Evaluation of the travel demand and proper solution suggestion for developing public bus transport: a case study in Ahwaz city

Abstract

This paper on developing public bus transit is from the proceedings of 14th International Conference on Urban Transport and the Environment in the 21st Century, which was held in Malta in 2008. The authors described the evaluation of the travel demand and suggest a proper solution for developing public bus transport in Ahwaz city in Iran. They focus on problems with the present public bus transportation in Ahwaz city and how to evaluate bus travel demand by using population data. The paper also offers three methods that can be used to determine the number of transit vehicles needed for solving passenger transport demand. The authors conclude that the determination of the optimal route is the most important step in planning optimal bus system and should include proper spread network rules, minimum lapping of lines, absence of concentration of lines in one zone, and proper line numbers.