TRAVEL PATTERNS ON A NEW REGIONAL RAPID TRANSIT SYSTEM: CLUES FROM THE EARLY STAGES OF OPERATIONS ON BART

This paper reports on some of the traffic patterns that developed on the Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) System from November 1973 to August 1974, when only portions of the BART network were open to traffic. Data from fare gates at stations, counts on trains, transfer tickets, and highway traffic counts were compared to BART estimates made in 1971. Indications are that BART will attract far fewer short trips (less than 6 miles or 10 km) in San Francisco and Oakland than had been anticipated. Short trips in some outer areas with less surface transit and trips greater than 10 miles (16 km) long may have been underestimated. This suggests that the forecast inaccurately evaluated submodal split between rail and bus transit over short distances and may have weighted cost differentials too highly for long trips. On peak shopping days, BART attracts shoppers to downtown areas and to regional shopping centers near BART stations, BART is quite successful in attracting those who commute to industrial and commercial areas and to universities outside downtown areas who use feeder buses at their trip ends. In one corridor BART appears to have caused an increase in total transit use, partly by diverting travelers from the automobile and partly by generating new trips. When a surface transit system in BART territory ceases to operate, some additional short trips are made on BART, but there is a loss of longer trips that used feeder buses.

• Record URL:
  • http://onlinepubs.trb.org/Onlinepubs/trr/1976/563/563-005.pdf
• Summary URL:
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• Supplemental Notes:
  • Publication of this paper sponsored by Committee on Public Transportation Planning and Development. Distribution, posting, or copying of this PDF is strictly prohibited without written permission of the Transportation Research Board of the National Academy of Sciences. Unless otherwise indicated, all materials in this PDF are copyrighted by the National Academy of Sciences. Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
• Authors:
  • Homburger, Wolfgang S
• Conference:
  • 54th Annual Meeting of the Transportation Research Board
  • Location: Washington District of Columbia
  • Date: 1975-1-13 to 1975-1-17
• Publication Date: 1976

Media Info

• Media Type: Print
• Features: Figures; References; Tables;
• Pagination: pp 38-52
• Monograph Title: Public Transportation Planning
• Serial:
  • Transportation Research Record
  • Issue Number: 563
  • Publisher: Transportation Research Board
  • ISSN: 0361-1981

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Commuters; Feeder buses; Forecasting; Modal split; Mode choice; Rapid transit; Regional planning; Regional transportation; Ridership; Shopping trips; Traffic forecasting; Transportation planning; Travel patterns; Urban transportation
• Identifier Terms: San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District
• Uncontrolled Terms: Traffic patterns
• Old TRIS Terms: Shopper transportation
• Subject Areas: Highways; Operations and Traffic Management; Passenger Transportation; Planning and Forecasting; Public Transportation; Railroads;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00138149
• Record Type: Publication
• ISBN: 0309024730
• Files: TRIS, TRB
• Created Date: Sep 4 1981 12:00AM