Transit agencies are increasingly looking to prioritize investments that can be implemented at relatively low-cost, such as Transit Signal Priority (TSP). This project examined traffic signal and surface transit routes in Philadelphia and developed a method of scoring road segments on their likelihood for successful and cost-effective TSP investments. The Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission (DVRPC), the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) for the bi-state Philadelphia region, developed a proposed set of criteria to evaluate and compare prospective TSP corridors. The criteria are based on a review of industry best practices and available data sources, drawing on measures that are a) available at the corridor or county level, b) simple and legible, and c) transparently related to anticipated TSP success, either positively or negatively. The criteria were input into a geographic information system (GIS) model where they were mapped to a network of 1-mile road segments, making it possible to score and rank each segment across all of the criteria. The outcome of this analysis identifies the road segments and corridors where TSP is likely to be the most cost effective and have the greatest operational benefits for transit and all road users. The approach described here is intended to be adaptable for future regional and national projects.
↧