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Examining the association between bus transit reliability and the number of boarding passengers

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Abstract

The focus of this study is to examine the association between bus transit reliability and the number of boarding passengers at bus-stop level using data obtained from the Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS) in the city of Charlotte, North Carolina, USA for the year 2017. The on-time performance percentage was computed and used as bus transit reliability at bus-stop level. Two different thresholds were considered to compute the on-time performance measure. The ridership data was processed to compute the average number of boarding passengers per bus at bus-stop level. The findings indicate that the day of the week, time of the day, direction of travel, and the type of bus-stop influence the association between the on-time performance percentage and the average number of boarding passengers per bus.

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Data availability

The datasets generated during and/or analysed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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Acknowledgements

This paper is prepared based on information collected for a research project funded by the United States Department of Transportation – Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology (USDOT/OST-R) University Transportation Centers Program (Grant # 69A3551747127). The authors thank CATS for providing data required for this study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Infrastructure, Design, Environment and Sustainability (IDEAS) Center, The University of North Carolina at Charlotte, 9201 University City Blvd, Charlotte, NC, 28223, USA

    L. Sravya Jayanthi

  2. Civil and Environmental Engineering Department, IDEAS Center, The University of North Carolina at Charlotte, 9201 University City Blvd, Charlotte, NC, 28223, USA

    Srinivas S. Pulugurtha

  3. IDEAS Center, The University of North Carolina at Charlotte, 9201 University City Blvd, Charlotte, NC, 28223, USA

    Raunak Mishra

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  1. L. Sravya Jayanthi
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  2. Srinivas S. Pulugurtha
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Correspondence to Srinivas S. Pulugurtha.

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This paper is disseminated in the interest of information exchange. The views, opinions, findings, and conclusions reflected in this paper are the responsibility of the authors only and do not represent the official policy or position of the University of North Carolina at Charlotte or other entity. The authors are responsible for the facts and the accuracy of the data presented herein. This paper does not constitute a standard, specification, or regulation.

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Jayanthi, L.S., Pulugurtha, S.S. & Mishra, R. Examining the association between bus transit reliability and the number of boarding passengers. Public Transp 15, 675–696 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12469-023-00335-6

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