Demand for bus and Rail Analyzing a corridor with a similar Level Of Service 5 th Israeli-British/Irish Workshop in Regional Science April, 2007

The Question Does the higher demand for Rail transit compares to Bus transit is a result of differences in Level Of Service variables or of the Passenger attitude toward the transit technology? The problem Lack of transit corridors where both transit modes are operated in a similar level of service.

Presentation Outline Description of the selected corridor Description of transit Level Of Sercive in the selected corridor Transit mode split in the selected corridor Passengers survey conducted in the selected corridor Survey results and conclusions

The corridor – Haifa – Tel Aviv Tel Aviv metropolitan area : North section Maximum distance between modes is less than 2 km

The corridor – Stations and route Similar service areas for both transit modes Rail: Serves exclusively the Binyamina area Bus: A broader alighting service in Tel Aviv

Level of service – Survey Limitations Congestion at sections of Bus route between 7-9 am Straight rail service was not taken into account

Daily Departures T ravel Cost (in INS) Similar travel cost Similar number of departures, rail frequency is a bit higher in Rush hours Level of service – Cost and Headway

Travel time comparison* *Rail – Taken from timetable *Bus – Time taken on vehicle In vehicle travel time difference is no more than12 min Level of service – In vehicle travel time

BusRail Privacy advantage Wider seats and tables Level of service – Comfort

Mode split – Rail and Bus Source: Israel railways counts at Hof Hakarmel st., Survey counts on Buses

The survey – Rationality Comparison between travel habits in two transit modes which supply similar level of service

Conducted at the intermodal station in Hof Hakarmel between 9-15  Bus: At the waiting area  Rail: At the platform Questionnaires were given for all waiting passengers (ap. 5 min needed to fill up the questionnaire) Passengers that arrive in the last minutes are not included in the survey Total collected:  Rail: 101 questionnaires  Bus: 107 questionnaires The survey – Data collecting

3 parts: 1.Trip charasteristics (13 questions) 2. Passenger characteristics (12 questions) 3. Passengers Attitude (5 questions) The survey – The questionnaire

Results – Passenger characteristics Number of vehicles per Household Income Rail passengers belong to a higher socioeconomic group compare to bus passengers

Access mode Availability of private car Results – Travel characteristics Private car is a dominant mode as an access mode for rail Availability of private car is greater for rail passengers

Results – Total travel time compares to the another mode Large share of rail passengers doesn’t save time when using rail mode Bus passengersRail passengers

Results – Rail used where bus should have been preferred Herzeliya industry areaNeve tzedek 500 m 1000 m 2500 m 500 m Large share of rail passengers (42%) doesn’t save time when using rail mode

Results – Passengers attitude Reason for choosing the mode Satisfaction by mode Comfort and time cost are the main reasons for using rail mode Large share of bus free riders

Conclusions Mismatch in the level of service and mode choice Rail attracts higher income passengers Large share of rail passengers don’t save time by using rail service Comfort is the main reason for preferring the rail

Future research The validity of the assumption that rail level of service embedded in bus will attract the same number of passengers is questionable The effect of subjective (psychological) factors on the feeling of comfort on bus vs. rail should be investigated