The National Academies Press

Currently Skimming:

Pages 109-126

The Chapter Skim interface presents what we've algorithmically identified as the most significant single chunk of text within every page in the chapter.
Select key terms on the right to highlight them within pages of the chapter.

From page 109... ... 109 C H A P T E R 8 Introduction A widely used set of strategies, actions and initiatives that can contribute to efforts to increase ridership is fare collection/fare structure initiatives. The types of strategies -- and specific actions/examples -- included in this category are shown in Table 8-1. Read the entire page →
From page 110... ... 110 Elements Needed to Create High Ridership Transit Systems Type of Strategy Specific Actions/Examples Fare collection improvements Improved payment convenience Automated fare collection, new prepaid fare options, expanded fare media distribution/reload options Regional payment integration Regional smart card program Fare structure changes Fare structure simplification Elimination of fare zones; elimination of express or rail surcharge Fare reduction Deeply discounted options; reduced base fare; free transfers, free fare zone Table 8-1. Types of fare collection/fare structure initiatives. Read the entire page →
From page 111... ... Fare Collection/Structure Initiatives 111 Mode Service Environment Type of Strategy Bus Rail Large Urban Medium Urban Small Urban Rural Suburb CBD Improved payment convenience + + + + + o + + Regional payment integration + + + + + o + + Fare structure simplification + + + + + + + + Fare reduction + + + + + + + + Key: – = not applicable or inappropriate; o = applicable, but may not be cost-effective; + = applicable and appropriate Table 8-3. Applicable modes/settings for types of fare collection/structure initiatives. Read the entire page →
From page 112... ... 112 Elements Needed to Create High Ridership Transit Systems (e.g., replacing outmoded components and perhaps adding automated technology capabilities) Read the entire page →
From page 113... ... Fare Collection/Structure Initiatives 113 Cost/Revenue Considerations Fare Collection Changes Fare collection equipment is often a customized product, with many factors influencing cost. Much fare collection equipment is built in response to specific orders, partly because each agency's requirements impose somewhat different design constraints -- even if major modules or subassemblies are the same among several orders. Read the entire page →
From page 114... ... 114 Elements Needed to Create High Ridership Transit Systems Expected Ridership Response The most widely used indicator of the expected ridership response to a particular type of fare change is elasticity.1 Chapter 12 (Transit Pricing and Fares) of TCRP Report 95: Traveler Response to Transportation System Changes) Read the entire page →
From page 115... ... Fare Collection/Structure Initiatives 115 reloading these payment options, and the ease of use of the fare collection system. This section discusses the types and capabilities of automated fare collection technologies (i.e., magnetic farecards and smartcards) Read the entire page →
From page 116... ... 116 Elements Needed to Create High Ridership Transit Systems the opportunity for establishment of new types of fare media distribution methods; the latter are discussed below. Some agencies have used electronic media to essentially automate their existing options, while others have totally revamped their fare structures with the installation of electronic technology. Read the entire page →
From page 117... ... Fare Collection/Structure Initiatives 117 • Farecard discount relative to use of cash -- A farecard can carry a lower per trip fare than if paying cash. For instance, the CTA recently (January 2006) Read the entire page →
From page 118... ... 118 Elements Needed to Create High Ridership Transit Systems of-town visitors, as many agencies have sold/distributed them only through hotels, convention centers, and other off-site locations. However, as discussed further under Fare Structure Changes, below, agencies are beginning to view day passes as alternatives to low-priced transfers, and several are now selling them on board buses and in rail stations. Read the entire page →
From page 119... ... Fare Collection/Structure Initiatives 119 Employers, schools, and social service agencies, on the other hand, could be more willing to accommodate such functions. An employer, for instance, could directly issue a farecard to its employees who use transit. Read the entire page →
From page 120... ... 120 Elements Needed to Create High Ridership Transit Systems likely to eliminate the need for transit agencies to issue their own farecards in the foreseeable future, but it would improve the convenience of fare payment -- and thus using transit -- as someone wishing to use transit would no longer be required to obtain a separate payment instrument. This could expand the potential transit market, particularly for occasional users. Read the entire page →
From page 121... ... Fare Collection/Structure Initiatives 121 Smartcard-based regional payment programs are currently being developed or implemented in several regions in the United States, including the San Francisco Bay Area, Washington-Baltimore area, and Central Puget Sound (Seattle) area, and Los Angeles, San Diego, and Atlanta. Read the entire page →
From page 122... ... 122 Elements Needed to Create High Ridership Transit Systems shorter distance, off-peak, or local bus services. Differentiated fares are also seen as able to generate greater revenues than lower flat fares, since the users of the higher cost services (e.g., longer distance) Read the entire page →
From page 123... ... Fare Collection/Structure Initiatives 123 • The sale of day passes on board buses effectively offset the expected loss of ridership -- as well as rider complaints -- that might be expected with the elimination of free or low-priced transfers. Moreover, these initiatives resulted in significant revenue increases in both Baltimore and Orange County. Read the entire page →
From page 124... ... 124 Elements Needed to Create High Ridership Transit Systems Transfer Price Reduction Lowering the cost of transferring represents another type of fare reduction. As indicated above, most transit agencies already offer at least reduced-price transfers. Read the entire page →
From page 125... ... Fare Collection/Structure Initiatives 125 With regard to the level of the discount offered, there is a fairly even distribution of agencies with discounts of less than 10%, 10–19%, and 20% or more. Approximately 33% of U.S. Read the entire page →
From page 126... ... starting in the zone and ending in a full fare area tends to be an issue: riders boarding a vehicle within the reduced fare zone may not realize that they have to pay if they ride outside the zone, or they may purposely evade the fare in that way. Such concerns have led some agencies to eliminate their reduced fare zones; Nashville MTA, for instance, decided to end its Downtown $0.25 Zone as part of its recent fare restructuring, due to the combination of fare enforcement issues and the need for additional revenue. Read the entire page →

From page 109...

... 109 C H A P T E R 8 Introduction A widely used set of strategies, actions and initiatives that can contribute to efforts to increase ridership is fare collection/fare structure initiatives. The types of strategies -- and specific actions/examples -- included in this category are shown in Table 8-1.