Balancing mass transit ridership through land use development

Abstract

The utmost utility of the transit system can be supported by the balance of ridership. It is not only gaining more operational benefits but also enhancing the efficiency of the system as a whole. Transit Oriented Development (TOD) is defined as an integration between land use and transportation, which focuses on the station areas. Land use characteristics are the essential factors that affect trip generation and trip attraction. Some types of land use generate trips mainly during peak hours. Meanwhile, some other types generate trips during off-peak hours.

This dissertation therefore focuses on the balancing mass transit ridership through land use development which is regarded as a great solution for the sustainable development. The trip distribution models; the Gravity Model and the modified Fluid Analogy Method (FAM), are proposed. The results achieved by the modified FAM prove more robust and will be more reliable when put into practice. The model is further adapted to deal with land use consideration. The results of optimal land use allocation indicate that the residential area should be accumulated at both ends and the center of the transit line, the retail area should be consistently spreading along the whole line, whereas business area should be concentrated in the Central Business District (CBD). The modified FAM is also utilized in practical use with a case study in Thailand, The MRT Blue Line. The scenarios of mixed-use development are initiated to figure out the development guideline of some specific types of land use. The analysis of the effect of mixed-use projects location along the corridor suggests that if the projects are located around well-chosen location, they would substantially enhance the balance of ridership. The contributions from this dissertation are to serve as a foundation of the integration between mass transit and land use to build upon in sustainable development, incorporating TOD.