A Review and Prospect of Urban Public Transit Level-of-Service
Research

doi:10.16097/j.cnki.1009-6744.2022.01.001

Abstract

Abstract: This paper summaries the evolution of the concept of level- of- service (LOS) in transportation system and describes the characteristics of LOS in different stages. The implication of LOS has expanded from merely focusing on road design to incorporate multi-modal and wide operational areas. The LOS of public transit include two major components: transport efficiency and passengers' comfort, which are respectively associated with transport product design and passengers' perception to the services. The paper further reviews the LOS evaluation and classification research in the public transport system. These evaluation methods are relevant to the LOS elements and can thus be divided into the objective evaluation that are based upon transport efficiency and the subjective evaluation that focus on passengers' perceptions. Because of the differences in each country, the LOS classification of the Transportation Research Board may not be applicable to all countries and situations. The study then analyses the research and practice of public transit LOS in China and suggests that the existing regulations in China can be improved to clearly define the connotation of public transit LOS and include a systematical classification standard that applicable to China. The challenges in improving the LOS are discussed from the aspects of the formation of LOS, the complexity of evaluation factors, multi-links involved in a trip, and the need for government support and investment. Based upon the practices inurban public transit in China, the following three topics are worthy of in-depth study in the future: define and evaluate public transit LOS in consideration of full travel chains; Measure and evaluate the public transit LOS considering the uneven distribution of transit service quality; Satisfaction survey methods focusing on passenger perception differentiation and LOS evaluation methods based on advanced information technology. The paper also provides suggestions on taking LOS improvement as a starting point to promote the enhancement of public transit operation quality and efficiency.

Key words: urban traffic, public transit, level-of- service (LOS), transport efficiency, comfort, evaluation method; classification method

摘要： 系统梳理交通系统服务水平概念的发展，指出服务水平的内涵已从道路设计层面拓展到多方式、运营领域，提出公共交通服务水平构成要素分为效率、舒适度两大部分，两者分别主要关联于运输产品设计和出行者主观感受。回顾和评述了公共交通系统服务水平的评价与分级研究，这些评价方法与服务水平构成要素相对应，分为以运输效率为主的客观评价和以感受调查与分析为主的主观评价；指出了由于国情差异，既有的以美国运输研究委员会发布的相关服务水平分级未必具有普适性。之后，回顾了我国公共交通服务水平的研究与实践，指出当前我国既有规范中未明确公共交通服务水平的内涵、缺乏适用于我国的系统分级。从公共交通服务水平的形成具有全局性、评估因素的复杂性、涉及乘客出行环节多、需要政府支持投资等角度剖析了服务水平改善的难点。指出了未来值得深入研究的3个领域：基于全出行链的公共交通服务水平内涵及评估；考虑服务质量不均衡分布的公共交通系统服务水平测算方法；关注乘客感知差异化的满意度调查和基于现代信息技术的服务水平评估方法。最后，提出了以服务水平为抓手推进公共交通运行质量与效率建设战略的建议。

关键词: 城市交通, 公共交通, 服务水平, 运输效率, 舒适度, 评估方法, 分级方法

CLC Number:

U491.1

MAO Bao-hua , WANG Min , HO Tin-kin , CHEN Hai-bo. A Review and Prospect of Urban Public Transit Level-of-Service Research[J]. Journal of Transportation Systems Engineering and Information Technology, 2022, 22(1): 2-13.

毛保华, 王敏, 何天健, 陈海波. 城市公共交通服务水平研究回顾和展望[J]. 交通运输系统工程与信息, 2022, 22(1): 2-13.

Add to citation manager EndNote|Ris|BibTeX

URL: http://www.tseit.org.cn/EN/10.16097/j.cnki.1009-6744.2022.01.001

http://www.tseit.org.cn/EN/Y2022/V22/I1/2

References

[1] Highway Research Board and Bureau of Public Roads. Highway capacity manual[R]. Washington D.C., 1950.

