Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board

Recommendations are presented for developing or redeveloping railway station areas by creating synergy between both identities of a station—as a node in a transport network and as an urban location. Station users want a reliable, safe, fast, easy, comfortable, and pleasant experience in transferring to different transport modes. Besides speed and safety, quality in the sense of comfort and experience are added values. Focusing on the traveler’s appreciation of faster travel leads to three strategies that can add value—(a) acceleration: making individual trips faster and eliminating hassle in transferring to other transport modes; (b) concentration: concentrating origins and destinations near stations and improving the station environment; (c) enhancement: adding facilities that enhance the comfort and experience of transfer points. To create this synergy, a station should be divided into three areas. First, travel-related services should be located at the center of transfer points; acceleration is the key word here. Second, business facilities central to transfer points would make transfer intervals more useful and pleasant; the emphasis is on enhancing comfort and experience. Third, less-travel-related activities and attractions should be concentrated in a particular location, thus reducing travel time and hassle and enhancing the urban environment. Synergy in station development or redevelopment can result if both transportation and real estate factors are considered.

Providing parking for commuter rail passengers can be difficult. Commuter railroads want to accommodate as many riders as possible at their suburban stations, but it is often impossible to provide enough parking to satisfy demand. Railroads would rather not charge a marginal fee for parking because this would likely decrease ridership. Local communities usually oppose large parking structures, and space for additional surface parking is often limited. To alleviate some of the parking demand, a possible strategy is to promote kiss-and-ride, or passenger drop-off. This method of station access requires no parking spaces, yet attracts additional riders. Although commuters accessing stations in this way usually choose to do so because of the particular characteristics of their commute, station and parking lot design might also influence their decision. Commuter rail stations in the New York City metropolitan area were studied to help determine the role of parking lot design and regulation in encouraging or discouraging the use of kiss-and-ride as a station access mode. Stations on the Metro-North Railroad and Long Island Rail Road were examined relative to their access and parking statistics and also by site visits. The demographics of the areas surrounding the stations were also considered. The results show that parking lot design and regulation may have an effect on kiss-and-ride usage. Parking lots with larger, more-accessible drop-off points tended to have greater kiss-and-ride percentages. Lots with illegal-parking problems, particularly prevalent on Long Island, tended to have lower kiss-and-ride percentages because it was often impossible to find a place to drop someone off.

The model predictive control (MPC) framework, a very popular controller design method in the process industry, is extended to transfer coordination in railway systems. In fact, the proposed approach can also be used for other systems with both hard and soft synchronization constraints, such as logistic operations. The main aim of the control is to optimally recover from delays by breaking connections (at a cost). In general, the MPC control design problem for railway systems leads to a nonlinear, nonconvex optimization problem. Computing an optimal MPC strategy using an extended linear complementarity problem is demonstrated. Also presented is an extension with an extra degree of freedom to recover from delays by letting some trains run faster than usual (again at a cost). The resulting extended MPC railway problem can also be solved using an extended linear complementarity problem.

Chicago’s North Side ‘L’ is the city’s most intensively used rail transit corridor. Consisting of the Red Line (Howard), Brown Line (Ravenswood), Purple Line (Evanston), and Yellow Line (Skokie Swift), this complex, interrelated operation shares a set of alignments opened for service between 1900 and 1943. After years of stable ridership, the North Side ‘L’ is now attracting increasing numbers of customers. There are plans for extending platform lengths on the Brown Line to handle passengers more effectively, and other efforts are under way that could further enhance the performance of the North Side ‘L’.

An express subway system is planned for the Seoul, Korea, metropolitan area. Many problems are involved in operating an express subway system, such as installation of siding track and scheduling of passing locations and times for different headways. A skip-stop system can be considered as an alternative to express subway service. With a given origin-destination (O-D) demand matrix, distances between stations, headways, and maximum link speeds, the total time saving of a skip-stop schedule that satisfies safety conditions is predicted. In a field study, the time saving effects based on O-D data for Line 5 in Seoul, Korea, were simulated. From the simulation using C language, the peak-hour waiting time increased by 43.8% to 56.3%, but the travel time decreased by 10.8% to 12.9%, compared with the existing system. Waiting time was only 6.9% to 11.6% of the total system travel time—the total system time decreased by 7.1% to 7.8% and, in the maximum case, up to 9.8%. The skip-stop system can be advantageous to the existing system without constructing additional facilities. When the express line is installed, time saving effects and additional construction costs of the three systems (all-stop system, skip-stop system, and express line with siding track) could be compared.

