tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862444008740250372.post6747728255856412871..comments2024-02-01T04:37:41.878-05:00Comments on Cap'n Transit Rides Again: Transit performance and frequent linesCap'n Transithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17057887736728828646noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862444008740250372.post-16275185098475718752009-11-07T19:40:53.209-05:002009-11-07T19:40:53.209-05:00Alon, my main point was that there's no point ...Alon, <b>my</b> main point was that there's no point in measuring adherence to a schedule that nobody pays attention to. Think about jitneys: they make a profit and they don't even <i>have</i> schedules.<br /><br />Of course trip length is important; it's actually masked by the on-time performance metrics, but it's a separate metric in my proposal.Cap'n Transithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17057887736728828646noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862444008740250372.post-65864593916400106682009-11-07T02:16:40.654-05:002009-11-07T02:16:40.654-05:00The whole point is that no bus is going to be exac...The whole point is that no bus is going to be exactly 15 minutes late for the entire run. More likely, it starts its run on time, but then deteriorates to a 15-minute lateness by the time it pulls in to the terminal. The spacing may be even to the customer, but the schedule is worthless unless you're near the terminals, and the ride just took 15 minutes longer than it should have.Alon Levyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12195377309045184452noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862444008740250372.post-7304682543313257402009-11-05T21:42:05.422-05:002009-11-05T21:42:05.422-05:00The problem is that it halves the frequency for al...<em>The problem is that it halves the frequency for all those people between Statelee and Hitek.</em><br /><br />Not if you begin running a local between the apartments and the office. You get three buses of service for two and half buses or four buses worth of service for three buses, roughly... It's been my experience that almost everybody gets faster service that way. <br /><br />SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS<br />SS------SSSSSSSSSS<br />SSSSSSSSS<br /><br />You can vary it too<br /><br />SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS<br />SS--------SSSS<br />SS--S--S--S--SSSSAdirondacker12800https://www.blogger.com/profile/17108712932656586797noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862444008740250372.post-83939953355748027392009-11-05T16:42:39.634-05:002009-11-05T16:42:39.634-05:00I've found the easiest way to critique OTP is ...I've found the easiest way to critique OTP is to imagine a case where every bus on your frequent line is exactly 15 minutes late. By any OTP standard, that's total failure. But for the customer, it's total success.Jarrett at HumanTransit.orghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02052246183256575683noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862444008740250372.post-7552939592227474252009-11-05T00:38:42.639-05:002009-11-05T00:38:42.639-05:00Alon, I suppose those would work, but I would like...Alon, I suppose those would work, but I would like to see something that corresponds more to what really matters to bus passengers.<br /><br />Adirondacker, I agree with you that running express is a good way to deal with bunching on the fly, and that's what NYC Transit does on the subways. The problem is that it halves the frequency for all those people between Statelee and Hitek. Instead of getting buses every five minutes, they get them every ten - and they get to watch the express buses go sailing by. Now, if you just <i>added</i> express runs, that would be different.Cap'n Transithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17057887736728828646noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862444008740250372.post-86212126891656057662009-11-04T21:38:00.422-05:002009-11-04T21:38:00.422-05:00...or they flip the sign on the first bus to Q200 ......or they flip the sign on the first bus to Q200 Express Hitek and everyone boards the express before or at Statelee Apartments and gets to Hitek Offices 5 minutes faster. In the mean time the bus that would have been "bunched" after Statelee isn't because it started it's run at Statelee and picks up passengers between there and Hitek. Have a look at the 25 Springfield Ave in Newark, Irvington and Maplewood sometime. Does have the advantage of having Irvington Center with all it's bus routes more or less at the place where the expresses begin to run. . . I see they have stopped originating/terminating some buses at Irvington Center...Adirondacker12800https://www.blogger.com/profile/17108712932656586797noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5862444008740250372.post-45292700042345585182009-11-03T17:48:17.778-05:002009-11-03T17:48:17.778-05:00First: Sheldon Silver is the guy who got the state...First: Sheldon Silver is the guy who got the state to fund Second Avenue Subway. Cut him some slack.<br /><br />Second: the best way of measuring bus bunching is to measure frequency, weighted by time it took since the last bus came. If half the buses come eight minutes apart and half come two minutes apart, the expected wait isn't really five minutes, because 80% of the time you'll be in an 8-minute interval.<br /><br />On top of it, there needs to be a rule saying something like, "A bus/train is late if it follows the previous bus/train by more than X minutes" where X is the stated frequency. No ifs, no buts, no 2-minute grace periods, and no special measures for controllable delays. Trains in Japan and Germany are capable of running within a minute of a schedule, without uncontrollable delay copouts.<br /><br />For buses, OTP isn't that bad of a metric, when it is actually calculated correctly, i.e. without the 2-minute grace period or excuses for uncontrollable delays. If buses bunch, then OTP will drop below 50%.Alon Levyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12195377309045184452noreply@blogger.com