The reliability of transport systems has been recently recognised as an important issue in transport planning and evaluation. In the United Kingdom, newly-proposed appraisal guidance accounts for the cost of unreliability for public transport users by introducing a lateness cost element. However, the guidance does not penalise early arrival, and is not consistent with the understanding that the primary response of travellers to unreliability involves changing their departure times. This paper demonstrates that it is possible to include a departure time choice loop in the process of estimating the cost of travel. The methodology is illustrated in a simple case study where the extension of a bus lane in the city of York is considered. For the covering abstract see ITRD E137145.
Abstract