A framework for evaluating operations control on a metro line: integrating multiple perspectives and automatically collected train and passenger movement data

Transit operations control, the task of implementing the operations plan in daily operations on a metro line, plays a key role in service delivery because it determines the quality of the service experienced by passengers. Yet, it is one of the most poorly understood aspects of rail transit operations. Faced with a disruption or infeasibility, dispatchers typically choose between several response strategies. However, to date, it has been very difficult to evaluate the positive and negative effects of individual control strategies with respect to operations and passenger travel times under real-world conditions. This paper proposes a framework for the study of rail operations control decisions that integrates automatically collected service and passenger demand data, which are increasingly available and accessible to transit agencies. The framework supports a multiperspective analysis methodology that can inform operational policies and plans, and help operations control decision-makers choose the most appropriate strategies to manage service. By using automatically collected data, taking into consideration the operations control decision environment, and acknowledging that the reliability of the resulting service depends on many factors endogenous to it, this paper takes a distinctly different approach from previous studies, which have relied heavily on modeling, assumed simple operating contexts, and did not consider the full range of available data. Two real-world applications of the framework, where control decisions are evaluated in terms of their operational and passenger impacts, are presented. The methodology is found to be versatile and valuable in providing insights that could not have been gained otherwise. Although the framework is applied to the London Underground, its logic, structure, and procedures are applicable and transferable to other metro systems recognizing that certain specifics would need to be tailored to the available data.Transport for London (Organization

Service Reliability Measurement Using Automated Fare Card Data Application to the London Underground

This paper explores the potential of using automated fare card data to quantify the reliability of service as experienced by passengers of rail transit systems. The distribution of individual passenger journey times can be accurately estimated for those systems requiring both entry and exit fare card validation. With the use of this information, a set of service reliability measures is developed that can be used to routinely monitor performance, gain insights into the causes of unreliability, and serve as an input into the evaluation of transit service. An estimation methodology is proposed that classifies performance into typical and nonrecurring conditions, which allows analysts to estimate the level of unreliability attributable to incidents. The proposed measures are used to characterize the reliability of one line in the London Underground under typical and incident-affected conditions with the use of data from the Oyster smartcard system for the morning peak period. A validation of the methodology with the use of incident-log data confirms that a large proportion of the unreliability experienced by passengers can be attributed to incidentrelated disruptions. In addition, the study revealed that the perceived reliability component of the typical Underground trip exceeds its platform wait time component and equals about half of its on-train travel time as well as its station access and egress time components, suggesting that sizable improvements in overall service quality can be attained through reliability improvements

Wie fragt man eine Datenbank des 18. Jahrhunderts ab? [Rezension von:] Elisabeth Décultot (Hg.): Lesen, Kopieren, Schreiben. Lese- und Exzerpierkunst in der europäischen Literatur des 18. Jahrhunderts. Übersetzt aus dem Französischen. Berlin: Ripperger & Kremers 2014

Peer Reviewe

Unverbesserlich? Der Mensch als Krise der Utopie [Rezension von:] Matthias Löwe: Idealstaat und Anthropologie. Problemgeschichte der literarischen Utopie im späten 18. Jahrhundert. Berlin/Boston: de Gruyter 2012

Peer Reviewe

Stories from Earth: Adalbert Stifter and the Poetics of Earth History

This dissertation investigates "geological" literature in the 19th century, and aims to describe a poetics of the earth sciences. Focusing on the work of Adalbert Stifter (1805-1868), whose literary experiments translate and transform scientific knowledge, the dissertation argues that the modern scientific approaches to the "history of the earth," primarily meteorology, geology, and biology, present complex and often contradictory narratives. Meteorological contingency, geological "deep time," and proto-ecological environmental thought call into question religious cosmogonies and modern anthropocentrism alike. In Stifter's stories and novels, scientific worlds without humans confront the anthropological conventions of an ordered literary tradition in surprising and productive ways, which may not resolve into a satisfying grand narrative of earth and humankind, but do point to an objective, impersonal tendency in modern literature that is often overlooked. At the same time, as a genre of writing, literary texts demonstrate a capacity for self-reflection that sheds light on the poetic structures of other forms of knowledge, both theoretical and practical. Situating Stifter within a larger discursive context that features authors such as Goethe, A. von Humboldt, C. G. Carus, Lyell, Viollet-le-Duc, Darwin and E. Haeckel, this study addresses epistemological, aesthetic and social issues that are central to 19th-century culture, from the concept of the event and the statistical collection, to the problem of time in the representation of landscape and the role of geology as a model for historical reconstructions, and finally, the problem of life, its genealogy and its milieu

