METHODOLOGY FOR EVALUATING THE EFFICIENCY OF PUBLIC TRANSPORT OPERATION IN THE CONTEXT OF SUSTAINABLE URBAN TRANSPORT SYSTEM DEVELOPMENT
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.33042/2522-1809-2025-3-191-643-649Keywords:
efficiency, sustainable development, urban mobility, operator costs, passenger costsAbstract
One of the key challenges facing modern cities is the need to ensure the effective functioning of the transportation system under growing mobility demands. Urban development, increasing employment rates, and the expansion of urban areas significantly increase the volume of trips, primarily through the use of private cars. Excessive motorization leads to overloading of road networks, traffic congestion, delays, reduced travel speeds, and longer trip durations. These problems result in a higher incidence of traffic accidents, deterioration of air quality, increased noise pollution, and rising greenhouse gas emissions. Such consequences pose direct threats to public health and environmental sustainability. In addition, a substantial part of urban space is allocated for parking and expansion of road infrastructure, which limits the development of public, recreational, and pedestrian areas. The combination of these factors contributes to the spread of chronic diseases, increases psycho-emotional stress levels, and reduces the overall quality of life in the city.
In response to these challenges, there is an urgent need to shift from the current transport policy to a sustainable development paradigm. This approach emphasizes the prioritization of environmentally friendly, energy-efficient, and socially inclusive modes of transport. Public transport plays a central role in this model, and enhancing its competitiveness and efficiency is essential for establishing a balanced and sustainable urban transport system. Providing high-quality public transport services helps reduce dependence on private vehicles, lowers traffic loads, and improves environmental conditions in urban areas.
The evaluation of public transport performance should take into account not only the technical and economic indicators of transport operators but also passenger-related costs, which may be both objective and subjective. Furthermore, it is important to consider external costs caused by the negative environmental impacts of transport, particularly pollutant emissions into the atmosphere. Applying such a comprehensive approach enables a more accurate and well-grounded assessment of the efficiency of the transport system, which forms the basis for its further optimization within the framework of sustainable urban development.
This article proposes a methodology for assessing the efficiency of public transport operation in the context of sustainable urban transport development, taking into account the costs incurred by transport operators, passengers, and the environmental impact of transport processes.
Future research will focus on developing a target function for optimizing the urban transport system.
References
Miner, P. Car harm: A global review of automobility's harm to people and the environment [Text] / P. Miner, B.M. Smith, A.Jani, G. McNeill, A. Gathorne-Hardy // Journal of Transport Geography. – 2024. – Vol. 115. – Art. 103817.
Saeidizand, P. Car dependency contributors in global metropolitan areas over time [Text] / P. Saeidizand, P. Savieri, K. Boussauw // Journal of Transport Geography. – 2025. – Vol. 123. – Art. 104152.
Van Eenoo, E. Car dependence in research: navigating its contemporary relevance [Text] / E. Van Eenoo // Transport Reviews. – 2025. – Vol. 45., № 2. – P. 282–300.
Fernández, R. Evolution of the Transport System in Santiago de Chile: Stopping the car vicious circle? [Text] / R. Fernández, M. Osses // Centre for Transport Studies, University College London. – 2004., – P. 22.
Papageorgiou, G.N. Development of an Active Transportation Framework Model for Sustainable Urban Development [Text] / G.N. Papageorgiou, E. Tsappi // Sustainability. – 2024. – Vol. 16., № 17. – Art. 7546.
Steinacker, C. Demand-driven design of bicycle infrastructure networks for improved urban bikeability [Text] / C. Steinacker, DM. Storch, M. Timme, M. Schröder // Nature Computational Science. – 2022. – Vol. 2. – P. 655–664.
Vega-Gonzalo, M. The role of shared mobility in reducing perceived private car dependency [Text] / M. Vega-Gonzalo, J. Gomez, P. Christidis, J. Manuel Vassallo // Transportation Research Part D: Transport and Environment. – 2024. – Vol. 126. – Art. 104023.
