Does improving stop amenities help increase Bus Rapid Transit ridership? Findings based on a quasi-experiment

Abstract

Amenities at bus stops are thought to affect transit ridership, yet this relationship is rarely quantified. We assembled data on ridership and stop amenities, including Real-Time Information System (RTIS), shelters, lighting, litter receptacles, benches, and bike hoops, at 96 stops along two new Bus Rapid Transit lines in King County, Washington, between Fall 2012 and Fall 2014. We applied the Conditional Inference Tree method to identify combinations of amenity changes that characterized amenity installation patterns and examined the associations between changes in amenities and changes in ridership at stop-level. Compared to stops with the fewest changes, stops had a higher likelihood of increases in boardings if their combination of amenity changes included new RTIS, shelters, and bike hoops. There were no significant relationships between amenity changes and alightings. Stop amenities are positively associated with higher transit ridership, however, some amenities are more impactful than others.

Keywords

• Bus Rapid Transit
• Infrastructure improvement
• Service quality
• Urban design
• Conditional inference tree