41–47 of 47 posts
Earlier quoted context omitted.
There's a ramp inside the train that needs to be deployed to bridge the gap to the ramp at the platform.
Sounds like a strange design to me. On most of the train-based public transit I've seen (and even some of the "rapid" buses), the floor of the car is aligned with the floor of the boarding area, such that ramps are unnecessary.
http://www.its.berkeley.edu/publications/UCB/2011/VWP/UCB-IT...
...And here's a product we created to commercialize this research:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQXZybHO52A
Full disclosure: I am a co-founder along with the authors of the above paper of Via Analytics:
v-a.io
Bunching happens a lot when one delay causes one bus/streetcar/train to hold up all the ones behind it. Best solution is letting transit vehicles going the opposite direction to turn ahead ahead of the bottleneck and serve the passengers waiting at the stations in front of the delay area.
Another solution would be to have the lead bus skip pickup at a stop (or two). You'd need clear and solid signage to assuage people waiting though. Something like "Behind schedule, dropoff only. Next bus arrives in 2 minutes".
Earlier quoted context omitted.
My dad always causes a ~90 second delay for the Denver light rail, because the operator has to activate the wheelchair ramp for him. How do they handle that sort of thing in Tokyo? (Also, I often see multiple light-rail trains bunched up after sporting events.)
Perhaps they just speed the train up to bridge the time gap. That seems like the simplest solution. Do light rails run on a set speed?
At least for light rail, it's quite normal to have trains stop for a good few minutes in certain stations. If there are delays, I'm sure that time gets cut.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
So, pay as you board.
Not in a way that delays you - the driver doesn't count change or anything.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
The first thing I'd want to know, to see whether this is true, is "when two buses clump, do they both arrive between the scheduled arrival time for bus 1 and bus 2, or do they both arrive on time for bus 2?" The only time I've personally experienced bus clumping, they were both late (for the bus 2 time). That doesn't suggest that bus 2 was being sped up relative to expectation.
If buses don't generally pass each other (for reasons of both practicality of doing so the way stops are laid out, safety and policy), bus 2 making their schedule is dependent on bus 1. So if bus 2 is late, it can be bus 1's fault.
> I've noticed that in the "two come along at once" scenario, the second bus often leapfrogs the first, skipping a stop while the first bus picks up passengers.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
If buses don't generally pass each other (for reasons of both practicality of doing so the way stops are laid out, safety and policy), bus 2 making their schedule is dependent on bus 1. So if bus 2 is late, it can be bus 1's fault.
But they do pass each other. Look at quarterto's comment: > I've noticed that in the "two come along at once" scenario, the second bus often leapfrogs the first, skipping a stop while the first bus picks up passengers.