Bus transit service planning in most urban areas is largely an outgrowth of historic and geographic circumstances. Planning should reflect the specific needs and operating requirements of each urban area. Relevant planning factors include: past operating practices and procedures; the current operating authority and system extent; revenue requirements (i.e., reliance on fares); land-use, population density, ad employment features; street patterns; and the availability of off-street rail transit. These factors, singly and in combination, influence the pattern of bus services and the opportunities for change and expansion. The best possible service should be provided to the greatest number of people within the governing economic constraints. Planning must balance the amount and type of services provided with the net costs of providing the service. This trade-off underlies all service planning decisions. Bus services should be carefully related to existing and potential markets and concentrated in heavy travel corridors with the greatest service frequency and route coverage in the approaches to the city center. Route structure should be clear and understandable, and service duplication should be avoided. Changes in transit service must be coordinated with planning and traffic agencies to expedite bus flow and to assure that streets in nearby developing suburban areas are able to accommodate buses. These changes in service should minimize disruption of existing riding patterns. The greatest opportunities for major modifications to services or routes accompany (a) expansion of transit services from urban and regional carriers into integrated systems and (b) provision of new service to growing suburban areas. However, the alteration in service patterns usually represent small-scale, fine-grained adjustments. Such adjustments reflect changes in actual ridership due to population growth or decline; provision of service to new employment centers, schools, or residential areas; ability to operate on new streets or expressways; and "restructured" or reduced service to bring costs and revenues in better balance. In almost every case, the amount of financial support beyond fare-box revenues influences the amount and type of sevice. (Author)
Samenvatting