Bus Lane with Intermittent Priority

Graham Carey PE., AICPBRT Project Engineer,Lane Transit District,

Eugene, OregonQUALITY TRANSIT -- NOW

2009 International Bus Roadeo2009 International Bus Roadeo

Bus Lane with Intermittent Priority Concept• BLIMP

• BLIP

• Dynamic Freeway

• Moving Bus lane

• Virtual Bus lane

• Intermittent Bus lane

• Adaptive Bus lane…….

• Exclusive bus lane provided when bus is present

• BLIMP lane controlled with

Bus Lane with Intermittent Priority Concept

Overhead Lane-Use Control SignalsIn-Pavement Lights

Features

BLIMP Concept

Bus detection

Signal

BLIMP lane

BLIMP Start

BLIMP End

Lane-use control signals

= Lane open to general purpose traffic

= Lane open to bus only

In-PavementLights

All lanes open

BLIMP Concept

BLIMP Start

BLIMP End

Bus approaches BLIMP lane

BLIMP Concept

• Approaching bus detected• Lane-use control signals change• In-pavement lights flash

BLIMP Start

BLIMP End

General purpose traffic exits BLIMP lane

BLIMP Concept

BLIMP Start

BLIMP End

Bus enters cleared BLIMP lane

BLIMP Concept

BLIMP Start

BLIMP End

Bus travels along BLIMP lane

BLIMP Concept

BLIMP Start

BLIMP End

• Lane reopens to general purpose traffic after bus travels through each block

Where has it been applied• University Avenue, Lisbon, Portugal

• Toorak Avenue, Melbourne, Australia

Dynamic Freeway, Melbourne, AU

University Avenue,Lisbon, Portugal

Lisbon

Corridor Modeled

Base Scenarios Tested• Mixed-flow, no special treatment

• Transit signal priority

• BLIMP lane

• Exclusive bus lane

Sensitivity Analyses• Driveway egress control

• Left-hand BLIMP lane

• Lagging queue jump

• Increased traffic volume

• Reduced driveway volume

Preliminary Results

Key Benefits• Bus travel time reduced

• Bus schedule reliability improved

• Exclusive bus lane provided only when needed!

• Strategy fits within existing right-of-way

• Existing property access maintained

Key Challenges• Public information/education campaign is required

• Requires driver compliance

• Enforcement may be needed

Conclusion• Successfully modeled BLIMP lane operations

• BLIMP lane provides benefit of exclusive lane without cost and impact

• Applicability where right-of-way is limited

• Balance can be found between transit benefits + traffic impacts

• Need for real-world pilot application