Characterizing Bus Transit Passenger Wait Times

1999Final ReportPDFTech ReportSWUTC-99-167211-110727Bus transitPassengersBus terminalsBusesPublic transitWaiting timeTravel timeBus linesBuses(Vehicles)Data collectionMathematical modelsPassenger transportationPassengersPublic transportationRapid transit systemsSchedulingSystem analysisTables(Data)TransferringTransportation managementWaiting timeUnited StatesTexasUniversity of Texas at Austin. Center for Transportation ResearchSalek, Mir-DavoodMachemehl, Randy B.Southwest Region University Transportation Center (U.S.)University of Texas at Austin. Center for Transportation ResearchUniversity Transportation Centers Program (U.S.)US Transportation CollectionMathematical models are developed to predict bus passenger waiting time components. A statistically significant quantity of waiting time data, including related passenger attributes, transits system characteristics and bus frequency, were collected by direct observation and video taping. The experimental data were collected in a six-month period at several bus transfer centers and bus stations in the city of Austin, Texas. Measured wait time was decomposed into two components: "wait time before scheduled departure time" and "wait time after scheduled departure time." The effects of bus frequency and reliability, as well as other potential predictors on wait time components, were examined by performing Analysis of Variance and Regression. Traditional and conceptual waiting time models were evaluated using this data set and compared to the new developed models.79