Serious problems result from the use of both high- and low-level station platforms on U.S. commuter railroads (especially common in the Northeast). These problems include long dwell times and resultant slower service, passenger (and employee) accidents and injuries, difficulties in complying with Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) accessibility requirements, increased train crew size, and problems accommodating freight trains on tracks with high-level platforms. Various partial solutions to these problems have been proposed, and many are being used. However, no solution deals effectively with all of the problems. The benefits of a single, comprehensive solution are identified, including improved service, increased ridership and revenue, meeting ADA accessibility requirements, and reduced costs. To indicate the importance of a solution to these problems, and to encourage thinking about solutions, some order-of-magnitude estimates of these benefits are developed. Finally, one design for dealing simultaneously with all of the problems is presented.

A mode-of-station-access survey at the Milwaukee District North Line Grayland and Mayfair Stations in Chicago is described. The study was conducted to determine the impacts of consolidating these two stations into a single new station. Patterns of different station access modes were studied. The analysis focused on the most sensitive market segment—walkers. Two different methods were used to determine how current walkers would be affected by such a station change. The first estimate was based on changes in walking distances. A heuristic procedure was developed to estimate the number of walkers currently using the system who would possibly walk to the proposed new station. This estimate assumed that stations would attract walkers from a circular area referred to as the catchment area. The average walking distance to each station determined its catchment area size. Further assumptions were made to predict those walkers who were not currently in the catchment areas but who would decide to walk to the new station. This study provides intuitive results and methodology that show promise for use in similar situations.

The results of a real-world study comparing bus rail transit (BRT) with light rail transit (LRT) in the same corridor are highlighted. A major investment study (MIS)–environmental impact study (EIS) process was used, including community perspectives obtained from a significant outreach effort. In effect, this study represents a “plan-off” competition between the two modes, including ridership, cost-effectiveness, environmental impact, and community and political response. In 1994 the Los Angeles County Transportation Commission, predecessor agency to the current Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority, environmentally cleared an Exposition Park Branch Line, which was an LRT branch line to the Los Angeles–Long Beach Blue Line. Because of financial constraints, the project languished until last year, when it was reconsidered through an MIS process for the Mid-City–Westside Transit Corridor Study. The MIS also called for a side-by-side comparison with BRT in the ElS–environmental impact review, which was publicly released on April 13, 2001. The findings to date indicate that LRT is environmentally superior to BRT (especially in relation to noise and traffic impacts) and has more new daily transit riders, whereas BRT is somewhat more cost-effective. From a community standpoint, LRT has generated more positive and negative reactions, perhaps because of the novelty of BRT to the general public in the western United States.

The effects of pedestrian treatments on risky pedestrian behavior at light rail transit grade crossings were examined. Five pedestrian treatments were evaluated—(a) pedestrian automatic gates, (b) a prototype active pedestrian warning device, (c) a prototype active “Look Both Ways” sign, (d) barrier channelization at a skewed crossing, and (e) a “Stop Here” pavement marking. Pedestrian grade-crossing treatments were installed at three grade crossings along the Tri-County Metropolitan Transportation District of Oregon MAX light rail system in Portland, Oregon. The pedestrian treatments and the crossing geometry varied at the three locations, providing for three unique evaluations on the effectiveness of different pedestrian treatments at grade crossings. The grade crossings were videotaped for at least 1 week both before and after the installation of the pedestrian treatments. The data were evaluated using a before-and-after statistical approach to determine the effects of the treatments on risky pedestrian behavior. The statistical evaluation of the data shows that pedestrian treatments result in a statistically significant reduction in risky pedestrian behavior. The greatest reductions were found with pedestrian automatic gates. The results, however, also demonstrate that various pedestrian treatments can sometimes increase risky pedestrian behavior.

The city of Baltimore, Maryland, is now served by one heavy and one light rail line in addition to commuter rail service to Washington, D.C. However, the lines do not share any common stations and do not function as a network. The larger objective of this research was to evaluate ways in which the Baltimore transit system could be better integrated and contribute more to community well-being, environmental quality, and economic prosperity for all socioeconomic and racial and cultural groups. An underlying goal was to improve the mobility of a wider range of Baltimore residents so that their employment choices would not be limited by an underdeveloped transit system. This outcome was addressed in the context of the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991, the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century, the Livable Communities Initiative, and the state of Maryland’s Smart Growth initiative. Only part of the larger agenda is presented here—the development of a community-based model for selecting and designing potential light rail line corridors in the larger system. The model used seven quality-of-life and livable community criteria—(a) potential to serve low-to moderate-income neighborhoods that have no direct access to public transportation (including bus access), (b) high concentrations of employment opportunities along the route, (c) highest number of intact commercial districts along the route, (d) proximity to dense population centers (within a ¼-mi radius), (e) proximity to numerous community social or cultural centers (including schools and churches), (f) minimal physical environmental impacts, and (g) the most potential to improve the pedestrian environment.

