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General Overview

Type of stakeholder

EICS Framework

Region of Reference

Africa
Asia
Australia
Europe
North-America
South-America
World

Description

This intervention entails the provision of alternate modes of public transport in the event of unscheduled service disruptions. Disruptions in public transport can have a significant impact on both passengers and service providers. Disruptions can result in an increase in nominal travel time for passengers, due to additional waiting time, vehicle delays, or transfers [4]. Any increase in travel time, especially waiting time, will increase opportunities for criminals to conduct illegal acts, including sexual harassment and assault. The provision of a network-wide alternative route strategy for unanticipated delays, including agreements with other modes of transport and operators, is a best practice in planning for disruptions [2]. Pender et al. (2017) found through the survey that bus bridging is the most common response to metro disruption, especially line blockages [3,5].

Decisions regarding alternative mode provision must be made timeously and communicated properly, to minimise the impact on the consumer. Examples of this would be to communicate decisions of closure based on weather forecasts several hours in advance, informing customers that no service would be available after a specific period. This enables the customer to continue using the service whilst it is still running or to make alternate arrangements during the shutdown [2].

Facts/Illustrations/Case studies

All railway services that participated in a 2017 study from Sweden reported that they utilised dedicated rail replacement bus services as an alternate mode of transportation during disruptions, in addition to referring customers to existing public transportation options [2]. Twelve of the railways that responded to the questionnaire stated that they used historical passenger count data to estimate the number of passengers and thus the number of buses required, with one member using historical data and subtracting 20% to account for passengers who arrange their own transport or do not continue to the planned destination [2].

Types of Impact

To/from the stop/station/rank✕
Waiting for train/bus/paratransit✓
In the vehicle✓
At interchanges✓

This intervention would have an effect on waiting time, as timely information and alternate public transportation options can help minimise travel time. The utilisation of an alternate method of public transport may have an effect on the amount of time spent in an alternative vehicle mode. Trains are normally faster than buses, owing to their dedicated infrastructure; nevertheless, using alternate forms of transport might add to journey time, as buses contend with traffic on shared routes. If information is not supplied promptly, it can have an effect on the amount of time spent at an interchange.

Day-time travel✓
Night-time travel✓
Peak-time travel✓
Off peak-time travel✓

All travel time categories could be positively impacted by this intervention, depending on the scale of implementation. This is especially true for peak-hour travel, as this intervention has the potential to cut waiting and travel times when passengers are informed of interruptions, i.e., when consumers avoid unnecessary journeys to public transportation systems that are experiencing disruptions.

Bus✓
Train✓
Rideshare✕
4 wheelers informal✓
3 wheelers informal✓
2 wheelers informal✓
Cycling✓
Walking✓

This intervention may have an effect on all forms of travel, since passengers would be able to choose between various modes of public transit based on availability, reliability, and other variables. Even walking and cycling could be considered as alternatives.

Girls✓
Boys✓
Adult Women✓
Men✓
Elderly Women✓
LGBTQI+✓

This intervention could benefit all public transport users, as the availability of alternative means of public transport, particularly if information is made available in a timely manner, could result in reduced travel time for all affected passengers, regardless of their demographic.

Resources

Monetary Resource Requirements
No capital expenditures are associated with the provision of alternative services during disruptions. Due to the availability of alternative modes of transport, public transport service providers must maintain an excess of rolling stock to accommodate consumers who choose to use the system during service interruptions. This also influences operating costs, as the additional stock contributes to the cost.
Capital Cost Requirements Operational Cost Requirements
Non-Monetary Resource Requirements
This intervention requires some trained individuals to forecast service disruptions in advance; this includes obtaining data on probable extreme weather conditions that could affect a service, as well as projecting whether other significant events will impair the service. With modern computer systems however, the requirements for skilled personnel are not too involved. This intervention may take time to implement, and additional time concerns include time spent acquiring data that will aid in avoiding these unpredictable incidents. This intervention demands political will, particularly in the case of government-provided public transport, to free up the funding the required for the provision of alternatives at minimal cost and inconvenience to the user.
Skills Time Political Will

SWOT Analysis

Convenient and fast for the user to have an alternative transport mode at the ready
Improvement in user experience
Effective method to reduce time spent in the transport system

Budget restrictions may limit expenditure
As soon as implementation stops, the benefits stop

Reduction in delays caused by disrupted system
Integration of ticketing systems to ensure seamless transfer to alternative mode during disruption

Potentially longer travel time
Unreliable alternative service
Potential need to transfer when using alternative service
Overcrowding in alternative mode due to disruption in original system

Effectiveness

This intervention has the potential to be very effective because it allows consumers to use alternate modes of transportation while reducing delays. While the government recognises the benefits of providing alternative modes of transportation, budget constraints make implementation difficult. Even as the provision of alternative transportation options will benefit women and maybe the government, the quality of implementation will determine its effectiveness.

Perception by (female) passengers
Perception by governing bodies
Level of confidence in these ratings

Implementation

Implementing this intervention takes time at first, particularly the preparatory work, such as determining the additional rolling stock required to implement alternative modes of operation during disruptions and developing feasible contingency plans for the transport network. Benefits arise while the intervention is carried out and continue to accumulate as passengers are exposed to it.

Implementation timeframe

0-1 year✓
1-3 years✕
>3 years✕

Timeframe to realise benefits

0-1 year✓
1-3 years✕
>3 years✕

Scale of Implementation

This intervention can be implemented at a station/suburb or city level.

National

Regional

City

Station or
Suburb

Ease of Implementation

This intervention takes a fair amount of effort to implement, as it requires some skilled personnel to properly develop contingency plans for different eventualities. The availability of alternative options and the funding thereof also complicate implementation.

List of References

Africa

1. Simmer CM, Roebuck PCS. Action in Public Transport Cost Implications of the. 2000;(July):17-20.

Europe

2. Piner D, Condry B. International best practices in managing unplanned disruption to suburban rail services. Transp Res Procedia. 2017;25:4403-4410. doi:10.1016/j.trpro.2017.05.331

3. Wang J, Yuan Z, Yin Y. Optimization of Bus Bridging Service under Unexpected Metro Disruptions with Dynamic Passenger Flows. J Adv Transp. 2019;2019. doi:10.1155/2019/6965728

World

4. Yap M, Cats O. Predicting disruptions and their passenger delay impacts for public transport stops. Transportation (Amst). 2021;48(4):1703-1731. doi:10.1007/s11116-020-10109-9

5. Pender B, Currie G, Delbosc A, Shiwakoti N. Social media utilisation during unplanned passenger rail disruption - What’s not to “Like”? Australas Transp Res Forum, ATRF 2013 - Proc. 2013;(October):1-14.

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