The demand on transportation infrastructure is dramatically increasing due to population growth causing the transportation systems to be pushed to their limits. With the projected population growth, not only for the U.S. but especially for the higher education field, university campuses are of great importance for transportation engineers. Urban univeristy campuses are considered major trip generators and with the population forecast many challenges are bound to arise. The implementation of an improved transit system provides a lower-cost solution to the continuously increasing congestion problems in university campus road networks and surrounding areas. This paper presents a methodology focused on the development of a hybrid system concentrated in three main aspects of transit functionality : access to bus stop location, reasonable travel time and low cost. Two methods for bus stop locations assessment are presented for two levels of analysis : microscopic and mesoscopic. The resulting travel time from the improved bus stop locations is analyzed and compared to the initial conditions by using a microsimulation platform. The development of a mathematical model targets the overall system's cost minimization, including user and operator cost, while maximizing the service coverage. The results demonstrate the benefits of the bus stop assessment by the two applied methods, as well as, the benefits of the route and headway selection based on the mathematical model. Moreover, the results indicate that the generation of routes using travel time as the impedance factor generates the optimal possible routes to obtain the minimum system's overall cost. / by Alicia Benazir Portal Palomo. / Thesis (M.S.C.S.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2012. / Includes bibliography. / Electronic reproduction. Boca Raton, Fla., 2012. Mode of access: World Wide Web.

Catastrophic events in the past revealed the need for more research in the field of emergency evacuation. During such a procedure, different problems such as congestion at the related traffic networks because of the large number of the evacuating vehicles can occur. Current best practices, in order to deal with such problems, suggest the further involvement of buses in evacuation operations. On the first part of this study after the accurate development of the related simulation model, the optimization of a selected bus system characteristics focusing on the vehicle routing parameter will follow through the development and the application of a non-linear cost minimization problem. On the second part, the potential use of the regular-everyday bus routes in a no-notice emergency evacuation in order to save time comparing to the time needed so as to assign the actual evacuation routes to the evacuation bus vehicles will be analyzed. / by Ioannis Psarros. / Thesis (M.S.C.S.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2012. / Includes bibliography. / Electronic reproduction. Boca Raton, Fla., 2012. Mode of access: World Wide Web.

Thesis (M.C.P.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Urban Studies and Planning, 1981. / MICROFICHE COPY AVAILABLE IN ARCHIVES AND ROTCH. / Includes bibliographical references. / by Barry Clement Cosgrove. / M.C.P.

Thesis. 1978. M.S.--Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Alfred P. Sloan School of Management. / MICROFICHE COPY AVAILABLE IN ARCHIVES AND DEWEY. / Bibliography: leaves 148-149. / M.S.

Thesis (M.S.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, 1980. / MICROFICHE COPY AVAILABLE IN ARCHIVES AND ENGINEERING. / Bibliography: leaves 157-162. / by Bizhan Azad. / M.S.

In practice, the design of bus routes and stop placement involves calculated trade-offs between service frequency, quality, and access. Increased stop density improves access but contributes to slow operating speeds and increased operating costs. In this thesis, a optimized bus stop spacing model is applied using the high resolution archived stop-level bus performance data from the Bus Dispatch System (BDS) provided by TriMet, the regional transit provider for the Portland metropolitan area. Two cost components are considered in the stop spacing model including passenger access cost and in-vehicle passenger stopping cost, and are combined and optimized to minimize total cost. A case-study is presented using one year's stop-level data from one bus route 19 in Portland, Oregon. The analysis considered both inbound and outbound stop spacing and determined the optimal average stop spacing based on an all-day, peak and off-peak time periods. Based on the analysis considering inbound trips over the entire day, the theoretical optimized bus stop spacing was about 1,200 feet, as compared to the current value of 890 feet. This paper also builds on the all day analysis and focuses on inbound and outbound trips during peak periods, resulting in optimized spacing of about 1,300 feet. The peak hour demand has a significant impact on the transit operation. A bus stop consolidation scheme is proposed for the analyzed bus route considering the peak hour transit demand. Finally, the thesis discusses trade-offs and presents an estimate of transit operating cost savings based on the optimized spacing. Given the growing availability of high-resolution archived data, the thesis illustrates that this modeling tool can be applied in a routine way across multiple routes as part of an ongoing service planning and performance measurement process.

