National Academies Press: OpenBook
Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2009. Controlling System Costs: Basic and Advanced Scheduling Manuals and Contemporary Issues in Transit Scheduling. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14257.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2009. Controlling System Costs: Basic and Advanced Scheduling Manuals and Contemporary Issues in Transit Scheduling. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14257.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2009. Controlling System Costs: Basic and Advanced Scheduling Manuals and Contemporary Issues in Transit Scheduling. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14257.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2009. Controlling System Costs: Basic and Advanced Scheduling Manuals and Contemporary Issues in Transit Scheduling. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14257.
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Page R4
Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2009. Controlling System Costs: Basic and Advanced Scheduling Manuals and Contemporary Issues in Transit Scheduling. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14257.
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Page R5
Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2009. Controlling System Costs: Basic and Advanced Scheduling Manuals and Contemporary Issues in Transit Scheduling. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14257.
×
Page R6
Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2009. Controlling System Costs: Basic and Advanced Scheduling Manuals and Contemporary Issues in Transit Scheduling. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14257.
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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 135 Controlling System Costs: Basic and Advanced Scheduling Manuals and Contemporary Issues in Transit Scheduling Daniel Boyle DAN BOYLE & ASSOCIATES, INC. San Diego, CA John Pappas JOHN E. PAPPAS TRANSIT CONSULTANT Brooklyn, NY Phillip Boyle PHILLIP BOYLE & ASSOCIATES Melbourne, Australia Bonnie Nelson NELSON/NYGAARD CONSULTING ASSOCIATES San Francisco, CA David Sharfarz NELSON/NYGAARD CONSULTING ASSOCIATES Boston, MA Howard Benn Silver Spring, MD Subject Areas Public Transit T R A N S P O R TAT I O N R E S E A R C H B O A R D WASHINGTON, D.C. 2009 www.TRB.org Research sponsored by the Federal Transit Administration in cooperation with the Transit Development Corporation

