BUS RAPID TRANSIT:

PENDEKATAN BERKELANJUTAN
UNTUK TRANSPORTASI MASSAL

BAMBANG HERMANTO
Materi

• Apa itu Bus Rapid Transit (BRT)?

• Elemen-Elemen BRT
• Curitiba, Brazil: The Success Story
• Applicability to the United States
• Conclusions
 Apa itu BRT?
• Bus Rapid Transit menggunakan berbagai desain sistem dan
teknologi inovatif untuk mempercepat waktu perjalanan,
memangkas biaya dan membuat layanan lebih andal
• “Berpikir Kereta, Menggunakan Bus.”
• Tujuan yang akan dicapai:
• Prioritas Lajur
• Prioritas Simpang
• Desain Kendaraan
• Stop spacing and design
• Tarif
• Rider appeal
• Kebijakan Tata Guna Lahan
Prioritas Lajur
• Pemberian Lajur Prioritas (HOV)
• Tiga tipe lajur prioritas: Pemberian
Kerb, Median atau kontraflow
• Jalur bus tepi jalan biasanya efektif
selama jam sibuk di arah puncak; jika
tidak jalur tersebut disediakan untuk
parkir dan pengiriman. Karena halte
berada di jalur ini, bus tidak perlu
membuang waktu dengan lalu lintas.
Jalur bus tepi jalan ganda
memungkinkan mereka untuk saling
lewat
•.
• Curbside bus lanes are usually effective
during peak hours in peak directions; This San Francisco bus lane is the lane
otherwise the lane is reserved for
parking and deliveries. Since bus stops adjacent to the curb lane and is in
are in this lane, buses do not waste effect weekdays 7 am to 6 pm.
time remerging with traffic. Double Curbside deliveries and parking are
curbside bus lanes allow them to pass
one another (e.g. Madison Ave in NYC). still possible, except at stops.
Median Lanes
• Bus lanes are located in the middle two
lanes of traffic, usu. separated from
general traffic lanes by a raised curb.
• Only appropriate for wide boulevards.
• Passenger platforms on right. There can
be one central platform, but buses then
must have doors on both sides.
• Less likely to be congested than curbside
bus lanes.
• Disadvantages are: 1) making left turns,
and 2) passengers must cross lanes of
traffic to reach platforms creating a safety
concern, esp. passengers anxious to catch
an approaching bus.
 Contraflow Lanes
• A contraflow lane is a bus
lane that runs in the opposite
direction in what would
otherwise be a one-way
street.
• These contraflow lanes can
be used during peak times of
BRT system in Orlando, FL. the day to avoid traffic
congestion or can be
permanent.
• They have a physical divide to
only allow authorized
vehicles through.
 Traffic Signal Priority
• Special treatment to transit vehicles at signalized
intersections.
• Passive priority: timing signal lights with respect
to avg. bus speed rather than avg. vehicle speed.
• Active priority: uses chips on the bus and light to
calculate the speed of bus and time of approach,
and depending on traffic situation at the time, to
either give an early green signal or hold one that
is being displayed.
• Queue jumpers: short stretch of bus lane
combined with traffic signal priority to cut
queues of traffic and receive a green signal. Active Priority Light in
Orlando, FL.
 Vehicle Design
• Low level boarding: faster boarding time for all passengers, namely
those in wheelchairs, which means shorter dwelling time at the bus
stop.
• Adding additional and wider doorways facilitates the rapid entry and
exit of passengers (32 in. allows for easy access for those in mobility
aids).
• Additional and wider doorways must be integrated with the structural
support systems to maintain crash worthiness.
• Buses can be bi-/articulated with two or three sections capable of
transporting 170-270 passengers. (Think of the long A, H, and EE
buses).
 Vehicle Design

• Propulsion:
• cleaner diesel fuel due to stricter EPA standards
• compressed natural gas (CNG) hybrid electric-diesel buses
have emerged as viable alternatively fueled vehicles
• Low noise and emission pollution—to make the buses
“sexy.”
 Stop Spacing and Location
• Stop spacing affects demand for transit service.
• Tradeoff between: (a) closely spaced, frequent stops and shorter walking
distance, but more time on the vehicle and (b) stops spaced further apart
and longer walking distance, but less time on the vehicle.
• Stop locating can be near side, far side, or mid-block.
• BRT systems with active signal priority and queue jumpers should place
stops at the far side, allowing for effective use of these measures. It also
clears the bus through the intersection with minimal delay.
• If the stop was on the near side, queue jumpers would be not be used, and
the bus would have to merge with queue traffic on the curbside lane for the
stop. Consequently, the bus would be delayed by at least one signal cycle.
Stop Location

