Understanding Paratransit: Examining Time Inefficiencies and the Efficacy of Alternative Modes for Persons with Disability

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) (1990) mandates that paratransit services should be comparable to fixed-route systems. However, with only 5% of the population utilizing public transit, this comparison does not adequately highlight the disparities between persons with disabilities and those without. This paper examines how the travel times of paratransit trips compare with a counterfactual car trip using trip data from Denver’s Regional Transportation District’s Access-a-Ride service from January 2019 – June 2021. Through a hotspot and regression analysis, the authors reveal that paratransit trips experience more inefficient travel times than an equivalent car trip. Demand for paratransit trips is largely located in more suburban cities where housing is relatively affordable but access to destinations via urban infrastructure is relatively low. Paratransit efficiency decreases for specific groups, such as females, older adults, and cash paying riders, and for trips during peak travel times or during inclement weather. During the pandemic, paratransit trip efficiency increased likely because of COVID-19 safety restrictions that reduced other service inefficiencies. This analysis suggests that agencies should focus on improving paratransit services through adopting tools that eliminate pre-travel inefficiencies and leverage the spatial and temporal patterns to optimize operational efficiency.

• Record URL:
  • https://www.ugpti.org/resources/reports/details.php?id=1225
• Record URL:
  • https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/78935
• Summary URL:
  • https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/78937
• Supplemental Notes:
  • This document was sponsored by the U.S. Department of Transportation, University Transportation Centers Program.
• Corporate Authors:

  University of Colorado, Denver

  Denver, CO  United States 

  Mountain-Plains Consortium

  North Dakota State University
  Fargo, ND  United States  58108

  Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology

  University Transportation Centers Program
  Department of Transportation
  Washington, DC  United States  20590
• Authors:
  • Akcicek, Cemal
  • Shirgaokar, Manish
  • Misra, Aditi
  • Marshall, Wesley
  • Wagner, Molly
• Publication Date: 2024-9

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Digital/other
• Edition: Final Report
• Features: Appendices; Figures; Maps; References; Tables;
• Pagination: 36p

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Alternatives analysis; Automobile travel; Paratransit services; Persons with disabilities; Regression analysis; Travel time; Travel time reliability
• Geographic Terms: Denver (Colorado)
• Subject Areas: Highways; Operations and Traffic Management; Passenger Transportation; Public Transportation; Society;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01940876
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: MPC-677, MPC 24-562
• Files: UTC, NTL, TRIS, USDOT
• Created Date: Dec 24 2024 4:45PM