Key West Transit Development Plan FY2025-2034

7.6 Service Enhancements

7.6 Service Enhancements Transit planning often involves a variety of service changes aimed at enhancing the quality and availability of transit service. These modifications can include extending service hours, adding or removing routes, altering service frequency, or modifying stop locations. For instance, as part of this TDP process, Key West is considering introducing two new route and enhancing three of the existing routes to better accommodate the needs of the community, providing more flexibility for passengers, and potentially increasing overall ridership. However, implementing these changes requires careful planning and analysis. In this context, the Transit Boardings Estimation and Simulation Tool (TBEST) plays a pivotal role. TBEST's robust modeling and analysis capabilities enable transit planners to simulate and forecast ridership under different service scenarios, thereby helping to assess the impact of various service changes. By identifying high-demand areas, evaluating service changes, forecasting future ridership, and communicating the impact of service improvements, TBEST projections become instrumental in making informed decisions about service changes. However, while service expansion can enhance the quality and availability of transit service, it can sometimes lead to a decrease in operational efficiency. Operational efficiency, often measured as boardings per service hour, indicates how effectively a transit agency uses its resources. Service expansion, such as extending service hours or increasing service frequency, can lead to an increase in total ridership but a decrease in boardings per service hour. This trade-off presents a challenge for transit agencies as they strive to balance the goal of improving service quality with the need to operate efficiently.

Different service scenarios can be modeled and analyzed using TBEST to understand their potential impact on ridership and operational efficiency. For instance, an 'existing service' scenario can be compared with a 'proposed service expansion' scenario. The comparison of these scenarios provides valuable insights into how proposed service changes could affect ridership and operational efficiency. This information can guide decision-making and help transit planners prioritize service improvements and effectively communicate these decisions to stakeholders. TBEST Projections TBEST (Transit Boardings Estimation and Simulation Tool) is a comprehensive transit planning software developed by the Florida Department of Transportation. It's designed to support transit service and strategic planning by providing robust modeling and analysis capabilities. TBEST models transit ridership based on a variety of factors, including transit network structure (routes, stops, schedules), socio-economic data (population, employment), and transit service parameters (frequency, speed). It can simulate transit ridership for existing and future scenarios, allowing planners to assess the impact of various transit service changes. The following projections reflect multiple scenarios of service improvements. Based on the feedback from the outreach activities including input from existing riders, the following service improvements were identified in the public engagement activities.

Transit Development Plan FY 2025–2034

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