Measuring Access to Transit Service (Implementation Project)

(PI: Chandra Bhat; Co-PIs: Stacey Bricka, Jeffrey LaMondia)

Public agencies and transit operators are constantly looking for methodologies to accurately identify public transportation service gaps, and quantify the severity of the problem so that appropriate actions can be taken. TxDOT Project 0-5178, entitled “Measuring Access to Public Transportation Service”, developed a unique TransCAD-based Transit Accessibility Measure (TAM) software tool and users guide to provide the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) Public Transportation Division staff and other Texas public transportation agency staff with an approach to measure the level of public transportation accessibility for fixed-route transit systems. The resulting TAM software is flexible and can be used by decision-makers to identify areas where a public transportation system (PTS) needs improvement, as well as to select the most effective way to improve the PTS in the context of user needs.

While the initial research project was successful, this implementation project made agencies aware of the software, facilitate the use of the software, and expand the performance precision, practical functions, and ease of use of the software based on feedback from end-users. It also extended the scope of the program tool to include passenger rail and demand response modes, and capture more comprehensive characteristics of different population subgroups.