APPENDIX B - GLOSSARY FEBRUARY 2017

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1 APPENDIX B - GLOSSARY FEBRUARY 2017 DENVERMOVES Transit Denver Moves: Transit

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3 APPENDIX B TRANSIT AND MOBILITY GLOSSARY Amenities, stop or station: Objects or facilities (such as a shelter, bench, or information display) to enhance passenger comfort or transit usability at stops or stations. Boarding: The act of getting on or into a transit vehicle (bus, train, streetcar, etc.). The number of boardings is the number of people who board a transit vehicle. Bus Rapid Transit (BRT): A bus operation providing service similar to rail transit, at a potentially lower cost depending on the level of investment in individual infrastructure elements. Characteristic features of BRT include exclusive transitways or busways, enhanced stations, easily identified vehicles, high-frequency all-day service, simple route structures, off-board (pre-paid) fare collection, and Intelligent Transportation Systems technologies (e.g., real-time information). Integrating these components is intended to improve bus speed, reliability, and identity. Buy-up service: A fee-for-service system in which a city, business district, or some other unit of organization pays for incremental service or the extension of transit service offered by a neighboring transit provider into areas outside of the provider s normal coverage area. Circulator service: Transit service confined to a specific locale, such as a downtown area or a suburban neighborhood, with connections to major corridors. Cost effectiveness: The cost per passenger trip. More precisely, the amount of money a transit agency spends to provide its service (either as a system or a particular mode of travel, such as bus or rail) divided by the total number of passenger trips. This only takes into account what it costs to provide the service, and does not deduct fare revenues from the cost of providing the service. Commuter rail: Rail system that carries passengers within urban areas, or between urban areas and their suburbs, but differs from light rail transit in that the passenger cars generally are heavier, the average trip lengths are usually longer, there are few standing passengers, and the operations may be carried out over tracks that are part of the railroad system in the area. Commuter rail trains are configured for long-distance comfort. In some areas it is called regional rail. In RTD s system, the University of Colorado A Line to Denver International Airport is an example of a commuter rail line. Complete transit system: A unifying concept for complementary transit service quality and land use elements (e.g., service levels and land use policies) and non-service elements (e.g., facilities, pedestrian and bicycle access, etc.) that function together - B-1 - to achieve the desired local outcomes for transit in a particular place. Elements of a complete transit system may include, among other things, increased transit information and legibility, expanded frequent service, flexible and affordable fare and pass programs, safe and convenient pedestrian and bicycle access to transit, and coordinated land use, parking, and placemaking policies. Daily boardings: The number of passengers getting into or onto a transit vehicle per day. May be counted by stop, by route, or by system. Deadhead: The scheduled operation of a bus without carrying passengers. Usually this refers to the trip between the garage or maintenance facility to the point where the bus enters or leaves its route. Dedicated transit lane: A highway or street lane reserved for buses, light rail or streetcar vehicles, or both. Also called an exclusive transit lane. Enhanced transit: A concept referring to transit service that includes elements that improve speed and reliability of operation and the quality of the passenger experience. Enhanced transit falls between standard fixed route service and Bus Rapid Transit. Changes from fixed route service may include capital improvements, such as queue jumps and upgraded stop amenities like higher-capacity shelters or real-time information, and/or service enhancements. Fare Zone System: A method of transit pricing that is based on the geographical partitioning of the service area. The price is determined by the location and number of zones traversed. The RTD rail system is divided into four fare zones: A, B, C, and Airport. Rail fares are based on how many fare zones you travel in during your one-way trip. Travel in one or two zones is a Local fare, travel in three zones is a Regional fare, and any trip originating or ending in the Airport zone is an Airport fare. Farebox recovery: The ratio of fare revenue to direct operating expenses, representing the share of operating costs that are recouped through passenger fares. First/last mile: Refers to the common problem of connecting trip origins and/or destinations to transit stops or transit hubs. Transit riders may choose another mode such as taking a shuttle, walking, bicycling, taking bike share, using an on-demand ride service, using a car share, taking a taxi, or sharing rides in order to complete the link between transit and the trip origin and/or destination. DENVERMOVES Transit

