Bus stop spacing statistics: Theory and evidence
Discussions of bus stop consolidation sometimes refer to average stop spacings, but there are no reliable statistics about spacings, nor methodologies for calculating them. This paper aims to clarify discussions of bus stop spacings by introducing clear definitions, a methodology for creating statis...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Elsevier
2024-01-01
|
| Series: | Journal of Public Transportation |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1077291X24000031 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1850249693848666112 |
|---|---|
| author | Saipraneeth Devunuri Lewis J. Lehe Shirin Qiam Ayush Pandey Dana Monzer |
| author_facet | Saipraneeth Devunuri Lewis J. Lehe Shirin Qiam Ayush Pandey Dana Monzer |
| author_sort | Saipraneeth Devunuri |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Discussions of bus stop consolidation sometimes refer to average stop spacings, but there are no reliable statistics about spacings, nor methodologies for calculating them. This paper aims to clarify discussions of bus stop spacings by introducing clear definitions, a methodology for creating statistics from General Transit Feed Specification (GTFS) files, and a python package, gtfs-segments, which splits bus networks into isolated ‘segments.’ With the package, we calculate national-level statistics from 539 US transit providers and 83 Canadian providers, as well as agency-level statistics for 30 providers in the US, 10 in Canada, and a sample of 38 providers from other countries. Our estimates of US and Canadian mean spacings are both around 350 m (slightly wider than five stops per mile). US spacings are wider than sometimes claimed but narrower than those in other countries. Finally, the paper gives examples of metrics created by combining GTFS with data from other sources and proposes research ideas and applications to transit planning involving fine-grained stop spacing data. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-eb65bec9537f4ddf8aaf2faff07539df |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2375-0901 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-01-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Public Transportation |
| spelling | doaj-art-eb65bec9537f4ddf8aaf2faff07539df2025-08-20T01:58:27ZengElsevierJournal of Public Transportation2375-09012024-01-012610008310.1016/j.jpubtr.2024.100083Bus stop spacing statistics: Theory and evidenceSaipraneeth Devunuri0Lewis J. Lehe1Shirin Qiam2Ayush Pandey3Dana Monzer4Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, United StatesDepartment of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, United States; Corresponding author.Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, United StatesDepartment of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, United StatesNorthwestern University Transportation Center, United StatesDiscussions of bus stop consolidation sometimes refer to average stop spacings, but there are no reliable statistics about spacings, nor methodologies for calculating them. This paper aims to clarify discussions of bus stop spacings by introducing clear definitions, a methodology for creating statistics from General Transit Feed Specification (GTFS) files, and a python package, gtfs-segments, which splits bus networks into isolated ‘segments.’ With the package, we calculate national-level statistics from 539 US transit providers and 83 Canadian providers, as well as agency-level statistics for 30 providers in the US, 10 in Canada, and a sample of 38 providers from other countries. Our estimates of US and Canadian mean spacings are both around 350 m (slightly wider than five stops per mile). US spacings are wider than sometimes claimed but narrower than those in other countries. Finally, the paper gives examples of metrics created by combining GTFS with data from other sources and proposes research ideas and applications to transit planning involving fine-grained stop spacing data.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1077291X24000031Public TransitStop SpacingsGTFSBus stopTransit Planning |
| spellingShingle | Saipraneeth Devunuri Lewis J. Lehe Shirin Qiam Ayush Pandey Dana Monzer Bus stop spacing statistics: Theory and evidence Journal of Public Transportation Public Transit Stop Spacings GTFS Bus stop Transit Planning |
| title | Bus stop spacing statistics: Theory and evidence |
| title_full | Bus stop spacing statistics: Theory and evidence |
| title_fullStr | Bus stop spacing statistics: Theory and evidence |
| title_full_unstemmed | Bus stop spacing statistics: Theory and evidence |
| title_short | Bus stop spacing statistics: Theory and evidence |
| title_sort | bus stop spacing statistics theory and evidence |
| topic | Public Transit Stop Spacings GTFS Bus stop Transit Planning |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1077291X24000031 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT saipraneethdevunuri busstopspacingstatisticstheoryandevidence AT lewisjlehe busstopspacingstatisticstheoryandevidence AT shirinqiam busstopspacingstatisticstheoryandevidence AT ayushpandey busstopspacingstatisticstheoryandevidence AT danamonzer busstopspacingstatisticstheoryandevidence |