[2] Highway Research Board. Special report 87: Highway capacity manual (2nd edition) [R]. Washington D.C., 1965.

[3] Transportation Research Board. Special report 209: Highway capacity manual (3rd edition) [R]. Washington D.C., 1985.

[4] Transportation Research Board. Highway capacity manual (4th edition) [R]. Washington D.C., 2000.

[5] Transportation Research Board. Highway capacity manual (5th edition) [R]. Washington D.C., 2010.

[6] PETRIE D. A new highway capacity manual for the 80's and 90's[C]//In Transportation and Traffic Engineering Group: Proceedings of the Technical Session of the Group at the Annual Conference of Institution of Professional Engineers New Zealand, Wellington N. Z., 1985: 296-307.

[7] DREW D R, KEESE C J. Freeway level of service as influenced by volume and capacity characteristics[R]. Texas: Texas Transportation Institute Texas A & M University College Station, 1965.

[8] BOTZOW H. Level- of-service concept for evaluating public transport[J]. Transportation Research Record, 1974(519): 73-84.

[9] FRUIN J J. Designing for pedestrians: A level-of-service concept[J]. Highway Research Record, 1971(335): 1-15.

[10] ROESS R P, MCSHANE W R, PIGNATARO L J. Freeway level of service: A revised approach[J]. Transportation Research Record, 1979(699): 7-16.

[11] HUFF H, LIGGETT R. The highway capacity manual's method for calculating bicycle and pedestrian levels of service: The ultimate white paper[R]. 2014.

[12] DOWLING R, FLANNERY A, LANDIS B, et al. Multimodal level of service for urban streets: Users guide [R]. Washington, D. C.: The National Academies Press, 2008.

[13] GREEN D, ESPADA I. Level of service metrics (for network operations planning) [M]. Sydney: Austroads Ltd., 2015.

[14] Transportation Research Board. Transit Capacity and Quality of Service Manual[R]. Washington D.C., 1999.

[15] Transportation Research Board. TCRP Report 165: Transit Capacity and Quality of Service Manual (3rd edition) [R]. Washington D. C., 2013.

[16] DIOS O D, MARIA I A, ANGELA C. User perception of public transport level of service[C]// 6th Conference Internationale Sur Les Comportements de Deplacements, Chateau Bonne Entente, Quebec, 1991: 7-19.

[17] RUDNICKI A. Measures of regularity and punctuality in public transport operation[J]. IFAC Proceedings Volumes, 1997, 30(8): 661-666.

[18] HENSHER D A, STOPHER P, BULLOCK P. Service quality-developing a service quality index in the provision of commercial bus contracts[J]. Transportation Research Part A, 2003, 37(6): 499-517.

[19] ROESS R P, VANDEHEY M A, KITTELSON W. Level of service: 2010 and beyond[J]. Transportation Research Record, 2010(2173): 20-27.

[20] DAS S, PANDIT D. Importance of user perception in evaluating level of service for bus transit for a developing country like India: A review[J]. Transport Reviews, 2013, 33(4): 402-420.

[21] 毛保华. 公共交通服务能力是交通强国战略的重要标志[J]. 北京交通大学学报(社会科学版), 2018, 17(3): 1- 8. [MAO B H. Public transport capability is an important indicator of national strength in transport[J]. Journal of Beijing Jiaotong University (Social Science Edition), 2018, 17(3): 1-8.]

[22] COHEN S, COTTINET M, TEXIER P. Road operating levels, capacity and level of service[C]// Akcelik R, Reilly W. 2nd International Symposium on Highway Capacity, 1994: 57-66.

[23] LEE J Y S, LAM W H K. Levels of service for stairway in Hong Kong underground stations[J]. Journal of Transportation Engineering, 2003, 129(2): 196-202.