4 Fixed-route service: Transit services where vehicles run on regular, pre-designated, pre-scheduled routes, with no deviation. Typically, fixed-route service is characterized by printed schedules or timetables, designated bus stops where passengers board and alight, and the use of larger transit vehicles. Frequent service: Frequent service is typically defined as every 15 minutes or better all-day (typically between at least 6 AM 7 PM). High capacity transit: High capacity transit includes any form of public transit that has an exclusive right of way, a non-exclusive right of way, or a possible combination of both. High capacity transit vehicles make fewer stops, travel at higher speeds, have more frequent service, and carry more people than local service transit such as typical bus lines. High capacity transit can include light rail, rapid streetcar, commuter rail, and bus rapid transit. Intermodal station: A transit stop or station at the meeting point of several routes or lines or of different modes of transportation. It is located on or off the street and is designed to handle the movement of transit units (vehicles or trains) and the boarding, alighting, and transferring of passengers between different modes (also known as a modal interchange center). Intersection density: The number of street intersections per unit of area. Higher intersection density is associated with improved walkability because there are more opportunities and a shorter distance required to reach the same destination. Light rail transit: A metropolitan electric railway system characterized by its ability to operate single cars or short trains along exclusive rights-of-way at ground level, on aerial structures, in subways, or occasionally, in streets. Mode share: The proportion of total person trips that uses each of various specified modes of transportation. For example, the number of commuters taking transit versus the number driving alone, bicycling, or other possible travel modes. On-time performance: For fixed-route service, the percentage of on-time arrivals at stops along the route. For demand response service, the percentage of scheduled trips that are picked up within the assigned on-time window (typically 30 minutes). RTD defines on-time for fixed-route service as arriving at a stop no more than one minute early and not more than five minutes after the scheduled time. On-demand ride services: Services that provide users with point-to-point rides via a network of privately owned vehicles. Rides are scheduled using a computer or mobile device (smart phone). Examples of on-demand ride service providers include Lyft and Uber (also known as transportation network companies). Rides may also be shared (shared ride services). Operating cost: The sum of all recurring costs (e.g., labor, fuel) that can be associated with the operation and maintenance of the system during the period under consideration. Operating costs usually exclude such fixed costs as depreciation on plants and equipment, interest paid for loans on capital equipment, and property taxes on capital items. However, RTD s hourly operating cost amortizes capital costs, i.e., spreads these costs out over the useful life of the capital item. Operating cost per hour: A measure of cost efficiency that describes the average cost of operating each hour that a transit bus or rail vehicle is in service. Operating speed: Measures how fast transit runs on average based on the number of miles of service provided divided by the number of service hours. Paratransit: Most commonly used to refer to specialized demand-responsive service provided for seniors and people with disabilities, especially ADA-complementary paratransit. Historically the term has been used to refer to a variety of shared-ride transportation services other than conventional transit service, usually using small vehicles. Park-n-ride: A mode used to access transit in which patrons drive private automobiles or ride bicycles to a transit station, stop, or carpool/vanpool waiting area and park the vehicle in the area provided for that purpose (park-n-ride lot, park-n-pool lot, commuter parking lot, bicycle rack or locker). Passengers then ride the transit system or take a car or vanpool to their destinations. Payment technology: The type of payment (fare) accepted for transit services. Examples include on-board cash fareboxes, electronic smart cards, tokens, and mobile phone ticket applications. Productivity: The ratio of units of transportation output to units of input (consumed resource); for example, number of passenger boardings divided by the number of vehicle service hours or miles provided. Proof of payment policies: An open fare collection system that has no turnstiles or fare gates. It requires that the passenger display proof of payment (e.g., validated ticket, prepaid pass, valid transfer) while on board the transit vehicle or in other designated fare paid areas. Enforced through random checking by specific transit employees, security staff or police with the power to collect premium on-board fares (more common in Europe) or issue tickets or citations. Erroneously called an honor system, a name that applies only to systems without enforcement. - B-2 -

