Materials developed by K. Watkins, J. LaMondia and C. Brakewood Network Design Unit 4: Service Planning & Network Design

Materials developed by K. Watkins, J. LaMondia and C. Brakewood Outline Stages of Service Planning Network Design – Overview – Types of Lines – Network Types

Materials developed by K. Watkins, J. LaMondia and C. Brakewood STAGES OF SERVICE PLANNING

Materials developed by K. Watkins, J. LaMondia and C. Brakewood Service Planning Steps Crew scheduling Vehicle scheduling Timetabling Frequency determination Route design and stop layout Network design

Materials developed by K. Watkins, J. LaMondia and C. Brakewood Service Planning Steps Frequency determination Timetabling Vehicle scheduling Crew scheduling Route design and stop layout Network design

Materials developed by K. Watkins, J. LaMondia and C. Brakewood NETWORK DESIGN OVERVIEW

Materials developed by K. Watkins, J. LaMondia and C. Brakewood Network Design Decisions Rare to approach from scratch – Existing route patterns & infrastructure dictate – New services complement existing services New major investment (rail line, etc) – Significant restructuring

Materials developed by K. Watkins, J. LaMondia and C. Brakewood Network Design Decisions Geographic coverage Temporal coverage Connectivity (direct vs. indirect service) Experiment with network structures and routes – Travel demand models – Link major activity centers

Materials developed by K. Watkins, J. LaMondia and C. Brakewood Network Design Objectives Maximum transportation work Maximum operating efficiency Create positive impacts Passenger Attraction Network Operating Efficiency Network-City Interactions

Materials developed by K. Watkins, J. LaMondia and C. Brakewood TYPES OF TRANSIT LINES

Materials developed by K. Watkins, J. LaMondia and C. Brakewood Types of Transit Lines Radial Diametrical Tangential Circumferential Trunk with branches Trunk with feeder Loops on lines

Materials developed by K. Watkins, J. LaMondia and C. Brakewood Radial One terminus in city center and another outside Sharp peaking Can be used with branching

Materials developed by K. Watkins, J. LaMondia and C. Brakewood Diametrical (through) Connect suburbs on both sides through the city center Inbound delays propagate

Materials developed by K. Watkins, J. LaMondia and C. Brakewood Tangential (crosstown) Run tangent to city Common with grid patterns Lower & less peaked demand

Materials developed by K. Watkins, J. LaMondia and C. Brakewood Circumferential Ring around city Suburb-to-suburb connections without trip into city More connections No terminal time Moscow

Materials developed by K. Watkins, J. LaMondia and C. Brakewood Trunk lines Trunk with branches Trunk with feeders

Materials developed by K. Watkins, J. LaMondia and C. Brakewood Trunk lines Trunk with branches + Continuous service with no transfers + No transfer stations + Less terminal time Trunk with feeders + Each line optimized + Higher performance mode on trunk + More reliable + Feeder to feeder transfers

Materials developed by K. Watkins, J. LaMondia and C. Brakewood Frequencies One key to quality of service What do branches mean for frequency?

Materials developed by K. Watkins, J. LaMondia and C. Brakewood Frequencies One key to quality of service What do branches mean for frequency? One of three things: 1.Branches have less frequent service 2.One branch connects into another 3.Vehicle separates onto both (rare)

Materials developed by K. Watkins, J. LaMondia and C. Brakewood Loops on Lines Closed circle Usually one-way operation Distribution in CBD Chicago

Materials developed by K. Watkins, J. LaMondia and C. Brakewood Directness Most examples so far were rail Bus routes often deviate to serve lower densities I, U, S, O Direct Circuitous Deviating

Materials developed by K. Watkins, J. LaMondia and C. Brakewood In-class Exercise

Materials developed by K. Watkins, J. LaMondia and C. Brakewood TRANSIT NETWORK TYPES

Materials developed by K. Watkins, J. LaMondia and C. Brakewood Transit Network Types Radial networks Radial / circumferential networks Rectangular or grid networks Ubiquitous networks

Materials developed by K. Watkins, J. LaMondia and C. Brakewood Radial Networks + Maximize ridership along major travel direction + Limited transfers − Extreme concentration in CBD − Unattractive for crosstowns − Less coverage area METRA in Chicago

Materials developed by K. Watkins, J. LaMondia and C. Brakewood Radial / Circumferential Networks Radial with a ring or tangent Greater diversity of origin / destination Greater coverage Koln, Germany

Materials developed by K. Watkins, J. LaMondia and C. Brakewood Grid Networks Large area with uniform density Coverage Substantial transfers

Materials developed by K. Watkins, J. LaMondia and C. Brakewood Joy of Grids Ability to travel from anywhere to anywhere Mathematically, the most efficient manner is a grid Why? RectangularSpiderweb

Materials developed by K. Watkins, J. LaMondia and C. Brakewood Ubiquitous Networks Coverage over all central area + Radiating out with branches into suburbs = perfect network Most complete ubiquitous network in the world: Paris!! New York is OK too.

Materials developed by K. Watkins, J. LaMondia and C. Brakewood Network Issues Radial lines with branches lead to unused capacity at ends Different lengths / volume branches make irregular trunks Diametrical with different loads Triangular connections hard to schedule

Materials developed by K. Watkins, J. LaMondia and C. Brakewood Conclusion It is rare to approach network design from scratch – Existing route patterns & infrastructure dictate – New services complement existing services Network design determines many factors of service quality

Materials developed by K. Watkins, J. LaMondia and C. Brakewood Reference Materials in this lecture were taken from: Walker, J. (2011). Human transit: How clearer thinking about public transit can enrich our communities and our lives. Island Press. Vukan Vuchic, “Urban Transit Operations, Planning and Economics” (2005) Mark Hickman, Fundamentals of Transportation wikibook, “Network Design & Frequency”, ransportation/Network_Design_and_Frequency ransportation/Network_Design_and_Frequency