Transit Dwell Time Under Complex Fare Structure

Abstract

This paper focuses on the effect on passenger dwell time from a complicated fare structure on a bus transit system. Analysis of data collected from three routes of the Southeastern Michigan Transportation Authority (SEMTA) is used as a case study. SEMTA uses a zone fare system. The nine different fare type and payment methods are found not to affect the dwell time significantly. Regression analyses are used to determine independent equations for the boarding and alighting times as a function of the number of passengers at a stop. These equations are compared to those found by past researchers. While the alighting times are similar, the boarding times are much less affected by the number of passengers at a stop. Using Kolmogorov‐Smirnov good‐ness‐of‐fit testing, the aggregate boarding and alighting times are also tested and found not to be significantly different from a lognormal distribution. The research concludes that some type of distance‐based fares could be used without significantly increasing the dwell times.