Abstract
This paper examined vehicle dispatching functions of a demand responsive transportation system for the handicapped and elderly persons. The paper also proposed a method to optimize vehicle routing. The method yields the optimum travel sequence to minimize empty vehicle travel and idle time, since the unproductive vehicle time is minimized, the derived fleet size is also minimal; thus it is useful not only for schedule preparation, but alsofor fleet size and driver size evaluation. The procedure is relatively simple to use and is easily computerized. The implementation of the proposedmethod would bring about energy and operating cost savings in the short-run, and the capital cost saving in the long run.