J. Basso, L. Public transport and urban structure [Text] / L. J. Basso, M. Navarro, H. E. Silva // Economics of Transportation. – 2021. – Vol. 28. – Art. 100232.
David, Q. Transport policies in polycentric cities [Text] / Q. David, M. Kilani // Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice. – 2022. – Vol. 166. – P. 101–117.
Abdulrazzaq, L.R. Traffic Congestion: Shift from Private Car to Public Transportation [Text] / L.R. Abdulrazzaq, M.N. Abdulkareem, M.R. Mat Yazid, M.N. Borhan, M.S. Mahdi // Civil Engineering Journal. – 2020. – Vol. 6., № 8. – P. 1547–1554.
Bashingi, N. Challenges and Opportunities for Private-to-Public Transportation Modal Shift and Integrated Multimodal Passenger Transportation Systems in Gaborone [Text] / N. Bashingi, J.A. Adedeji, D.K. Das, M.M. Hassan Mostafa //Transportation Research Procedia. – 2025. – Vol. 82. – P.1858–1877.
Hahn, A. The impact of service expansion on modal shift from private car to public transport. A quantitative analysis in the Bonn/Rhein-Sieg area, Germany [Text] / A. Hahn, C. Pakusch, G. Stevens // Journal of Urban Mobility. – 2023. –Vol. 4. – Art. 100064.
Fielbaum, A. On the relationship between free public transport, stop spacing, and optimal frequencies [Text] / A. Fielbaum // Transportation Research Part B: Methodological.– 2024. – Vol. 183. – Art. 102924.
Kökalan, Ö. Passenger Satisfaction Scale for Public Transportation [Text] / Ö. Kökalan, A. Tutan, // Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board. – 2020. – Vol. 2675, № 3. – P. 44–52.
Ali, N. Evaluating Sustainable Urban Transport Systems: A Review Study for the Identification of Smart Mobility Indicators [Text] / N. Ali // Transactions on Transport Sciences. – 2021. – Vol. 12, № 2., – P. 16–23.
Wang, C. A Multi-Objective Optimization and Hybrid Heuristic Approach for Urban Bus Route Network Design [Text] / C. Wang, Z. Ye, W. Wang // IEEE Access. – 2020. – Vol. 8. – P. 12154–12167.
Lui, Y. Energy Consumption Optimization Model of Multi-Type Bus Operating Organization Based on Time-Space Network [Text] / Y. Lui, E. Yao, S. Lui // Applied Sciences. – 2019. – Vol. 9, № 16. – Art. 3352.
Zhang, W. Multiobjective-Based Decision-Making for the Optimization of an Urban Passenger Traffic System Structure [Text] / W. Zhang, Y. Song, G. Zhou, Z. Song, C. Xi // Sustainability. – 2023. – Vol. 15, № 18. – Art. 13644.
Лифенко, С.Е. Екологічний аспект оцінки сталості міської транспортної системи [Текст] / С.Е. Лифенко, Д.П. Понкратов // Комунальне господарство міст. – 2025. – Т. 1., № 189. – С. 482–491.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
The authors who publish in this collection agree with the following terms:
• The authors reserve the right to authorship of their work and give the magazine the right to first publish this work under the terms of license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 (with the Designation of Authorship - Non-Commercial - Without Derivatives 4.0 International), which allows others to freely distribute the published work with a mandatory reference to the authors of the original work and the first publication of the work in this magazine.
• Authors have the right to make independent extra-exclusive work agreements in the form in which they were published by this magazine (for example, posting work in an electronic repository of an institution or publishing as part of a monograph), provided that the link to the first publication of the work in this journal is maintained. .
• Journal policy allows and encourages the publication of manuscripts on the Internet (for example, in institutions' repositories or on personal websites), both before the publication of this manuscript and during its editorial work, as it contributes to the emergence of productive scientific discussion and positively affects the efficiency and dynamics of the citation of the published work (see The Effect of Open Access).
