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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2007. Improving Public Transportation Technology Implementations and Anticipating Emerging Technologies. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/13894.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2007. Improving Public Transportation Technology Implementations and Anticipating Emerging Technologies. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/13894.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2007. Improving Public Transportation Technology Implementations and Anticipating Emerging Technologies. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/13894.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2007. Improving Public Transportation Technology Implementations and Anticipating Emerging Technologies. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/13894.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2007. Improving Public Transportation Technology Implementations and Anticipating Emerging Technologies. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/13894.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2007. Improving Public Transportation Technology Implementations and Anticipating Emerging Technologies. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/13894.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2007. Improving Public Transportation Technology Implementations and Anticipating Emerging Technologies. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/13894.
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TRANSPORTAT ION RESEARCH BOARD WASHINGTON, D.C. 2008 www.TRB.org T R A N S I T C O O P E R A T I V E R E S E A R C H P R O G R A M TCRP REPORT 84 Research sponsored by the Federal Transit Administration in cooperation with the Transit Development Corporation Subject Areas Public Transit e-Transit: Electronic Business Strategies for Public Transportation Volume 8 Improving Public Transportation Technology Implementations and Anticipating Emerging Technologies Matthew W. Burt BATTELLE Columbus, OH Chris Cluett BATTELLE Seattle, WA Carol L. Schweiger TRANSYSTEMS CORPORATION Medford, MA Matthew A. Coogan White River Junction, VT A N D Richard B. Easley Sharon Easley E-SQUARED ENGINEERING Ashburn, VA

TCRP REPORT 84, Volume 8 Project J-9/Task 12 ISSN 1073-4872 ISBN: 978-0-309-09921-9 Library of Congress Control Number 20078921967 © 2008 Transportation Research Board COPYRIGHT PERMISSION Authors herein are responsible for the authenticity of their materials and for obtaining written permissions from publishers or persons who own the copyright to any previously published or copyrighted material used herein. Cooperative Research Programs (CRP) grants permission to reproduce material in this publication for classroom and not-for-profit purposes. Permission is given with the understanding that none of the material will be used to imply TRB, AASHTO, FAA, FHWA, FMCSA, FTA, or Transit Development Corporation endorsement of a particular product, method, or practice. It is expected that those reproducing the material in this document for educational and not-for-profit uses will give appropriate acknowledgment of the source of any reprinted or reproduced material. For other uses of the material, request permission from CRP. NOTICE The project that is the subject of this report was a part of the Transit Cooperative Research Program conducted by the Transportation Research Board with the approval of the Governing Board of the National Research Council. Such approval reflects the Governing Board’s judgment that the project concerned is appropriate with respect to both the purposes and resources of the National Research Council. The members of the technical advisory panel selected to monitor this project and to review this report were chosen for recognized scholarly competence and with due consideration for the balance of disciplines appropriate to the project. The opinions and conclusions expressed or implied are those of the research agency that performed the research, and while they have been accepted as appropriate by the technical panel, they are not necessarily those of the Transportation Research Board, the National Research Council, the Transit Development Corporation, or the Federal Transit Administration of the U.S. Department of Transportation. Each report is reviewed and accepted for publication by the technical panel according to procedures established and monitored by the Transportation Research Board Executive Committee and the Governing Board of the National Research Council. The Transportation Research Board of the National Academies, the National Research Council, the Transit Development Corporation, and the Federal Transit Administration (sponsor of the Transit Cooperative Research Program) do not endorse products or manufacturers. Trade or manufacturers’ names appear herein solely because they are considered essential to the clarity and completeness of the project reporting. TRANSIT COOPERATIVE RESEARCH PROGRAM The nation’s growth and the need to meet mobility, environmental, and energy objectives place demands on public transit systems. Current systems, some of which are old and in need of upgrading, must expand service area, increase service frequency, and improve efficiency to serve these demands. Research is necessary to solve operating problems, to adapt appropriate new technologies from other industries, and to intro- duce innovations into the transit industry. The Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP) serves as one of the principal means by which the transit industry can develop innovative near-term solutions to meet demands placed on it. The need for TCRP was originally identified in TRB Special Report 213—Research for Public Transit: New Directions, published in 1987 and based on a study sponsored by the Urban Mass Transportation Administration—now the Federal Transit Administration (FTA). A report by the American Public Transportation Association (APTA), Transportation 2000, also recognized the need for local, problem- solving research. TCRP, modeled after the longstanding and success- ful National Cooperative Highway Research Program, undertakes research and other technical activities in response to the needs of tran- sit service providers. The scope of TCRP includes a variety of transit research fields including planning, service configuration, equipment, facilities, operations, human resources, maintenance, policy, and administrative practices. TCRP was established under FTA sponsorship in July 1992. Pro- posed by the U.S. Department of Transportation, TCRP was autho- rized as part of the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991 (ISTEA). On May 13, 1992, a memorandum agreement out- lining TCRP operating procedures was executed by the three cooper- ating organizations: FTA, the National Academies, acting through the Transportation Research Board (TRB); and the Transit Development Corporation, Inc. (TDC), a nonprofit educational and research orga- nization established by APTA. TDC is responsible for forming the independent governing board, designated as the TCRP Oversight and Project Selection (TOPS) Committee. Research problem statements for TCRP are solicited periodically but may be submitted to TRB by anyone at any time. It is the responsibility of the TOPS Committee to formulate the research program by identi- fying the highest priority projects. As part of the evaluation, the TOPS Committee defines funding levels and expected products. Once selected, each project is assigned to an expert panel, appointed by the Transportation Research Board. The panels prepare project state- ments (requests for proposals), select contractors, and provide techni- cal guidance and counsel throughout the life of the project. The process for developing research problem statements and selecting research agencies has been used by TRB in managing cooperative research pro- grams since 1962. As in other TRB activities, TCRP project panels serve voluntarily without compensation. Because research cannot have the desired impact if products fail to reach the intended audience, special emphasis is placed on dissemi- nating TCRP results to the intended end users of the research: tran- sit agencies, service providers, and suppliers. TRB provides a series of research reports, syntheses of transit practice, and other support- ing material developed by TCRP research. APTA will arrange for workshops, training aids, field visits, and other activities to ensure that results are implemented by urban and rural transit industry practitioners. The TCRP provides a forum where transit agencies can cooperatively address common operational problems. The TCRP results support and complement other ongoing transit research and training programs. Published reports of the TRANSIT COOPERATIVE RESEARCH PROGRAM are available from: Transportation Research Board Business Office 500 Fifth Street, NW Washington, DC 20001 and can be ordered through the Internet at http://www.national-academies.org/trb/bookstore Printed in the United States of America