Accelerating Bus Electrification: A Mixed Methods Analysis of Barriers and Drivers to Scaling Transit Fleet Electrification

Although transit buses have a relatively small impact on greenhouse gas emissions, they have a larger impact on urban air quality, have commercially available electric models, and have historically commercialized clean technologies that enabled deployment in other heavy-duty vehicles. This paper investigates what factors affect transit agencies’ decisions to go beyond electric bus pilots to larger scale deployments, with the goal of identifying strategies to enable an accelerated transition to an electrified fleet. This mixed methods analysis utilized quantitative total cost of ownership analysis and qualitative interviews to study the barriers and drivers of electric bus investment for transit fleets in three case study states: California, Kentucky, and Massachusetts. A total cost of ownership analysis estimated electric buses are already more cost-effective than diesel buses in many agency contexts, but are sensitive to key parameters such as annual mileage, fossil fuel costs, and electricity tariffs and supporting policies that vary widely. Though multiple agencies in California reported planning to fully electrify their fleets, outside California where less supportive policies exist, fewer agencies reported planning to procure additional electric buses, primarily owing to high first cost and undesirable tradeoffs with maintaining transit service levels. Interview respondents also reported other substantial barriers such as oversubscribed grant programs, charging infrastructure costs, electricity costs, and additional operational complexity, suggesting a need for multiple complementary policies to overcome these barriers and ensure agencies can transition to a new technology without affecting transit service

Real-Time Ridesharing Opportunities and Challenges in Using Mobile Phone Technology to Improve Rideshare Services

recent years, an innovative ridesharing service relying heavily on advanced mobile phone technologies known as real-time ridesharing or dynamic ridesharing, has gained popularity in some groups: providers, organizations, and employers. Traditionally, rideshare arrangements between two or more unrelated individuals for commuting purposes have been relatively inflexible, long-term arrangements. Real-time ridesharing attempts to add flexibility to rideshare arrangements by allowing drivers and passengers to arrange occasional shared rides ahead of time or on short notice. The addition of this service innovation presents opportunities to overcome existing rideshare challenges but also leads to new challenges. The overall goal of this study was to provide a foundation for further real-time ridesharing research. The aims of the study were to identify, highlight, and discuss the potential benefits of and obstacles to real-time ridesharing and to point to the next steps to understand better and possibly advance this mode of travel. A definition of real-time ridesharing was given, followed by a comprehensive categorization of challenges hindering greater rideshare participation. The information gathered suggested that rather than being a single challenge to be overcome, the rideshare challenge was a series of economic, behavioral, institutional, and technological obstacles to be addressed. Potential opportunities and obstacles created by real-time innovations were then highlighted. Several recommendations are provided toward next steps to understand further how rideshare participants use real-time services, focusing on the need for multiple, comprehensive trials of real-time rideshare

Employee Transportation Benefits in High Transit Mode Share Areas: University Case Study

Employers large and small in urban areas are beset by steadily increasing costs of providing heavily subsidized parking for their employees. Motivated by this problem and by creating a more sustainable policy for their institution, a group of graduate students and faculty participated in a special studies course during the spring 2007 semester at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). The resulting proposal is currently under consideration by MIT’s administration to help control costs for the university and increase the use of public transportation to campus. This paper first reviews previous research into group transit purchase programs. In these programs employers become the purchasing agent for transit passes for all their employees. Rather than paying the full cost of a pass for each employee, they pay on the basis of current transit usage at the work site. Traditionally, these programs have been implemented in low transit mode share areas. In higher transit mode share contexts, the motivations for employees and employers to participate are substantially altered. Different variations on these programs are explored before arriving at what is being called a mobility pass, which combines the parking and transit benefits programs offered by many employers into a single program. The class proposed that a mobility pass be implemented for MIT. It is predicted that this will result in significant reduction in single-occupancy vehicle mode share and a more sound financial footing for the university with respect to its growing transportation benefit subsidy. It is concluded that a program with a phased design would help control the university’s costs in the long run and reduce the cost of more than 80% of students’ and employees’ commutes. The type of phasing that is required to implement these programs is also examined. Although these issues are explored in a university context, it is believed that the conclusions reached apply broadly to other organizations and their employees

Public Transportation Systems

This course discusses the evolution and role of urban public transportation modes, systems and services, focusing on bus and rail. Technological characteristics are described, along with their impacts on capacity, service quality, and cost. Current practice and new methods for data collection and analysis, performance monitoring, route and network design, frequency determination, and vehicle and crew scheduling are covered. The course also discusses effects of pricing policy and service quality on ridership, methods for estimating costs associated with proposed service changes, organizational models for delivering public transportation service including finance and operations, and select transit management topics including labor relations, fare policy and technology, marketing and operations management