Capacity approximations for near- and far-side bus stops in dedicated bus lanes

Abstract

We develop analytical approximations for the bus-carrying capacities at near- and far-side stops with one or multiple curbside berths where buses operate in a dedicated bus lane. The approximations are derived using time-space diagrams of bus trajectories and probabilistic methods. They correctly account for the effects of key operating factors that were ignored or incorrectly addressed by previous methods. These factors include the signal timing and the distance between stop and signal. Comparison against computer simulation shows that our models furnish much more accurate estimates for near- and far-side stop capacities than previous methods in the literature. Numerical case studies are performed to examine how the stop capacity is affected by various operating factors. New findings and their practical implications are discussed.