Opportunities to improve bus rapid transit in China – A comparison of several BRT systems around the world

Over the last few years, China has added bus priority corridors at a faster pace than any other parts of the world. As the number of bus rapid transit (BRT) systems increases in Chinese cities, it becomes critical to identify the key factors that influence the operation performance and service quality of BRT systems. We formulated a methodology to compare weaknesses and strengths in the design of Chinese BRT systems, using information from previous editions of the ITDP BRT Standard, which includes evaluations made by several experts on the quality of the design features of BRTs.

Using an econometric approach and data from the Global BRT database, we also quantified the impact of the quality of the design features of BRT on its productivity. The dataset used to estimate the regression models covers more than 99 BRT corridors, in 59 cities and 21 countries. We found that Chinese BRTs obtained significantly scores lower than BRTs in other countries, which is equivalent to an average decrease in productivity of approximately 5,000 passengers per kilometer. The presentation will discuss possible explanations for this decrease in productivity.

We will also present a beta version of an online tool created to compare BRT systems around the world, which can be accessed at http://www.pabloguarda.com/tableau-dashboard.html

The webinar will be presented through Adobe Connect. So to attend the broadcasting you only need to enter through this link on the date specified above.

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Juan Miguel Velásquez y Pablo Guarda

Juan Miguel Velásquez is a Senior Associate in the Transport Practice of the Centre of Excellence in Bus Rapid Transit (BRT), where he supports the research agenda across its network in Brazil, Mexico, India and China in the areas of transport project impact evaluation, implementation of sustainable urban transport solutions and new vehicle technologies in public transport. Prior to joining WRI, he was a researcher and lecturer at the Regional and Urban Sustainability Research Group (SUR) at Universidad de los Andes, in Bogotá, Colombia. He is a civil engineer from Universidad de los Andes and holds a Master of Science in Transport from Imperial College and University College in London.

Pablo Guarda is currently a Transport Research Intern at the WRI Ross Center for Sustainable Cities. He conducts research and data analysis as part of its project with the Inter-American Development Bank and the Global Environment Facility to promote low carbon technology transfer in Latin America and the Caribbean. He is also supporting a project with the Bus Rapid Transit Centre of Excellence (BRT CoE) aimed at improving the next generation of BRT systems in China. (Website:http://www.pabloguarda.com/).