Awesome American (Module 5: Public Transport)

Question 1

What do people want from PT?

Answer 1

1. It takes me where I want to go
2. It takes me when I want to go
3. It is a good use of my time.
4. It is a good use of my money
5. It respects me in the level of safety, comfort and amenity it provides
6. I can trust it
7. It gives me freedom to travel (and to change my plans)

Question 2

Are costs easy to analyse?

Answer 2

No.

Question 3

What are average costs?

Answer 3

Costs averaged over units of output/outcome

Question 4

What are marginal costs?

Answer 4

Incremental cost for one more unit of output/outcome

Question 5

What is a “fair” fare to charge for service?

Answer 5

• Fares increase by distance travelled
• Fares vary by time of day
• Fares consider public welfare and ability to pay

Question 6

What are the Seven stages of a trip?

Answer 6

1. Getting information
2. Accessing from origin
3. Waiting
4. Paying the fare
5. Riding
6. Connecting if necessary
7. Egress to destination

Question 7

What are the Goals of Demand Estimation?

Answer 7

1. Forecast revenues to help in budgeting
2. Estimate changes in demand due to:
   - Changes in fares
   - Changes in existing services
   - New services

Question 8

What is an Elasticity?

Answer 8

An elasticity measures sensitivity of demand relative to a particular variable X.

An elasticity, e, is defined as the percentage change in demand for a +1% change in X