Analysis of the Parameters of Transfers in Rapid Transit Network Design

The rapid transit network design problem consists of the location of train alignments and stations in an urban traffic context. The originality of our study is to incorporate into the location model the decisions about the transportation mode and the route, to be chosen for urban trips. This paper proposes a new design model which includes transfers between train lines. The objective of the model is to maximize the number of expected users in the transit network taking limited budgets into consideration, in addition to location and allocation constraints. Furthermore, the transfer costs are considered in the generalized public costs when the users change lines. Waiting time to take the metro and walking time to transfer is included in the formulation of the costs. The analysis of transfer parameters is carried out using a test network. Some computational experience is included in the paper.