Project for a new public transport line

/ ELECTRIC VEHICLES / INTELLIGENT TRANSPORT SYSTEMS /

Improve public transportation services in its territory in order to effectively meet the population's needs.

A PROJECT BY

The Corporation de Transports collectifs de la MRC de Maskinongé (CTCM) wishes to improve public transportation services in its territory in order to effectively meet the population's needs.

To support it in this process, the CTCM chose to collaborate with the firm Civilia.

Project objectives

• Better understand the travel patterns and mobility needs of its citizens;
• Implement a pilot project for a new public transit line based on demand.

From November 2021 to February 2022, the Corporation de Transports collectifs de la MRC de Maskinongé, with the support of Civilia, launched the project to gain detailed knowledge about the mobility behaviors of the population in its territory in order to better understand their mobility needs.

Initially, a review of the CTCM's internal and external trips was carried out using already available data, all to understand the population's travel needs and to analyze them using tools developed by Civilia.

Civilia then produced a travel profile to characterize the travel habits of the CTCM population. This profile characterized mobility needs, knowledge of the main travel patterns, and the identification of potential customer segments for the public transit service. The results were presented to the CTCM, which had access to view and analyze them. These results showed O-D (origin-destination) studies by time of day and a mapping of flows. The behavior study was based on the processing of geolocated data.

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Pre-project methodology

The Corporation de Transports collectifs de la MRC de Maskinongé wisely chose to involve its team in this large-scale project to allow it to be part of the upstream process. Its involvement and its in-depth knowledge of the territory as well as the needs and habits of the population proved valuable in conducting this approach. The team thus collaborated on:

• Defining the project and its objectives;
• Analyzing the available data;
• Validating the assumptions.

The O-D study makes it possible to obtain data to validate some hypotheses but also to invalidate others: a connection between municipalities that had been considered was ultimately abandoned. Thus, the risk of creating a service not adapted to demand, and which could generate costs, is reduced.

Available cellular data are in raw form, thus creating a certain technological barrier. They require analytical work by experts to be used with confidence. The cost of the data can therefore be high.

Furthermore, the assumptions made during simulations must be calibrated according to the territory – hence the importance of working with the CTCM team who know their environment well.

The Civilia team worked closely with CTCM staff in the development of the O-D study so that it would meet its needs: notably regarding the territorial division used to create a trip matrix containing the information necessary for the creation of a new bus line.

Sometimes, a solution does not exist due to multiple constraints: social, economic, political, etc. Civilia's role is to highlight these elements to allow the CTCM to make an informed decision after analyzing the different options (strengths and weaknesses).

Funding

For the Corporation de Transports collectifs de la MRC de Maskinongé, the funding that allowed the firm Civilia to be hired to carry out the O-D Study mainly comes from the Fonds québécois d’initiative social. Funds obtained for the Sustainable Mobility project with the City of Shawinigan aimed at increasing access to services (health, training, supplies) for the population of seven (7) rural municipalities in the northern CTCM. The City of Shawinigan is the main service hub serving these populations.

A second project was carried out in parallel by the CTCM, namely the implementation of a GTFS (General Transit Feed Specification), with GPS on some vehicles. The dedicated budget comes from funding from the Programme d’aide au développement du transport collectif (PADTC) of theMinistry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility (MTMD).

Results obtained

High-performing eco-responsible solution

The solution chosen by the Corporation de Transports collectifs de la MRC de Maskinongé allows:

• Promote and encourage travel by public transit;
• Understand the population's mobility needs;
• Optimize public transit travel within the CTCM;
• Reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions as well as surrounding noise.

Following the O-D Study and semi-structured interviews with trip generators, a bus line (L'Express Mauve) was put into service in August 2022. 2,075 trips were made on the Express Mauve between August 2022 and February 2023.

The route was designed based on three criteria:

• The results of the O-D Study and the mapping of trips within the CTCM and to Trois-Rivières / Shawinigan (user potential);
• Policy (need to cover as many municipalities in the territory as possible);
• Integration with the existing offering (optimize the transport offering across all services, reduce costs).

The O-D Study data were used to:

• Creating the route. At least 80% of trips are for college education, vocational training (DEP), adult education, and the second return home in the early evening for secondary school students participating in extracurricular activities;
• Continuous improvement of the existing network. Indeed, the CTCM found that trips from certain municipalities do not only go to Shawinigan (initial objective) but also to Trois-Rivières. A connection to an existing line to Trois-Rivières was thus added even though this was not part of the initial objectives;
• After one year of operation of the new line, further improvements to the Express network are expected in 2023, relying largely on the data collected during the O-D Study.

Complementarity of the public transit offering

Adding a bus line allows:

• Offer choices to the population to reach destinations more efficiently;
• Better connect municipalities by facilitating intraregional links;
• Provide greater flexibility for travel;
• Cover a larger territory.

Other results?

The O-D study also allows for improvement of the existing network. The chosen solution revealed that trips from certain municipalities do not only go to Shawinigan (initial objective) but also to Trois-Rivières. Consequently, a connection to an existing line to Trois-Rivières was added even though this was not the initial objective.

Lessons learned

Success factors

• Defining a clear question;
• The amount of relevant data available;
  The involvement of the CTCM team in the data analysis process (knowledge of the territory, an important asset);
• The importance of taking nothing for granted, of always questioning oneself;
• Collaboration and alignment between the CTCM and Civilia teams;
• The enthusiasm around the project; and
• Transparency and sharing of information.

Practical advice for carrying out such a project

• Carefully determine the objectives targeted by the project;
• Present and explain the expected results of the project;
• Train the team of the Corporation de Transports collectifs de la MRC de Maskinongé in the use of data.

Next steps

The Corporation de Transports collectifs de la MRC de Maskinongé now has the results (O-D study, mapping) in hand to define an optimal solution. It is considering the possibility of creating another line, much of whose route corresponds to a need identified during the O-D Study.

Project partners

• Corporation de Transports collectifs de la MRC de Maskinongé (CTCM)
• Civilia
• Polytechnique Montréal: understanding and calibration of the data; translating data into trips

Project contact person

Civilia
Martin Choinière – President
info@civilia.ca
50 Saint-Charles St. W., Suite 100, Longueuil, QC, J4H 1C6
790 Principale St. W.,
Magog, Quebec, J1X 2B3

Corporation de Transports collectifs de la MRC de Maskinongé (CTCM)
Valérie Bellerose, Executive Director
Louis-Maxim Toutant, project and marketing officer
264 St. Laurent Avenue, Louiseville, QC, J5V 1J9
Phone: (819) 840-0603