State of art of bus rapid transit transportation

Abstract

Purpose: The increasing importance of the Bus Rapid Transit systems in the last 20 years has given rise to the implementation of several sorts of systems over the world with different characteristics and success levels. This paper aims to describe a global approach of them as well as to carry out an effective comparison in order to achieve outstanding conclusions. Methods: From the conceptualization or determination of the main features and evolution of BRT Systems we do a qualitative and quantitative analysis of the currently operating systems according to the development of countries in which they operate in order to identify the key factors for the success of such type of transportation, regarding both its management and users comfort. Results and conclusions: Comparison between different BRT systems according to their geographical area provides some important evidences. Paper results suggest that we can find two separate groups in BRT systems, on one hand, some countries with more technology and commercial velocity (European, Australian and Americans BRT systems), and on the other hand countries more developed in terms of service, ridership, routes and impact in population. It's necessary to understand the BRT in the context of the mobility of the city and as long as this system has to compete with other modes of transport the compliance of desirable requirements for a full BRT become more essential. © 2013 The Author(s).