Transit Quality of Service Applications Comprehensive Planning November 2, 2007 Florida Department of Transportation Public Transit Office

Transportation Element …adopted level of service standards for roads and transit 9J (3) (h) Transit Capacity and Quality of Service Manual

What is Transit Quality of Service? Evaluation from passenger’s point of view Intended to supplement traditional “business” measures Two primary aspects of quality of service –Availability –Comfort and convenience

Fixed-Route QOS Framework Transit StopRoute SegmentSystem AvailabilityFrequencyHours of ServiceService Coverage Comfort & Convenience Passenger LoadReliability Transit-Auto Travel Time

Service Frequency Nobody likes to wait

Service Frequency QOS Headway (min) Veh/hComments A<10>6Passengers don’t need schedules B Frequent service, passengers consult schedules C Maximum desirable time to wait if bus/train missed D21-302Service unattractive to choice riders E31-601Service available during the hour F>60<1Service unattractive to all riders

Service Frequency Measure of transit accessibility & convenience –Ease of making spur-of-the moment trips –Wait time when the schedule isn’t known or a bus is missed –Attractiveness to choice riders Can be measured: –By street –By activity center pair Can be described as % of people with access to service at a particular QOS level

Example Frequency QOS Map

Hours of Service Many people want to stay out late

Hours of Service QOSHours of ServiceComments A19-24Night or “owl” service provided B17-18Late evening service provided C14-16Early evening service provided D12-13Daytime service provided E4-11 Peak hour service only or limited midday service F0-3Very limited or no service

Hours of Service Hours of service describes how people can use transit service to make different types of trips –Peak-period commute trips only? –Midday-trips only? –Ability to stay late before returning home –Ability to access jobs with non-traditional start/end times Can be described for: –Locations –Between activity center pairs

Example Hours of Service QOS Map

Service Coverage Everybody wants to go everywhere

Service Coverage QOS% TSA CoveredComments A %Most major origins & destination served B % C %About ¾ of higher-density areas served D % E % F<50.0% Less than half of higher-density areas served TSA/Transit Supportive Area is the portion of the area being analyzed that has a household density of at least 3 units per gross acre or an employment density of at least 4 jobs per gross acre

Service Coverage Transit-supportive area concept can be used to compare land use alternatives –Is density in corridors or scattered nodes? –How many people/jobs are in areas that are reasonably economical to serve with fixed- route transit? –FTIS can be used for existing conditions –Easy to identify potential service gaps

Example Future Service Coverage Map

Passenger Load Everybody wants a seat

Passenger Load QOSLoad FactorComments A No passenger need sit next to another B Passenger can choose where to sit C All passengers can sit D *Comfortable standee load for design E *Maximum schedule load F>1.50*Crush load

Passenger Loads Identify potential capacity deficiencies –Identify areas of strong demand that might respond to service improvements –APC data becoming more widely available –NTD passenger-mile reporting sheets are also a potential data source

Example Bus Passenger Load QOS Map

Reliability Nobody likes to be late

Reliability QOSOn-Time PercentageComments A %1 late transit vehicle every 2 weeks B %1 late transit vehicle every week C %3 late transit vehicles every 2 weeks D %2 late transit vehicles every week E %More than 2 late transit vehicles every week F<75.0%1 late transit vehicle at least daily

Reliability QOS explains reliability in easy to understand terms –On-time performance AVL system make reliability data relatively easy to collect Look at reliability at multiple points along route to pinpoint problem locations/identify causes

Example of Reliability QOS Identify routes with reliability issues –Use targeted analysis to determine cause RouteOn-Time Performance QOSAdditional Analysis? 186%CNo 279%EYes 383%DNo 494%BNo 557%FYes 668%FYes

Transit Auto Travel Time Everybody wants to get there fast

Transit to Auto Travel Time QOSTravel Time Difference (min) Comments A 0 Faster by transit than by car B 1-15 About as fast by transit as by car C Tolerable for choice riders D Round-trip at least an hour longer by transit E Tedious for all riders; may be best possible in small cities F >60 Unacceptable to most riders

Transit-Auto Travel Time Compare door-to-door travel times between: –Activity center pairs Overview of transit’s competitiveness for different trip purposes within the region Less effort required and easier to map –Traffic analysis zones Detailed comparison of competitiveness for all trips covered by the regional model Easy to describe results as “x % of trips are QOS A”,etc.

Example Transit-Auto Travel Time QOS Table

Key Points Develop transit QOS standards to guide transit policy Describe % of people experiencing different levels of service to demonstrate benefits Identify service deficiencies Strategize solution Capital Improvements Element Transit proportionate share

Transportation Element …adopted level of service standards for roads and transit 9J (3) (h) Transit Capacity and Quality of Service Manual