In response to the demand for improved mobility in metropolitan areas, the 1990s saw the development of a new transport system in Europe known as the tram-train. This system is based on using conventional railway lines with a low traffic density to extend urban tram (streetcar) or light rail services without changing vehicles, incorporating them into railway traffic. The tram-train enables a wider range and scope of direct transport services and reduces waiting and transfer time. The operation of light rail vehicles on conventional railway infrastructure requires the solution of numerous technical issues, such as traction power supply system, rolling stock design, gage compatibility, tire and rail profile, structural strength, passenger access, and signaling. Such problems are described and their solution by services now operating, or in advanced planning stages, worldwide is discussed.

The Maryland Transit Administration (MTA) operates a fleet of 53 light rail vehicles (LRV) to support Baltimore’s light rail system. The first 35 LRVs entered into service in 1992. This set of rolling stock is constructed primarily of low-alloy, high-tensile steel with characteristics similar to ASTM A-588 steel. The as-built exterior roof sheeting was coated with an epoxy-based system to protect against weathering. Over the years the coating system performance has degraded and allowed moisture to seep underneath, resulting in corrosion. The corrosion is evident throughout the fleet and is progressively damaging the thin roof substrate. To address this issue, MTA commissioned Booz Allen Hamilton, the rolling stock engineering consultant for MTA, to assess the extent of the corrosion problem, research available solutions, and define implementation requirements. Information is provided on commercially available technologies, associated costs and benefits, and the unique challenges faced in implementing a long-lasting solution for in-service rolling stock vehicles.

A study team headed by the Volpe National Transportation Systems Center analyzed the feasibility of developing a water transportation system to serve the national parks of New York Harbor. This assessment was designed to address two principal objectives: (a) determine the viability of water transportation as an access mode serving the parks and (b) develop a preliminary ferry service concept plan. An analysis of market (demand) and site (supply) factors was critical to the assessment. The standard methods of demand forecasting could not be used in the market analysis, however, because most of the necessary data were lacking. Thus, an alternative approach was developed to perform this essential part of the assessment. Necessary market thresholds were estimated by applying a cost model. These thresholds were compared with ridership scenarios that were considered to be reasonable and conservative. From this analysis, the financial viability of the proposed ferry services was determined. For the particular application, the analysis results were sufficiently persuasive to suggest that proposed services should be implemented on a trial basis. This approach recognizes the practical limitations of demand forecasting in an environment in which data characterizing existing travel behavior are deficient and proposed services may attract substantially new markets with different socioeconomic and travel behavior characteristics. Because these limitations frequently apply to the planning of ferries and land-based modes serving parks and other recreational facilities, the described approach may have widespread applications.

Recent Washington State Ferries (WSF) origin–destination travel survey data collection and model development activities are described. WSF performed similar activities in 1993. The lessons learned from the initial project helped to develop a better survey design and sampling plan. The overall survey response rate was 37%, about 28% higher than the response rate for the 1993 travel survey. The improved survey design and sampling plan also provided a richer data platform from which to establish more representative observed baseline ferry travel patterns, by boarding method and access and egress mode combinations. Compared with 1993, the 1999 travel survey results reflect a significant increase in the systemwide use of transit for access to and egress from ferry terminals. This increase was primarily attributed to improved transit service, timed ferry-bus connections, and ferry-bus passes implemented by Kitsap Transit and other transit agencies. In addition to the 1999 travel survey, WSF conducted a stated preference survey. The combined data from these two surveys provided information on ferry users’ revealed and stated preferences, which allowed a more rigorous statistical mode and route choice estimation analysis to be performed. This analysis helped develop a more robust and internally consistent model, as reflected in model performance. For walk-on and automobile-boarding passengers, the updated WSF model has produced more accurate route-level validation results than the previous model. The results from the model estimation and validation analyses are presented. Specific improvements made in the updated model are highlighted.