BUS PLANNING METHODS. 2. DATA COLLECTION

In the second of three articles dealing with methods for planning bus services, the main topics are: options available for collecting data; the costs of alternative options; and frequencies with which data should be collected to review the performance of each aspect of bus operations. The salient features of survey methods are described and a combination of surveys suitable for most bus operations suggested. Comparison of survey costs shows that origin-destination surveys cost over twice as much as stage-to-stage surveys. For monitoring financial performance and checking bus loadings, it is shown that biennial stage-to-stage surveys of every service would in most cases be appropriate. (Author/TRRL)