This report considers the way in which the various components of the 'generalised cost' of making a public transport journey, i.e. the walk time, the waiting time, the riding time and the fare, may be traded off against each other in order to provide a service which minimises the total 'costs' of travelling. For example, for a given number of buses, waiting time can be reduced at the expense of longer walks by concentrating buses onto fewer routes; walking can be reduced at the expense of longer rides by more devious routing and by having more frequent stops and both waiting and walking can be reduced at the expense of higher fares. The report reviews modelling approaches which have been used to examine these trade-off situations. The amount of public transport use depends on the characteristics of the area which it serves as well as on the particular qualities of the service provided and a modelling approach is described which looks at the likely effects on bus use of changes in population and residential density.(a) this paper was presented to the 'urban planning and public transport' conference at the university of Nottingham, 22-23 March 1979.
Abstract