Technical and financial characteristics of public transport systems

Working paper

A data base has been established bringing together the most up-to-date information on the technical and financial characteristics of public transport systems for urban and inter-urban corridors. The data base is intended for public transport planners, operators and researchers. Capital outlay costs are included but operating costs will be evaluated in a subsequent working paper. The relative merits of busways and light rail systems are discussed. Both may carry high numbers of passengers. System capacities for metros are higher than for any other urban public transport system. Operational speed is mainly influenced by the number of stops and the distance between them, rather than by maximum speed. Where light rail shares space with road traffic it tends to run faster than buses is similar conditions. Bus lanes appear to show no significant improvements in overall travel time for buses and other road traffic. In terms of track width, busways require the most space, and trams, guided buses and metros the least. The proposed ULTra personal transport system is described. The energy use of different transport systems, fuel types and technological changes are discussed. A comparison of infrastructure costs indicates that busways are cheaper than light rail and that the requirement for tunnels is a major expense. Vehicle costs are highest for suburban heavy rail and metro vehicles. Buses and guided buses are much cheaper but trams have higher capacity and last longer.

Authors: Brand, C; Preston, J

• Publication status: Published
• Peer review status: Reviewed (other)
• Publisher: Transport Studies Unit, University of Oxford
• Series: TSU Working Paper
• Publication date: 2001-01-01
• Paper number: 911