Estimating Patronage for Community Transit Services

Federal Transit Administration 50th Anniversaryhttps://doi.org/10.21949/15273151984PDFTech ReportBatchelder, J. H.Forstall, K. W.Wensley, J. A.United States. Urban Mass Transportation Administration. Technical Assistance ProgramUnited States. Federal Highway AdministrationMultisystems, Inc.United States. Urban Mass Transportation AdministrationUnited StatesUrban transitPublic transitRidershipHandbooksCommunity action programsMass transitRidersGrantsAssistanceCommunity participationDOT-I-85-21Final ReportIn many urban areas, travel within and between neighborhoods and suburban areas is not well served by fixed route transit. Community-based transit and paratransit services may provide a promising alternative to conventional public transit in serving local travel in these areas. The establishment of such services typically requires an assessment of financial feasibility, which in turn requires sound estimates of ridership and revenues. This handbook pulls together several existing (and some enhanced) estimation techniques that are applicable in planning community transit services. Several simple techniques are presented for preliminary planning stages or for situations in which exact estimates are not required. More sophisticated techniques also are included for the more detailed estimates required for the later stages of some planning studies. The techniques are illustrated, and case studies are presented that illustrate their combined application in different planning situations.138