Three levels of automation of line haul, grade-separated, urban transit systems ("metros") are identified for coparison: driven, attended, and fully automated. Coparisons are made among these levelsin eight areas of service, safety, and dependability for line haul, grade-separated transit applications. Attended and fully automated systems nearly eliminate the human errors of a driven system. They also offer shorter headways, thus increasing capacity and service, allowing smaller facilities, or both. The stopping accuracies of attended and fully automated systems allow the use of platform doors, dramatically improving platform safety. These systems can have other benefits, such as reducing insurance premiums, minimizing operational disruptions, and providing a more pleasant waiting room environment.The ride comfort of the two automated levels can also be improved over that of driven systems. Fully automated transit outperforms bothdriven and attended systems in making schedule modifications, providing off-peak service, and managing failures. It also offers inherent resources for creating a more efficient administration of the system. This paper appears in transportation research record no. 1221, Research in bus and rail transit operations.
Abstract