[24] DAS S, PANDIT D. Determination of level-of-service scale values for quantitative bus transit service attributes based on user perception[J]. Transportmetrica A: Transport Science, 2015, 11(1): 1-21.

[25] NDOH N N, ASHFORD N J. Evaluation of transportation level of service using fuzzy sets[J]. Transportation Research Record, 1994(1461): 31-37.

[26] DE OÑA J, DE OÑA R, EBOLI L, et al. Perceived service quality in bus transit service: A structural equation approach[J]. Transport Policy, 2013, 29: 219- 226.

[27] Price waterhouse Coopers (PwC). Improving your commute: Lifting customer service in public transport[R]. Tourism & Transport Forum (TTF), 2011.

[28] FRIMAN M, FELLESSON M. Service supply and customer satisfaction in public transportation: The quality paradox[J]. Journal of Public Transportation, 2009, 12(4): 57-69.

[29] KRAMBLES G. Public transportation in Japan: Contrasts and conclusions[J]. Transit Journal, 1975, 1(3): 29-38.

[30] International Air Transport Association(IATA) and Airport Council International(ACI) World. Improved level of service concept[R]. Canada: IATA & ACI, 2017.

[31] 石道华, 丁勇, 毛保华. 基于设备能力利用的铁路运输服务水平研究[J]. 交通运输系统工程与信息, 2003, 3 (1): 45-50. [SHI D H, DING Y, MAO B H. On levels of service of railway facilities based on capacity utility[J]. Journal of Transportation Systems Engineering and Information Technology, 2003, 3(1): 45-50.]

[32] 沈景炎. 关于车辆定员与拥挤度的探析[J]. 都市快轨交通, 2007, 20(5): 14-18. [SHEN J Y. On the carriage passenger capacity and the crowdedness involved[J]. Urban Rapid Rail Transit, 2007, 20(5): 14-18.]

[33] 史芮嘉. 城市轨道交通系统输送能力利用率测算及优化研究 [D]. 北京: 北京交通大学, 2017. [SHI R J. Calculation and optimization for the conveying capacity utilization of urban rail transit[D]. Beijing: Beijing Jiaotong University, 2017.]

[34] 何天健, 柏赟, 蔡浩, 等. 城市轨道交通系统的运营服务可靠性研究[J]. 交通运输系统工程与信息, 2015, 15 (6): 1- 5, 45. [HO T K, BAI Y, CAI H, et al. Service reliability of urban rail systems[J]. Journal of Transportation Systems Engineering and Information Technology, 2015, 15(6): 1-5, 45.]

[35] 杨晓光, 安健, 刘好德, 等. 公交运行服务质量评价指标体系探讨[J]. 交通运输系统工程与信息, 2010, 10 (4): 13- 21. [YANG X G, AN J, LIU H D, et al. Evaluation architecture discussion of route-level transit service quality[J]. Journal of Transportation Systems Engineering and Information Technology, 2010, 10(4): 13-21.]

[36] 徐以群, 陈茜. 城市公共交通服务水平的指标体系[J]. 城市交通, 2006, 4(6): 42- 46. [XU Y Q, CHEN Q. System of LOS indicators of urban public transportation [J]. Urban Transport of China, 2006, 4(6): 42-46.]

[37] 全永燊, 孙明正. 公交优先理念与实践[J]. 交通运输系统工程与信息, 2007, 7(4): 19-23. [QUAN Y S, SUN M Z. Ideas and practice of public transport priority[J]. Journal of Transportation Systems Engineering and Information Technology, 2007, 7(4): 19-23]

[38] 杨亦慧, 李海鹰, 蒋熙, 等. 考虑信效度的地铁车站通道服务水平研究[J]. 交通运输系统工程与信息, 2016, 16(2): 212-218. [YANG Y H, LI H Y, JIANG X, et al. LOS of pedestrian perception for corridor in subway station considering the reliability and validity[J]. Journal of Transportation Systems Engineering and Information Technology, 2016, 16(2): 212-218.]

