Evaluating Urban Buses Performance: a Comparative Analysis of Brazilian Methodologies

Brazilian urban buses are operated by private enterprises under administrative contracts to local transport authorities. Usual contract duration is five-to-seven years, but competitive re-tendering may be avoided through a renewing option to be applied if incumbent presents a good performance. In some cities, however, federal mandate of compulsory tendering begins to be followed. In the two cases, some local authorities have developed methodologies for evaluating operators’ performance. In this paper, we analyse methodologies being used in two Brazilian local bus systems — Recife and Belo Horizonte —, with the objective of verifying their ability to induce competitive behaviours in the operators and their fitness to local authorities’ goals. Conclusions show that examined evaluation methodologies are limited mechanisms concerning the achievement of objectives like competitiveness, improvement of service quality and productive efficiency.