• If bus stops are bays (think of bus stop across from ARC), there
is a delay to remerge with traffic.
• Bays are not efficient for BRT systems.
• If necessary, located on far side of intersections with tapered
deceleration and acceleration lanes.
• Priority Merge Rule: all vehicles to yield the right of way, when
safe to do so, to buses signaling to reenter the traffic stream a
stop.
• Rule is common in Europe, Australia, Japan, Oregon,
Washington, and Florida.
• PMR is BRT-friendly as it reduces waiting times at subsequent
stops and decreases travel times for passengers.
Fare Collection
• On-board collection increases dwelling time thus decreasing the
efficiency of a BRT system.
• Monthly passes, smart cards, pre-paid tickets. Incentives for pre-
payment is a sharp discounts for multi-trip cards/tickets.
• Pay as you board worst during peak hours.
• Pay on exit: speeds up boarding at central sites during peak hours,
and decreases dwell time as smaller groups exit the bus at the
stops.
• Free fare zone, loading platforms (staffed), “paid area” terminals
(barrier free for transfers), and proof of payment

Loading platform in
Curitiba, Brazil.
Rider Appeal
• Providing proper information to the
customer is crucial for high quality transit
information. (aka being user friendly)
• Therefore, to increase the appeal of a
BRT system, and consequently, ridership,
each stop should have:
• A stop name.
• Route names and destinations for all
routes serving the stop.
• Span of service and frequency of
service.
• Service schedule for low-frequency
routes.
• A system map
Orlando BRT Service Map
 Rider Appeal
• Onboard schematic maps and automated announcements can
assist passengers when/where to board and exit.
• Use of real time information of arrival times to be displayed at
bus stops, kiosks, etc.
• Technology is Automated Vehicle Location (AVL) and is powered
by GPS.
• Reduces anxiety of waiting.
• Market BRT system as being an preferable mode of
transportation: color schemes and logos to identify the BRT
system (and distinguish it from the regular bus system), stops
and stations need appealing architectural and aesthetic designs
to attract riders, market faster travel times, new technologies
(signals and AVL), and offer coupons.
Land Use Policy
Orlando's Lynx system has created
Superstops at major shopping malls.
Buses stop at loading areas close to
the mall entrance. Amenities include
shelters, system information, bike
racks, and a guide to mall stores.
• Modifying land use policies to
permit growth that is
concentrated around transit
nodes and corridors will help
to maintain and increase
transit's base of riders in the
future.
• Location of stations already
near developed sites, e.g.
shopping malls, is ideal for
optimizing land use with mass
transit.
BRT in Use

• Several cities across the world are using a BRT system.

• These include: Bogotá, Quito, Rouen, London, Sydney, Istanbul, and
Taipei.
• By far, however, the greatest success story in BRT comes from
Curitiba, Brazil.
Curitiba, Brazil

• During 1950s and 60s, cities across Brazil

experienced rapid population growth due to
agricultural mechanization. Curitiba had one of the
highest population growths, 6% a yr.
• demanded effective city planning in areas ranging
from social services, housing and sanitation, to the
environment and transportation
• By the 1960s, officials were working on a Master
Plan (1966) to meet these demands, which included
a consolidated bus transit system
 Transportation and Development
• restructured the city’s radial configuration into a linear model
of urban expansion
• transportation land use and road systems can be used as
integrative tools of development; backbone for development
and growth of the city
• direct linear growth by attracting residential and commercial
density along a mass transportation lane
• The Research and Urban Planning Institute of Curitiba (IPPUC)
was created to monitor the implementation and operations of
the BRT.
• The BRT, with its 2,000 buses, serves eight neighboring cities, 2
million passengers, and an approval rating of 90%.
New Infrastructure
Transportation System

• Road hierarchy (spider web network)

• 5 main arterial roads, structural growth corridors that dictate
the growth pattern of the city, had two median express bus
lanes
• By 1982, all 5 arteries, inter-district, and feeder lines were
complete.
• Types of routes: feeder, interdistrict, and express
• Express buses travel as fast as subway cars, but at one eighth
the construction costs
• As buildings moved away from corridor avenues, the density
of the building capacity decreased. (urban apt. buildings to
residential homes)
A Fare System

