Signal Preemption as a Priority Treatment Tool for Transit Demand Management

The purpose of this paper is to present an analytic procedure for testing the feasibility of using signal pre-emption as a tool for transit demand management. Signal pre-emption is designed to reduce delays, thus resulting in reduced cycle time, reduced fleet size and reduced operating cost. Further, reduced travel time is likely to make the transit system more attractive, thus generating more ridership and higher revenue. A software PREEMPT was developed that can estimate driving times based upon higher speeds and can calculate the fleet size, operating costs, revenue, and revised demand. Using the data base from a recently completed UMTA sponsored study, 3 transit sectors in the Detroit area were analyzed for base condition and various pre-emption scenarios, and the results are presented in this paper.