Bus Rapid Transit in Asia: How Does It Work in a Motorcycle Environment?

This paper describes how Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) has been attracting much attention recently all over the world. The Curitiba BRT system, and the TransMilenio in Bogota, Pittsburgh bus way are just some examples. Reported with positive results, BRT schemes however are still controversial with the questions: whether they are efficient or can they replace rail system. Heterogeneous traffic (or mixed traffic) with significant motorcycle percentage is very common in developing cities in Asia. Many of these cities are now considering BRT effective solutions to tackle transport problems and the question how BRT works in motorcycle-dominated conditions in those cities is waiting answers, which is the main motivation for this paper. This paper focuses on modeling BRT in heterogeneous traffic. SATURN model was selected as modeling tool. The model was calibrated and validated in mixed traffic condition of Hanoi. Results show that if bus ways are well-designed and there will be a considerable switching from other modes, then traffic flow is improved significantly for both bus and other road users. BRT schemes however might cause serious delay and congestion if there is no mode switching from other road users. Route switching flexibility of motorcycles has considerable effects on performance of BRT schemes.