The Causal Effect of Bus Rapid Transit on Changes in Transit Ridership
Document Type
Journal Article
Publication Date
2017
Subject Area
place - north america, place - urban, mode - bus rapid transit, mode - bus, ridership - growth
Keywords
Bus rapid transit (BRT), transit ridership
Abstract
Numerous studies have reported ridership increases along routes when Bus rapid transit (BRT) replaces conventional bus service, but these increases could be due simply to broader temporal trends in transit ridership. To address this limitation, we compared changes in ridership among routes where BRT was implemented to routes where BRT was planned or already existed in King County, Washington. Ridership was measured at 2010, 2013, and 2014. Ridership increased by 35% along routes where BRT was implemented from 2010 to 2013 compared to routes that maintained conventional bus service. Ridership increased by 29% along routes where BRT was implemented from 2013 to 2014 compared to consistent existing BRT service. These results provide stronger evidence for a causal relationship between BRT and increased transit ridership and a more accurate estimate of the independent effect of BRT on ridership.
Rights
Permission to publish the abstract has been given by the Journal of Public Transportation, copyright remains with them.
Recommended Citation
Stewart, O.T., Moudon, A.V., & Saelens, B.E. (2017). The Causal Effect of Bus Rapid Transit on Changes in Transit Ridership. Journal of Public Transportation, Vol. 20 (1), pp. 91-103.
