An investigation into the station capacities for personal rapid transit systems

The introduction of personal rapid transit (PRT) systems has been widely discussed in the field of transportation research. However, there is no robust criterion to derive station capacities, which is the determinant of overall capacity for a PRT system. The present study has provided a methodology to rigorously compute the capacity for simple serial-berth PRT stations with a single platform by considering three decisive factors: the demand level of incoming cars and outgoing passengers, the station structure and the operation strategy. A micro-level simulator was developed to analyze and derive station capacities for various combinations of these factors. In particular, the relationship between the wave-off rate and the waiting time, the factors that represent the level of passenger service, was investigated in detail. The station structure, represented by the number of platform berths, input queue berths and output queue berths, was also taken into account. Although a sufficient number of berths were provided (11 platform berths, 11 output queue berths and more than 22 input queue berths), it was impossible to operate a PRT station at an acceptable service level for passengers when the total demand was high (2500 per hour). Even when the total demand was less than or equal to 2000 per hour, it turned out that a relatively large number of station berths is required to ensure the service level.