Intercity Bus Stop Analysis

016797122017PDFTech ReportSURLC 17-003Bus stopsBus transportationDemographicsFederal aidRidershipRural transitOperations and Traffic ManagementPassenger TransportationPublic TransportationUnited StatesMontanaWestern Transportation InstituteClouser, KaralynKack, DavidMontana State University (Bozeman, Mont.). College of EngineeringWestern Transportation InstituteUniversity Transportation Centers Program (U.S.)United States. Dept. of Transportation. Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and TechnologyNTL-OPERATIONS AND TRAFFIC CONTROLS-OPERATIONS AND TRAFFIC CONTROLSUS Transportation CollectionIntercity bus service (ICB) provides valuable public transportation services, primarily to people traveling long distances or those living in rural communities. The Federal Transportation Administration (FTA) defines intercity bus service as, \u201cregularly scheduled bus service for the general public that operates with limited stops over fixed routes connecting two or more urban areas not in close proximity, that has the capacity for transporting baggage carried by passengers, and that makes meaningful connections with scheduled intercity bus service to more distant points, if such service is available\u201d (1). Funding for ICB service stems from FTA\u2019s Section 5311(f) program, which is part of the FTA Section 5311-Formula Grants for Other than Urbanized Areas program. The Section 5311 program provides aid and funding to states to help support public transportation to rural areas with populations less than 50,000. The Section 5311 program supports existing public transportation services and potential expansion of those services to achieve goals such as: access to health care, shopping, education, employment, public services, and recreation; and assisting in the development and support of intercity bus transportation. Title 49 of the United States Code, Section 5311(f), requires, \u201ceach state to expend at least 15 percent of its annual Section 5311 apportionment to carry out a program to develop and support intercity bus transportation, unless the governor certifies that the intercity bus service needs of the state are being met adequately\u201d (1). Intercity bus services play an important role in rural and small urban communities where there is little to no access to public transportation and few options when traveling to nearby urban areas. The goal of this project was to analyze demographics in each of the forty-eight contiguous states, and provide an analysis of the number of rural and small urban communities that have access to the Greyhound intercity bus service network. This network was selected, as it is the nation\u2019s largest intercity bus network, and serves more than 3,800 destinations nationwide and provides service to 18 million passengers per year (2)