In Staten Island, New York City, a transit signal priority pilot along a 2.3 mile corridor reduced travel times by approximately 17 percent.

New York City Transit's experience with transit signal priority (TSP)

Date Posted
07/12/2013
Identifier
2013-B00856
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Traveler Information Systems and Wayfinding Technologies in Transit Systems: Summary of State-of-the-Practice and State-of-the-Art

Summary Information

The Federal Transit Administration sponsored a study to provide federal guidance to transit agencies on current and future trends in the application of traveler information technologies as a means to expand transit agency deployments of these tools, which may result in an increase in transit ridership. The study provides a technology evaluation that:

  • Offers an understanding of wayfinding technologies and describes products and services.
  • Provides an overview of the benefits of these technologies and services for transit agencies and users.
  • Identifies challenges experienced by transit agencies regarding the use and implementation of wayfinding technologies, and gaps that exist in current technologies.
  • Identifies user needs to achieve broader deployment of wayfinding technologies by transit agencies.
METHODOLOGY

The research team conducted a literature review and interviewed a total of 63 public and private organizations from across the nation, including transit agencies, state departments of transportation, university research centers, software developers, metropolitan planning organizations, and others. Additionally, the team visited seven major metropolitan areas where transit agencies were identified as leaders in the innovative use of transit wayfinding technologies and other advanced transit technologies.

RESULTS

In the spring of 2008, New York City Transit (NYCT) completed an extensive transit signal priority (TSP) pilot program on Staten Island. Three hundred NYCT buses were equipped with TSP technology to interact with 14 signalized intersections along a 2.3 mile section of the Victory Boulevard corridor.
  • The pilot was found to reduce travel times along the corridor by approximately 17 percent (17%).
  • The researchers noted that projects like TSP, when combined with traveler information technology, hold significant opportunities to increase transit ridership.
Goal Areas
Deployment Locations