Accessibility enhancement of mass transit system through GIS based modeling of feeder routes

Access and ingress to and from the metro stations plays a crucial role in elevating the efficacy of transportation systems. This study presents a novel approach to optimize and integrate feeder route network with mass transit system using GIS. An initial accessibility analysis of existing feeder routes revealed only 0.12% of the total population being served. To address the accessibility challenge a comprehensive GIS based feeder route design model based on population data and road network attributes was developed. The model efficiently identified candidate feeder stops which were further subjected to a route analysis model for optimal route design. A total of 29 feeder routes with an average length of 10.2 ​km were identified by the route analysis model. The results demonstrated that the feeder routes obtained through this method exhibited exceptional coverage across the study area effectively bridging the accessibility gaps. The effectiveness of the proposed model was validated through the service area analysis and density analysis, verifying a noticeable increase in route density and substantial population served corresponding to 0.25%. which is doubled as compared to the population served existing feeder routes. The study provides an opportunity for transit authorities to design efficient feeder networks complying with better integration and accessibility.