• Paper transfers: forgery

• Two-fare system for feeder and express: failed because it
favored the rich living near the middle
• One fare policy: can take you from anywhere within the
system (40+ miles worth of travel)
• Shorter rides subsidize longer ones.
• Installed automatic ticket vendors at stops and terminals to
decrease dwell time.
• The system is entirely financed by these fares and without
any subsidies. A 1990 laws dictates that revenues can only
be used to pay for the system. This avoids fare inflation.
Bus and Station Design

• Buses:
• Three doors: 2 exiting, 1 boarding
• Turbo engines
• Wider doors
• Lower floors
• Bi/Articulated for greater passenger capacity (170-270)
• Boarding tube stations along direct and express lines.
• Staffed (to deter fare evaders).
• Three functions: shelter, pre-boarding payment and level
boarding
• Speeds boarding time, especially with the disabled,
therefore less idling and less pollution
Bus Tube
 Some Numbers
• 340 routes
• 2,000 buses transport 2 million passengers daily
• 700 miles of bus routes; 40 miles dedicated to bus use only
• 25 terminals, 200+ bus tubes
• 30 routes and buses designed for specific use by the disabled
• 50-second deadhead (period between buses) at peak times,
and 2 to 3 minutes at other times at the central station
• first city in Brazil to use less polluting fuels; 89.4% diesel, 8%
anhydrous alcohol, and 2.6% soybean additive
• The resulting fuel is less polluting and cuts the emissions of
particles to the air by up to 43 per cent.
More Numbers

• Cost of implementing the bus system in Curitiba was $2.0 million

(U.S.) per mile.
• 10 percent of yearly income on transport.
• As a result, despite the second highest per capita car ownership rate
in Brazil (one car for every three people), Curitiba's gasoline use per
capita is 30 percent below that of eight comparable Brazilian cities.
BRT and Beyond

• Curitiba’s public policy has been eco-socio-friendly. Innovative with

approach to public life.
• In addition to BRT, pedestrian walkways, bike paths, parks, recycling
programs, etc. all encourage a greener, healthier city and lifestyle.
BRT in the United States

• BRT systems are in place in several American cities including:

• Boston
• Charlotte
• Cleveland
• Dulles, VA
• Eugene-Springfield, OR
• Hartford
• LA
• Miami
• Phoenix (planning)
• San Francisco
 Orlando at a Glance
• Opened Aug 1997
• BRT improved an already existing transit system serving Orlando
• target market is people who drive to downtown Orlando and then use
Lymmo to get to other locations, such as the Courthouse, restaurants,
shopping, etc
• Service offers:
• exclusive lanes for the entire 2.3 mile route
• signal pre-emption
• stations with large shelters and route information
• automatic vehicle location (AVL)
• next bus arrival information at kiosks
• new low-floor compressed natural gas (CNG) buses
• marketing and image development through vehicle graphics, stations,
advertisements, and business tie-ins
• free fare, so no fare collection delay
• Fierce marketing to attract riders: theme buses, coupon-of-the-day, etc.
Lymmo System

Lymmo Bus Painted in

Leonardo DaVinci Theme

Lymmo Right-of-Way and

Station at Turn-Around Area
Performance

Table 1 Route Statistics for Lymmo and Rest of System

Costs

• $1.2 million to operate, 65% more than the Freebee

service of 1997.
• Because of the even greater increase in ridership,
the average cost per boarding decreased from $1.37
for Freebee to $1.14 for Lymmo.
• total capital cost of the system was $21 million, of
which $3 million was for vehicles, $0.4 million for
landscaping, and the remainder for street
reconstruction, shelters, information kiosks, AVL,
traffic signals, banners, and other expenses
Criticisms to BRT

• Curitiba, for example, has far lower labor costs, far

fewer environmental controls, and much less stringent
bureaucratic review of transportation projects.
• politicians want solutions that fit their election cycles;
score big with voters by extending past into future (road
projects)
• America’s car culture
• Price on gasoline is cheap, discouraging public
transportation as is. (oh yes, this is where Prof. Sunil
talks about his famous (or infamous) gas tax)
Conclusions

• BRT provides a sustainable, efficient method of

mass transit.
• Can be used in conjunction with land use and
developmental policies to curtail sprawl and guide
growth.
• Appeal to riders is key for any mass transit system
to work—must be attractive and user friendly
• Gas tax or DIE! lol
The End