CRP STAFF FOR TCRP REPORT 84, VOLUME 8 Christopher W. Jenks, Director, Cooperative Research Programs Crawford F. Jencks, Deputy Director, Cooperative Research Programs Gwen Chisholm Smith, Senior Program Officer Eileen P. Delaney, Director of Publications Ellen M. Chafee, Assistant Editor TCRP PROJECT J-9 PANEL Field of Special Projects Paul A. Toliver, New Age Industries, Seattle, WA (Chair) Peter Anderson, Fort Worth City Government Robin Cody, San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District Raymond H. Ellis, AECOM Consult, Inc., Arlington, VA Lawrence J. Harman, Harman Consulting, Boston, MA Rosie Perez, Miami-Dade Transit Agency Michael Shiffer, Chicago Transit Authority Robin C. Stevens, Robin Stevens Consulting, Ltd., New York, NY Linda S. Watson, Central Florida Regional Transportation Authority (LYNX) Nigel H. M. Wilson, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Mokhtee Ahmad, FTA Liaison Sean Ricketson, FTA Liaison Thomas Palmerlee, TRB Liaison AUTHOR ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The research reported herein was performed under TCRP Project J-09/Task 12. The work was con- ducted by Battelle, TranSystems Corporation, Matthew Coogan, and E-Squared Engineering. Battelle was the lead contractor for this study. The work undertaken by TranSystems, Mr. Coogan, and E-Squared Engineering was performed under a subcontract with Battelle. Matt Burt of Battelle was the principal investigator. The other authors of this report are Chris Cluett, Battelle; Carol Schweiger, TranSystems Corporation; Matthew Coogan; and Richard and Sharon Easley, E-Squared Engineering. The work was done under the general supervision of Mr. Burt. The work at TranSystems was done under the supervision of Ms. Schweiger, with the assistance of Santosh Mishra. C O O P E R A T I V E R E S E A R C H P R O G R A M S

