This book shows how transit assignment models can be used to describe and predict the patterns
of network patronage in public transport systems. It provides a fundamental technical tool that
can be employed in the process of designing implementing and evaluating measures and or
policies to improve the current state of transport systems within given financial technical
and social constraints. The book offers a unique methodological contribution to the field of
transit assignment because moving beyond traditional models it describes more evolved
variants that can reproduce:. intermodal networks with high- and low-frequency services .
realistic behavioural hypotheses underpinning route choice . time dependency in frequency-based
models and. assumptions about the knowledge that users have of network conditionsthat are
consistent with the present and future level of information that intelligent transport systems
(ITS) can provide. The book also considers the practical perspective of practitioners and
public transport operators who need to model and manage transit systems for example the role
of ITS is explained with regard to their potential in data collection for modelling purposes
and validation techniques as well as with regard to the additional data on network patronage
and passengers' preferences that influences the network-management and control strategies
implemented. In addition it explains how the different aspects of network operations can be
incorporated in traditional models and identifies the advantages and disadvantages of doing so.
Lastly the book provides practical information on state-of-the-art implementations of the
different models and the commercial packages that are currently available for transit
modelling. Showcasing original work done under the aegis of the COST Action TU1004 (TransITS)
the book provides a broad readership ranging from Master and PhD students to researchers and
from policy makers to practitioners with a comprehensive tool for understanding transit
assignment models.
