A PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION IMPROVEMENT PLAN FOR THE AMHERST-FIVE COLLEGE AREA
This study presents a short-range public transportation improvement plan for the Amherst-Five College Areas--12 suburban-rural communities (population approximately 105,000) in Hampshire and Franklin Counties, Massachusetts. By use of a generalized methodology, residential and commercial areas (termed potential service areas) and distinct demographic segments of the Study Area (termed potential service groups) are identified for (1) conventional fixed-route, scheduled bus transit and/or (2) para-transit public transportation services. Patronage levels are estimated with ridership, "reach," and "penetration" data gathered during an UMTA fare-free bus service Research and Demonstration Project at the Amherst campus of the University of Massachusetts (UMass). A total of 15 potential service areas are identified in the Study Area as deserving of fixed-route, scheduled bus transit service, where the frequency of bus service proposed for the potential service areas ranges from a high of six bus-trips per hour to a low of seven bus-trips per day. Para-transit public transportation services find justifiable application for many of the potential service groups identified in the Study Area, including the worker-commuter, the midday shopper, and the limited mobility potential service groups. Para-transit is also justifiably applicable in those rurally-located potential service areas with relatively low predicted patronage levels. Moreover, it is concluded that the market applications of the many public transportation modes considered in this study are not mutually exclusive but rather intersecting (or overlapping) sets. A list of policy-oriented recommendations is included in the report. The Appendix contains a detailed analysis of the costs of operation. /FHWA/
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Availability:
- Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/isbn/MA060006
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Supplemental Notes:
- Sponsored by Department of Transportation, Urban Mass Transportation Administration.
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Corporate Authors:
University of Massachusetts, Amherst
Transportation Program
Amherst, MA United States 01002 -
Authors:
- Butler, L B
- Goss, W P
- Publication Date: 1975-12
Media Info
- Pagination: 140 p.
Subject/Index Terms
- TRT Terms: Bus transportation; Commuters; Free fares; Paratransit services; Public transit; Ridership; Rural areas; Shoppers; Universities and colleges
- Old TRIS Terms: Free transportation
- Subject Areas: Education and Training; Highways; Motor Carriers; Passenger Transportation; Planning and Forecasting; Public Transportation;
Filing Info
- Accession Number: 00144137
- Record Type: Publication
- Source Agency: Federal Highway Administration
- ISBN: MA-06-0006
- Report/Paper Numbers: UMTA-MA-06-006-75-1
- Contract Numbers: MA-06-0006
- Files: NTIS, TRIS, USDOT
- Created Date: Feb 1 1981 12:00AM