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TCRP B-17 [Completed]
Advanced Rural Transportation Systems: Where Do We Start? How Far Should We Go?
| Project Data |
| Funds: |
$200,000 |
| Research Agency: |
North Carolina State University |
| Principal Investigator: |
Anna M. Nalevenko |
| Effective Date: |
5/11/1998 |
| Completion Date: |
5/31/2001 |
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Development and deployment of ITS technology are gaining momentum in highway and urban transit settings, however work is needed in rural transit applications of ITS, referred to as Advanced Rural Transportation Systems (ARTS). The challenge to meet increased passenger demands with fixed or declining resources could be addressed by ARTS deployments, but these technologies are often perceived as too expensive or complex to be applicable. Opportunities for using planned or existing ITS highway projects to improve system capacity or effectiveness or to participate in cooperative approaches organized by state DOTs provide a possible avenue for deployment and maintenance of technologies in the rural transit systems. But, it must be decided whether the perceptions of complexity and cost are valid.
With the new welfare to work initiatives, there is a greater need for improvements in system access and increased system capacity. Increased capacity could potentially be achieved by applying new technology. In most cases, application of advanced technology produces qualitative benefits such as improvements in safety and security, and in service for nontraditional customers. However, transit boards need to know what the impact of ARTS implementation will be, if the investment will pay for itself, and over what time period. Rural transit agencies need guidance on how to evaluate the efficacy of deploying these technologies. Therefore, development of valid measures of effectiveness for ARTS is needed.
Although there are only a limited number of applications of ARTS available for study, there are some ARTS demonstration sites in various stages of implementation. For example, Sweetwater County Transit Authority (STAR) in Wyoming is purchasing an automatic vehicle location (AVL) system package that includes Global Positioning System (GPS), Geographic Information System (GIS), and digital radio technologies. Another demonstration site example is LIFTS in Linn County, Iowa. LIFTS operates both a general door-to-door demand responsive service and a prescheduled demand responsive service. LIFTS recently deployed computer-aided dispatching and scheduling software.
It would be useful to determine whether the application of ARTS technology at a few demonstration sites, at various stages of deployment, is benefiting the transit agencies, and if so, to what degree. This would assist rural transit agencies who need guidance in what ARTS technologies to consider adopting, how to partner with other larger agencies, and how to capture the benefits of ARTS.
The Guidebook provides the following: (1) estimates the costs and benefits of implementing ARTS technology in rural transit systems, (2) outlines how rural public transportation agencies can benefit from cooperative arrangements, and (3) includes a decision guide to aid in implementation of ARTS technology that includes consideration of the following:
a) the potential for improvement of access and mobility in rural areas using ARTS technology,
b) the potential integration of rural transit ARTS projects with highway ITS projects, and
c) the promotion of a seamless network with ITS technology between rural and urban areas.
Status: The Guidebook, a practical guide on deployment of rural transit, is published as TCRP Report 76: Guidebook for Selecting Appropriate Technology Systems for Small Urban and Rural Public Operators. The Final Report addresses institutional, technological, and operational issues and is published as Web Document 20.
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