[39] CAO S, YUAN Z, LI Y, et al. Study on service-level classification of platforms in Beijing urban rail transit[J]. Transportation Research Record, 2009(2112): 127-135.

[40] 王敏, 毛保华, 杨彦强, 等. 考虑均衡性的城市轨道交通线路负荷水平评估研究[J]. 交通运输系统工程与信息, 2021, 21(1): 98- 104, 118. [WANG M, MAO B H, YANG Y Q, et al. An evaluation approach for line loading of urban rail transit considering train loading evenness[J]. Journal of Transportation Systems Engineering and Information Technology, 2021, 21(1): 98-104, 118.]

[41] 徐龙, 刘莹, 张建波, 等. 基于服务水平的公交车能耗评价方法[J]. 交通运输系统工程与信息, 2018, 18(5): 103-110. [XU L, LIU Y, ZHANG J B, et al. Evaluation method of bus energy consumption based on service level [J]. Journal of Transportation Systems Engineering and Information Technology, 2018, 18(5): 103-110.]

[42] EBOLI L, FORCINITI C, MAZZULLA G. Spatial variation of the perceived transit service quality at rail stations[J]. Transportation Research Part A, 2018, 114: 67-83.

[43] CORREIA A R, WIRASINGHE S C, DE BARROS A G. A global index for level of service evaluation at airport passenger terminals[J]. Transportation Research Part E, 2008, 44(4): 607-620.

[44] ABOU- ZEID M, FUJII S. Travel satisfaction effects of changes in public transport usage[J]. Transportation, 2016, 43(2): 301-314.

[45] BULLARD D, CHRISTIANSEN D L. Level of service concept applied to public transportation[R]. 1981.

[46] 毛保华, 张政, 陈志杰, 等. 城市轨道交通网络化运营组织技术研究评述[J]. 交通运输系统工程与信息, 2017, 17(6): 155-163. [MAO B H, ZHANG Z, CHEN Z J, et al. A review on operational technologies of urban rail transit networks[J]. Journal of Transportation Systems Engineering and Information Technology, 2017, 17(6): 155-163.]

[47] HUO Y, LIU J, ZHANG J, et al. Development of fuzzy level of service criteria for bus rapid transit considering user heterogeneities in China[J]. Journal of Advanced Transportation, 2020, 2020: 8844590.

[48] 葛颖恩, 温馨. 环境可持续集装箱班轮运输管理研究综述[J]. 交通运输系统工程与信息, 2021, 21(4): 6-22. [GE Y E, WEN X. A review of environmentally sustainable container liner shipping management[J]. Journal of Transportation Systems Engineering and Information Technology, 2021, 21(4): 6-22.]

[49] 中华人民共和国交通运输部. 中国城市客运发展报告 (2020)[R]. 北京: 人民交通出版社股份有限公司, 2021. [Ministry of Transport of the People's Republic of China. National report on urban passenger transport development (2020) [R]. Beijing: China Communications Press Co., Ltd, 2021.]

A Review and Prospect of Urban Public Transit Level-of-Service Research

城市公共交通服务水平研究回顾和展望

PDF

PDF(English version)