TCRP REPORT 135 Project A-29 ISSN 1073-4872 ISBN 978-0-309-11783-8 Library of Congress Control Number 2009928289 © 2009 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 introduce 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 inno- vative 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 successful 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. Proposed by the U.S. Department of Trans- portation, TCRP was authorized as part of the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991 (ISTEA). On May 13, 1992, a memorandum agreement outlining TCRP operating procedures was exe- cuted by the three cooperating organizations: FTA, the National Academies, acting through the Trans- portation Research Board (TRB); and the Transit Development Corporation, Inc. (TDC), a nonprofit educational and research organization established by APTA. TDC is responsible for forming the inde- pendent 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 identifying 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 statements (requests for proposals), select contractors, and provide technical 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 programs since 1962. As in other TRB activities, TCRP project panels serve voluntarily with- out compensation. Because research cannot have the desired impact if products fail to reach the intended audience, spe- cial emphasis is placed on disseminating 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 supporting 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 135 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, Editor TCRP PROJECT A-29 PANEL Field of Operations John F. Potts, DMP Group, New Orleans, LA (Chair) Fabian Cevallos, Florida International University, Miami, FL H. James Froehlich, Capital Area Transportation Authority, Lansing, MI Arthur N. Gaudet, Arthur N. Gaudet & Associates, Carrolton, TX Michael Glikin, Metropolitan Transportation Authority—New York City Transit, New York, NY Barbara MacDonald, Veolia Transportation, Las Vegas, NV Steven F. Ponte, Eastern Contra Costa Transit Authority, Antioch, CA Dave Rynerson, New Jersey Transit Corporation, Newark, NJ Steven Silkunas, Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, Philadelphia, PA Venkat Pindiprolu, FTA Liaison Peter Shaw, TRB Liaison AUTHOR ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This manual was prepared under TCRP Project A-29 by Dan Boyle & Associates, Inc. (prime contractor for the study), John E. Pappas Transit Consultant, Phillip Boyle & Associates, Nelson/Nygaard Consulting Associates, and Howard Benn. Daniel Boyle, President of Dan Boyle & Associates, Inc., was the principal investigator with overall responsibility for the project and the pri- mary author of the blocking and rostering chapters. John Pappas was the primary author for the chapters on schedule writing and rail sched- uling. Phillip Boyle wrote the runcutting chapter and authored several of the advanced topic discussions. All team members freely edited each other’s work throughout the project; Bonnie Nelson of Nelson/Nygaard did the final edit. Howard Benn served as senior advisor and was the final arbiter for technical disputes among the team. Mr. Benn also contributed the sections on overtime optimization and rail terminal layout. Daniel Boyle, John Pappas, Phillip Boyle, and David Sharfarz (Nelson/Nygaard Consulting Associates) conducted the background case stud- ies. David Jorns of Nelson/Nygaard designed and produced the final document for TCRP. Dan Boyle & Associates, Inc., is grateful to all the transit agencies who responded to the lengthy survey on transit scheduling. The team espe- cially thanks the schedulers and others at the 12 case study agencies for providing detailed information on their scheduling practices. We grate- fully acknowledge the guidance of the A-29 project panel and the guidance and assistance provided by Gwen Chisholm Smith of TCRP throughout the project. 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 135: Controlling System Costs: Basic and Advanced Scheduling Manuals and Contemporary Issues in Transit Scheduling is an update to TCRP Report 30: Transit Scheduling: Basic and Advanced Manuals and addresses contemporary issues in transit scheduling. TCRP Report 135 provides information on available scheduling tools and techniques and their capabilities. Also, the report provides guidance to transit agencies on a variety of scheduling issues typically faced in a tran- sit operating environment. The results of this research may be used by new or experienced schedulers, planners, operating managers, and chief executive officers. TCRP Report 30: Transit Scheduling: Basic and Advanced Manuals was published in 1998. This was the first documenta- tion of transit scheduling practices since the American Transit Association (APTA’s predecessor) published the Manual of Transit Scheduling in 1947. Although TCRP Report 30 documented the state of the practice in 1998, there have been considerable changes in ser- vice design and scheduling practices since then. Specifically, transit agencies have increasingly turned to computer- assisted scheduling methods. Computer-assisted scheduling has the capability of refining operating schedules and work assignments to generate a highly cost-effective set of operator and vehicle assignments. This report provides updated guidance for transit-scheduling activities. To assist in the development of TCRP Report 135, the research team conducted case studies to document, evaluate, and compare the merits of each type of work assignment used by small, medium, and large transit systems. The case studies include the pros and cons of using each assignment methodology. In TCRP Report 135, the research team updates the basic and advanced sections of TCRP Report 30 and includes a glos- sary that defines terminology and identifies common synonyms. TCRP Report 135 addresses scheduling issues related to (a) service running times, (b) service recovery, (c) meal and rest breaks, (d) optimization of transfers, (e) clockface or mem- F O R E W O R D By Gwen Chisholm Smith Staff Officer Transportation Research Board

ory headways, (f) through routing, (g) interlining, (h) headway-interval scheduling, (i) skip-stop and limited-stop opera- tions, (j) long-route operating assessment, (k) part-time operators, (l) alternative work-week structure, (m) application of service level standards, (n) data integration, and (o) operator relief techniques and relative costs. Finally, TCRP Report 135 discusses computerized scheduling system implementation issues.

S-1 Summary 1-1 Chapter 1. Introduction to the Transit Scheduling Manual 2-1 Chapter 2. Inputs to the Scheduling Process 3-1 Chapter 3. Schedule Building 4-1 Chapter 4. Schedule Blocking 5-1 Chapter 5. Runcutting 6-1 Chapter 6. Rostering 7-1 Chapter 7. Rail Scheduling G-1 Glossary C O N T E N T S

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TRB’s Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP) Report 135: Controlling System Costs: Basic and Advanced Scheduling Manuals and Contemporary Issues in Transit Scheduling explores information on available scheduling tools and techniques and their capabilities. Also, the report provides guidance to transit agencies on a variety of scheduling issues typically faced in a transit operating environment.

TCRP Report 135 is an update to TCRP Report 30: Transit Scheduling: Basic and Advanced Manuals and addresses contemporary issues in transit scheduling. The appendixes to TCRP Report 135 were published as TCRP Web-Only Document 45: Appendixes to TCRP Report 135: Controlling System Costs: Basic and Advanced Scheduling Manuals and Contemporary Issues in Transit Scheduling.

An interactive scheduling manual is available as an ISO image. Links to the ISO image and instructions for burning a CD-ROM from an ISO image are provided below. Once a CD-ROM has been made with the ISO image, open the folder on the CD-ROM called Interactive Scheduling Manual and click on Transit_Scheduling_Lessons.pps.

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