This dissertation is a case study of the history of urban transportation policy in Portland, Oregon, between 1872 and 1970. The emphasis is on mass transit policy formulated and implemented by the private and public sectors as response to crises within both the local transit industry and the urban political economy. These crises are placed in the context of the continuing conflict between the industry's right to profit and its obligation to meet the competing demands of its constituencies: ridership's demands for low fares and comprehensive service; labor's demands for competitive wages; downtown businesses' demands for peak-hour service; and the regulatory demands imposed by the city and state. The development of Portland's mass transit policy is presented within the larger context of urban transportation policy and planning in general and is compared with the experiences of other cities throughout the country. This study concludes the primary crises that defined urban transportation policy in Portland can be divided into two types. Those that existed during the period of private ownership arose from the conflicting demands of the various actors in the transportation policy process. There were also those crises that arose just prior to and during the transition to public ownership: in addition to the traditional conflicts that had been present--labor, ridership, the city--there were new elements of conflict between the central city and the growing suburbs. This study also concludes that the decline of transit began in 1919 and that the roots of this decline lie in the structure of the industry, its place in the local political economy, and in its inherently antagonistic relationship with the city. While the use of the automobile, suburbanization, and highway development were all significant factors in accelerating transit's decline, they alone do not explain transit's decline. Finally, this study concludes that in the Portland case, it was a combination of several factors that worked together to facilitate the implementation of public ownership and operation of transit in Portland, including growing concern about the weakening economic strength of the central city and the availability of new sources of implementation funding.

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Cities like New York and Chicago have comprehensive heavy rail networks that provide not only high frequency service, but also reach popular destinations and employment centers. Although many other cities strive for similar transit infrastructure, acquiring the financial backing and/or right-of-way to develop these transit systems can take years. To develop transit systems in a more timely and cost-effective manner, cities are using alternative transportation modes such as light rail, streetcars, bus rapid transit (BRT), and frequent local buses. As cities become more multi-modal, their system maps become more confusing. Historically, systems have provided separate transit maps for each transit mode they provide. However, integration of these new modes requires integration of system maps. Experts in the field of transit mapping have been calling for frequent transit maps, which highlight routes that provide frequent service or reach important destinations, regardless of mode. Some cities have implemented these multi-modal maps successfully, but to date, there is no documented guidance to assist agencies in creating these maps. Using Metropolitan Atlanta Regional Transit Authority (MARTA) in Atlanta as a case study, the research team created multiple maps that include three transit modes throughout the city and tested them through surveys on transit riders and non-riders. Each map adds BRT and local bus routes that meet specific frequency and/or location criteria to the existing rail map. This project examines reactions of transit riders and non-riders to these new multi-modal, schematic maps. Through surveys targeting individuals with different transit ridership habits, this project explores the potential to affect ridership on these alternative modes and enhance system understanding beyond the rail map. The results of these surveys demonstrate the need to simplify system maps, the public desire for frequency mapping, and the potential to increase ridership on alternative modes. These results build on previous work that schematic maps affect rider spatial understanding of the system and route or mode decisions. Including more modes on the map in an efficient and visually pleasing way, results of this project found that both riders and non-riders would take transit more and better understand how all of the modes interact together to form a comprehensive transit network.

Transit-oriented development (TOD) and its effect on property values research has resulted in mixed findings. Some researchers report positive effects on property values while others are negative or inconclusive. Research on cities such as New York City, Boston, Atlanta and San Francisco have focused on the proximity to rail stations and the negative externalities that accompany it by conducting hedonic pricing models. Other studies have focused more specifically on residential or commercial parcels and their property values at different time points of station development. This research focuses on five MARTA stations within Fulton County, Georgia: Ashby Station, Lindbergh Station, Sandy Springs Station, Vine City Station and West End Station. Data was obtained from MARTA and Fulton County that includes parcel and tax assessor information. Buffers zones within one-fourth mile, one-half mile and one- mile were created around the stations and an average appraised property value and average land value was determined. A comparative analysis was conducted to determine the effects proximity to rail has at stations with planned and unplanned development. The research shows that TOD in the Atlanta area has minimal impact on property values. What appears to have more of an impact is the median household income of the neighborhood surrounding the transit station, which of course reflects the value of property afforded.