Knowledge

Abstract

Cite this article

share this article

References

Related Articles 15

Recommended Articles

Metrics

[1]	WANG Ling, WANG Qi, TANG Lei. Spatiotemporal Characteristics of Eco-transport Efficiency in Transport Hub Cities of China [J]. Journal of Transportation Systems Engineering and Information Technology, 2024, 24(1): 14-23.
[2]	CHEN Zheng, ZHAO Wenlong, GUO Fengxiang, ZHAO Zhigang, LIU Yu, LIU Yonggang. Lane Change Trajectory Planning of Intelligent Vehicle Considering Safety and Comfort [J]. Journal of Transportation Systems Engineering and Information Technology, 2024, 24(1): 55-65.
[3]	ZHOU Bei, ZHANG Ying, ZHANG Shengrui, ZHOU Qianxi, WANG Qin. Rear-end Crash Data Imputation Methods Using Generative Adversarial Networks [J]. Journal of Transportation Systems Engineering and Information Technology, 2024, 24(1): 132-137.
[4]	WANG Weili, XIAO Yuqing, ZHOU Hui, ZHANG Weisi. Conflict Analysis of Electric Bicycle and Vehicle at Unsignalized Intersection Based on Game Theory [J]. Journal of Transportation Systems Engineering and Information Technology, 2024, 24(1): 149-158.
[5]	HU Liwei, ZHANG Ruijie, ZHAO Xueting, HE Yu, CHEN Chen, LIU Bing, HOU Zhi. Roundabout Motor Vehicle Conflict Risk Identification Model [J]. Journal of Transportation Systems Engineering and Information Technology, 2024, 24(1): 168-178.
[6]	ZHANG Yinggui, ZHAO Minghui, ZHANG Yunli. Simulation Research on Train Group Tracking Operation with Virtual Coupling for Urban Mass Rail Transit [J]. Journal of Transportation Systems Engineering and Information Technology, 2024, 24(1): 199-209.
[7]	HAO Yanxi, WEI Shutong, HU Hua, WANG Runqi, LIU Zhigang. An Entry and Exit Model for Mobility-impaired Passengers in Subway Stations [J]. Journal of Transportation Systems Engineering and Information Technology, 2024, 24(1): 210-220.
[8]	WENG Jiancheng, ZHANG Yunfei, LIN Pengfei, LI Wenjie. Healthcare Accessibility for the Elderly by Bus Based on Inferring Seeking Healthcare Activities [J]. Journal of Transportation Systems Engineering and Information Technology, 2024, 24(1): 221-229.
[9]	SUN Xiaohui, HUANG Chengyun. An Empirical Study on Locating and Sizing of Take-out Delivery Electric Bicycle Battery Swapping Cabinets [J]. Journal of Transportation Systems Engineering and Information Technology, 2024, 24(1): 230-239.
[10]	GE Xianlong, WANG Bo, YANG Yushu, YANG Tanyue, YIN Zuofa. Coordinated Charging Schedule Optimization for Electric Vehicles Considering Travel Characteristics [J]. Journal of Transportation Systems Engineering and Information Technology, 2024, 24(1): 240-252.
[11]	WU Jingxian, TANG Guikong, LI Wenxiang. Nonlinear Effect of Built Environment on Bike-sharing Ridership at Different Time Periods: A Case Study from Shanghai [J]. Journal of Transportation Systems Engineering and Information Technology, 2024, 24(1): 290-298.
[12]	DENG Mao-ying, DENG Ce-fang. Evaluation of Road Network Density Based on Structure, Efficiency, Fairness and Resilience [J]. Journal of Transportation Systems Engineering and Information Technology, 2023, 23(6): 22-32.
[13]	JING Bin-bin, LIN Yong-jie, YAN Zhu-hao, HUANG Zheng-jie. Concurrent Optimization of Path Selection and Bandwidth-based Coordination for an Unclosed Traffic Network [J]. Journal of Transportation Systems Engineering and Information Technology, 2023, 23(6): 51-62.
[14]	ZHANG Bing, TAO Wen-kang, LIU Jian-rong, XUE Yun-qiang, DENG Ming-jun. Nested Logit Model of Elderly Travel Mode Choice Based on Boundedly Rationality [J]. Journal of Transportation Systems Engineering and Information Technology, 2023, 23(6): 74-82.
[15]	PENG Jin-shuan, YUAN Hao, SONG Zhen, FAN Zi-bin, YANG Xiang-hao, ZHANG Lei. Effect of Cell Phone Use on Pedestrian Crossing Risk During Waiting Stage [J]. Journal of Transportation Systems Engineering and Information Technology, 2023, 23(6): 83-89.