Planning is the first phase in a systematic approach towards a better implementation for Bus Signal Priority (BSP), and is required by the U.S. Department of Transportation as the first step of a standard system engineering approach for any federally funded intelligent transportation systems (ITS) project. Numerous studies have focused on various aspects of BSP design and operation; however, less attention is paid to the planning phase of a BSP project. This study concentrates directly on planning for a BSP implementation project. The proposed framework is entirely based on micro-simulation; it requires a basic concept design for the BSP system which is under planning. This concept design should be available from the planning steps that precede the choosing of intersections that should be equipped with a BSP. The framework evaluates different scenarios for BSP at individual intersections by looking at their marginal impact on the entire network and on the intersection. At last, the intersection-level scenarios that result in the maximum total marginal improvement are selected for BSP implementation. The final output of the framework, provides information on which intersections should be equipped with BSP, and which bus lines are eligible to receive this priority at each intersection. The proposed framework is demonstrated on the network of downtown Dover, DE. An 18% savings in network average bus delay and no significant disbenefit to automobile traffic are achieved. The benefits translate into rough minimum savings of $0.25M per year just by implementing this framework during a peak traffic hour.
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