Project description

Driverless vehicles have been attracting the attention of many researchers due to their potential to impact the current travel patterns. In a regional context, where transit operators and travelers are usually affected by cost inefficiencies and low service levels, driverless demand-responsive transit (DDRT) systems can be seen as a new solution capable of improving the service level and decreasing the transport costs involved in the provision of transit systems to low-demand areas. Therefore, taking into consideration these potential benefits, the aim of this research is to (1) investigate and compare different types of DDRT systems and (2) examine how the introduction of these systems can impact the current modal shares in the case study region (Coimbra, PT). The types of DDRT systems considered in this research are as follows: private point-to-point, shared point-to-point, and hub-and-spoke (H&S). The private and shared point-to-point types share the same operational characteristics of regular taxi services, though without the need of using drivers. The difference between them is that passengers can share the rides with strangers in the shared point-to-point type. In the H&S type, passengers are aggregated in hub locations to reduce service costs and fares by decreasing the number of connections required to serve travel demand. With this research, we expect to contribute to the scarce body of literature available today on regional DDRT systems.

Project team

• Anne S. Patricio
• Gonçalo Gonçalves Duarte Santos (supervisor)
• António Pais Antunes (supervisor)

Financial support

• FCT - UI/BD/151110/2021

Stage of progress

• Started in 2019