Basemap at Practical Bus Priority 2024
Basemap at Practical Bus Priority 2024
On 30th October we attended RTIG’s event, Practical Bus Priority, in Birmingham. This event followed the release of LTN 1/24 Bus User Priority to provide an opportunity to discuss how the changes can be delivered and the support practitioners may need.
With attendees from transport authorities, consultancies and suppliers, it was great to learn more about how bus priority can be implemented and the finer detail of how solutions such as traffic light priority can work.
The Morning
The morning began with a breakdown by Tim Rivett of how traffic light priority systems have changed over time and the benefits and drawbacks of different systems, for example whether equipment was needed on each individual bus or how messages are communicated between the sensors and the UTC (Urban Traffic Control).
The main topics of discussion were how to identify when a bus should get priority at a traffic light. Whilst priority for all buses can work in some circumstances, in areas with high frequency services this can cause increased disruption to general traffic which may impact other buses in the area.
This means that a prioritisation method is required in these cases to take into account factors such as the lateness, frequency or patronage of a service - something that our software TRACC can support users with its corridor analysis tool.
Though it was also highlighted that in some cases the solution is to optimise a junction for all traffic before considering specific priority for buses. It would be interesting to see the outcome of these decisions using Highways Analyst where you can analyse the impact on roads over time.
The Afternoon
In the afternoon, methods of identifying pinch points were discussed including the use of BODS real-time data. This is where our Highways Analyst tool comes in handy and has helped councils locate pinch points using GPS data from vehicles.
Throughout the day, the importance of looking at the corridor as a whole rather than at specific junctions was reinforced, with past experiences of a problem being caused by conditions approaching a junction being recounted.
It ended with discussions around the feasibility of bus locations being shared at a 1Hz frequency. The implications of this on bus operators and on systems were discussed and a case study by Oxfordshire County Council shared. Click here to find out how this plays a part in Oxfordshire's BSIP scheme.
Overall, the day was a great insight into the practical considerations of bus priority and the way that it is implemented.