy. Analysis of why some policies were not implemented successfully is based on the application of a new hybrid theory of policy implementation combining top-down and bottom-up perspectives. Findings reveal that the reporting process in the three case cities misses some key information which limits the ability of local authorities to monitor their policy implementation. Moreover, applying the hybrid theory reveals that even in cases of good reporting, some important elements needed to evaluate the implementation of transport policy are lacking. The paper provides recommendations for effective implementation and better decision making that will aid local authority staff.

Public bus commuter assistance through the named entity recognition of twitter feeds and intelligent route finding

Karachi (Pakistan) has recently been subject to violent incidents targeted primarily at civilians. These incidents are problematic for commuters who use the public bus system and who often fail to reach their work organisations due to consequent bus strikes. This series of events leads to considerable financial losses for the transport industry. This study proposes and implements safe and fast around the road (SAFAR) which is an intelligent transport Android application developed in collaboration with the local transport authority of Karachi. SAFAR provides run-time information to bus commuters regarding recent violent activities farther up from the current location of the commuters on their route. SAFAR employs live Twitter feeds to classify the manner, location, and casualty information of the violence. The authors investigate SAFAR's performance offline with three named entity recognition (NER) approaches, namely, supervised, dictionary-based, and integrated (hybrid), and show that the integrated approach has the best performance with a precision of 85%. Furthermore, SAFAR recommends alternate routes to commuters if violence is detected farther up through the A-star (A*) algorithm. An online evaluation of SAFAR with 50 real users gave a precision of ∼85% to identify violence locations. Finally, a subjective evaluation showed that SAFAR's performance is satisfactory.

Airport Security Versus Patient Security: The “Sickurity” Problem

The massive restrain security measurements at the airports very much impress the health status of the healthy and sick passengers alike. The security check is undisputedly a harassment – the confiscation of fluids, the limited movement on the airplane results in a stressful situation and put a harmful effect on healthy traveler and an even more harmful one on the sick. This kind of problem could be called “sickurity” problem. The aim of this article is to estimate the effects of safety measurements on the patients during their medical repatriation by commercial flight. Due to the high level of anti-terrorism measurements, the medical repatriation of a sick traveler has become more difficult than ever. The main issues of the problem are the following: entering with a patient on a stretcher into the security restricted area; taking the medical equipment, tools and drugs of the escorting professionals on the plane; ensuring appropriate oxygenisation in the safety zone, etc. While the safety measurements and restrictions could interfere with the patient’s treatment before and during the fly, the same is true for the medical escort, who need to treat and care the patient before and during the trip. Unfortunately, majority of airports are not prepared to solve this problem. Moreover, the security rules are vary by countries. Eventually the patient security and airport security are not mutually exclusive ideas. The traveller – both healthy and sick – has a right for appropriate care and treatment even at the airport. Therefore uniformised, satisfactory regulations are badly needed in order to remedy this urgent problem – a protocol, which meet the security and the health-care requirements both alike. Hopefully the authorities (IATA, ASMA, local transport authorities) whom may concerned in the topic will realise and soon create a solution to the “sickurity” problem.

Probabilistic Fuzzy Logic Signal and Ramp Metering at a Diamond Interchange

In this paper, a probabilistic fuzzy logic control is developed for the signalized control of a diamond interchange to improve the traffic flow on the surface streets and highways. The signal phasing, green-time extension, and ramp metering are decided in response to real-time traffic conditions. The probabilistic fuzzy logic for diamond interchange (PFLDI) includes the following three modules: probabilistic fuzzy phase timing that controls the green-time extension process of the current running phase, phase-selection logic that decides the next phase based on the presetup phase logic by the local transport authority, and probabilistic fuzzy ramp metering that determines the on-ramp-metering rate based on the traffic conditions of the arterial streets and highways. The advanced interactive microscopic simulator for urban and nonurban network software was used to model the diamond interchange and measure the effectiveness of the proposed PFLDI algorithm. The performance of the PFLDI was compared with that of an actuated diamond interchange (ADI) control based on the asservissement linéaire d'entré autoroutière (ALINEA) algorithm and a conventional fuzzy logic control for a diamond interchange (FLDI) algorithm. Simulation results show that the PFLDI lowers system total travel time and average delay, improves the downstream average speed, and lowers the downstream average delay compared with ADI and FLDI.