TCRP Report 84: e-Transit: Electronic Business Strategies for Public Transportation docu- ments principles, techniques, and strategies that are used in electronic business strategies for public transportation. TCRP Report 84 is being published in multiple volumes; Volume 8: Improving Public Transportation Technology Implementations and Anticipating Emerging Technologies summarizes the value of current technologies used in public transportation, describes methods for improving the success of technology implementation, and identifies five promising emerging technologies with application for transit agencies. This report may be used specifically by chief executive officers (CEOs) and chief information officers (CIOs) of transit agencies, transit managers, program and project managers, intelligent transporta- tion systems (ITS) professionals, and the public transportation industry in general. New information and communication technologies are revolutionizing the way services are delivered and organizations are structured. Electronic business processes change the ways organizations operate and conduct business. Opportunities to lower operations and maintenance costs and improve efficiency have changed relationships between transit agen- cies and their suppliers and customers, and electronic business processes are likely to change industry structures in the long term. The declining costs of communications, data storage, and data retrieval are accelerating the opportunities spawned by the Internet and other information and communications technologies. Choosing and sequencing investments in technologies, processes, and people to reduce costs and increase productivity present challenges to the transit manager, who must weigh the costs, benefits, and risks of changing the ways services are delivered. To assist in meeting such challenges, TCRP Project J-9 produces a multiple-volume series under TCRP Report 84. The research program identifies, develops, and provides flexible, ongoing, quick-response research designed to bring electronic business strategies to public trans- portation and mobility management. Improving Public Transportation Technology Implementations and Anticipating Emerging Technologies is the eighth volume in the TCRP Report 84 multiple-volume series. Battelle, in association with TranSystems, Matthew Coogan, and E-Squared Engineering, reviewed lit- erature, trends, and developments of the past few years related to public transportation and technological advancements. Also, the research team conducted 16 interviews with repre- sentatives from both the United States and abroad to determine the extent to which transit agencies worldwide are using various types of information technologies. The research team obtained information on the experiences of transportation providers that have deployed newer technologies, the range of objectives transit agencies have for using current and near- term technologies, and the promises these technologies may hold for transportation oper- F O R E W O R D By Gwen Chisholm Smith Staff Officer Transportation Research Board

ations and the people they serve. In addition, the researchers conducted a focus group that included transit CEOs, CIOs, and senior-level technology personnel from U.S. public trans- portation agencies to discuss obstacles that impede the adoption of current and near-term information technologies in public transportation and mobility services. Finally, the researchers describe five emerging technologies, how they might be applied, the range of costs, and the benefits of each. Volumes issued under TCRP Report 84 may be found on the TRB website at http://www. trb.org/news/blurb_browse.asp?id=1. Click on “Transit Cooperative Research Program” under the “Project Reports” heading.)

C O N T E N T S 1 Summary 7 Chapter 1 Introduction and Research Approach 7 1.1 Project Overview 8 1.2 Approach 11 Chapter 2 Findings on Current Technologies 11 2.1 Value of Current Technologies 34 2.2 Methods for Improving the Success of Technology Implementations 55 2.3 Prerequisites for Improved Technology Implementations 59 Chapter 3 Findings on Emerging Technologies 59 3.1 Agency Perspectives on Future Technologies 60 3.2 Emerging Technologies 69 Chapter 4 Conclusions 69 4.1 Improving Technology Implementations 70 4.2 Disseminating Study Findings 73 Glossary of Acronyms 76 Appendices

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TRB’s Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP) Report 84, e-Transit: Electronic Business Strategies for Public Transportation Volume 8, Improving Public Transportation Technology Implementations and Anticipating Emerging Technologies explores the value of current technologies used in public transportation, examines methods for improving the success of technology implementation, and reviews five promising emerging technologies with application for transit agencies.

The declining costs of communications, data storage, and data retrieval are accelerating the opportunities spawned by the Internet and other information and communications technologies. Choosing and sequencing investments in technologies, processes, and people to reduce costs and increase productivity present challenges to the transit manager, who must weigh the costs, benefits, and risks of changing the ways services are delivered. To assist in meeting such challenges, the TCRP Report 84: e-Transit: Electronic Business Strategies for Public Transportation series documents principles, techniques, and strategies that are used in electronic business for public transportation.

Appendices for TCRP Report 84, Volume 8 include the following:

* Appendix A: Summary of the Transit Agency Leader Focus Group

* Appendix B: Summary of the ITS America 2005 Transit GM Summit

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