5 Real-time information: System that communicates to passengers exactly when the next bus will arrive. This information may be provided on electronic displays at transit stops, by an automated telephone system, by text message, on a website, or by mobile phone applications. Revenue hours of service: The amount of time that a transit vehicle is running and available to pick up passengers. Includes layover time, but excludes periods such as the travel time from the garage to the beginning of the line (deadhead time). RTD measures performance using in-service hours instead of revenue hours; in-service hours exclude layover and schedule recovery time in addition to deadhead time. Rider experience: The overall perceived quality of riding transit, which is based on both physical characteristics of the system and the way in which it operates. Some contributing factors include route legibility (i.e., the simplicity or understandability of a route s path and schedule); availability and clarity of information; on-board comfort; real time arrival information; quality of access to transit from other modes such as bicycling or walking; the convenience and flexibility of the fare system used; and stop amenities such as lighting, seating, and shelters. Service frequency or headway: Frequency is the number of transit vehicles per hour that serve a particular route or line in each direction, e.g., 4 buses per hour. Headway is the interval of time between scheduled arrivals of a transit vehicle on a particular line in each direction, e.g., 15 minutes. These terms are often used interchangeably; headway is calculated by dividing 60 minutes by the frequency of a line, e.g., 60 minutes / 4 buses per hour = 15 minute headway. Service span: The number of hours during the day between the start and end of service on a transit route. Shared mobility/shared mobile services: Services such as car share, bike share, and on-demand transportation services such as Uber and Lyft. Skip-stop service: A method of operating transit service in which vehicles operate on a corridor, often in a downtown area, with closely spaced stops (for example, every block), but where groups of routes skip most stops and only serve specific stops along the route (e.g., every 4 blocks). Skip-stop operations allow a corridor to handle more buses and passengers. Streetcar: An electrically powered rail car that is operated singly or in short trains, usually on tracks in mixed traffic in city streets. In some areas, it is also known as a trolley car or tram. Time-based surcharge/discount: A fee on top of the base fare, typically assessed during morning and evening peak periods, or a discount applied at particular times to incentivize travel in directions opposite peak flows or to encourage travel pattern shifts in order to relieve strained capacity or lower capital and operating costs. Transportation Management Association (TMA): An association of public and/or private agencies and firms joined to cooperatively develop transportation programs in a given area. TMAs work with employers, residents, and neighborhood organizations to improve awareness of transportation options and manage transportation demand. Transit propensity index (TPI): A measure of a particular area s demographics that combines the densities of populations who are more likely to use transit, often including people over age 65, people with disabilities, and people with low income (less than 150% of the poverty level). Data are taken from the U.S. Census. Transfer policy: The policy governing passengers changing between different transit vehicles (e.g., one bus line to another) or between modes (e.g., bus to light rail). Transfers may be allowed within a set time period of the first boarding, within the same zone as the initial boarding, may be allowed with an additional charge above the base fare, or may be prohibited (treating the connecting trip as a new trip and requiring payment of full fare). Transit Score: A proprietary measure of the availability and usefulness of the transit options in a particular place, normalized to a 100-point scale. Input factors include the distance to the nearest transit stops/routes, the frequency of service of those routes, and the type of transit service. This measure was developed by the Center for Neighborhood Technology (CNT). Travel demand management (TDM): Various strategies that change travel behavior (how, when, and where people travel) in order to increase transport system efficiency and achieve objectives such as reduced traffic congestion, increased safety, or energy conservation. It may include programs to shift demand from single-occupant vehicles to other modes such as transit and ridesharing, to shift demand to off-peak periods, or to eliminate demand for some trips. Walk Score: A proprietary measure of the walkability of a particular place that combines a number of factors and normalizes the score to a 100-point scale. Input factors include distance to amenities, population density, block length, and intersection density, among others. This measure was developed by the Center for Neighborhood Technology (CNT). - B-3 - DENVERMOVES Transit

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