Empirical Analysis of the Effects of Bus Stop Consolidation on Passenger Activity and Transit Operations

This paper analyzes changes in passenger passenger activity and operating performance following implementation of a bus stop consolidation project at TriMet, the regional transit provider for the Portland, Oregon metropolitan area. The study makes extensive use of archived bus operations and passenger activity data from TriMet’s automated bus dispatching system. Focusing on one of the first routes where stop consolidation has been implemented, changes in passenger activity and operating performance in route segments where stop consolidation occurred were related to changes in adjacent route segments where stops were not consolidated. The findings indicate that bus stop consolidation had no significant effect on passenger activity, while bus running times improved by nearly six percent. Running time improvements may have been limited by insufficient schedule adjustments. Introduction The location and spacing of bus stops is one of the most important elements of the transit service planning process. Both the budgetary resources of the transit provider and the travel times of passengers are affected by the spacing of stops. The trade-offs involved in deciding on stop spacing may appear to be straightforward (i.e., minimizing the transit provider’s operating costs versus maximizing passengers’ access to service), but the reality is more complex. Consider the following expected consequences of increasing the distance between bus stops on a hypothetical route: 1. Bus running times will decline, reducing operating costs that can, in turn, be translated into additional service for a given operating budget;