Due to rapid unplanned development, versatile land use, rapid population growth, poor public transport system and increase of private car users, traffic problems are worsening day by day. The only mass transit is bus which is insufficient in terms of safety, capacity, comfort, and convenience. Considering the worsening congestion, it is high time to develop effective mass transit system such as Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) as a means for achieving sustainable urban transport in the city

1. Jordan University of Science and Technology
Department of Civil Engineering
CE 345
Transportation engineering
Assignment 2: Bus Rapid Transit (BRT)
Dr. Bashar Hani Al-Omari
Student name: Anas Omar Ghawanmeh
Student no.: 123874
Section no. : 3

2. Introduction:
Bus rapid transit (BRT), also called a busway or transitway, is a bus-based
public transport system designed to improve capacity and reliability relative to
a conventional bus system. Typically, a BRT system includes roadways that are
dedicated to buses and gives priority to buses at intersections where buses
may interact with other traffic; alongside design features to reduce delays
caused by passengers boarding or leaving buses or purchasing fares. BRT aims
to combine the capacity and speed of a metro with the flexibility, lower cost
and simplicity of a bus system.
“Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) is a high-quality bus-based transit system that delivers
fast, comfortable, and cost-effective services at metro-level capacities. It does
this through the provision of dedicated lanes, with busways and iconic stations
typically aligned to the center of the road, off-board fare collection, and fast
and frequent operations.
Because BRT contains features like a light rail or metro system, it is much more
reliable, convenient and faster than regular bus services. With the right
features, BRT is able to avoid the causes of delay that typically slow regular bus
services, like being stuck in traffic and queuing to pay on
board”……………………..(1)
OBJECTIVE:
Due to rapid unplanned development, versatile land use, rapid population
growth, poor public transport system and increase of private car users, traffic
problems are worsening day by day. The only mass transit is bus which is
insufficient in terms of safety, capacity, comfort, and convenience. Considering
the worsening congestion, it is high time to develop effective mass transit
system such as Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) as a means for achieving sustainable
urban transport in the city.

3. ABSTRACT:
Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) is a high-quality bus service that provides
faster, more reliable, and convenient service through the use of
several key attributes, including, dedicated bus lanes, branded
vehicles and stations, higher frequency, intelligent transportation
systems, and possible off-board fare collection and/or all door
boarding. BRT helps avoid some of the normal delays typically
experienced by regular bus service traveling in mixed flow traffic.
BRT has the potential to increase transit access, improve regional
mobility, reduce transportation costs, and ease commutes.
Key BRT features include:
• More frequent service with limited stops
• Peak period or full-time dedicated bus lanes
• Transit signal priority
• Branded vehicles/stations
• Customer friendly stations/stops with passenger amenities
• Real-time bus arrival information
• All-door boarding
BRT can travel:
• Curb-running dedicated lanes
• Median-running dedicated lanes…….(2)
Literature review:
In this paper, we will look at how some countries deal with congestion and
increase traffic volumes through using Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) for Solve traffic
problems.
In Jordan
The Greater Amman Municipality has begun to develop an integrated and
modern transport and traffic system that meets the needs of the residents and
visitors of Amman in terms of movement and mobility, as well as taking into
account the economic and social characteristics of the city and its geographical
nature.

4. This new system - of which the express bus is an essential component - will
ensure the city’s sustainability, but rather its growth and prosperity, and will
contribute to achieving the desired vision of an organized, modern and viable
city.
The express bus is the first express transportation system for the city of
Amman, and it is a flexible and integrated public transport system that
provides fast, safe and highly reliable service, relying on large-capacity buses
traveling at 50 km / hr on dedicated lanes and providing a high level of
services, as they run at frequencies of up to 3 Minutes, the system also
includes modern integrated stations, and a modern electronic payment system
that enables users to pay fare before boarding the bus. As well as an
information system that shows bus arrival times and provides trip planning
service, and modern vehicle parking and complexes.
Each bus of the express bus system can accommodate about 150 passengers or
the equivalent of 110 private vehicles considering 1.4 persons for the vehicle,
which is the current rate in Amman, in addition to that the express bus system
will provide 85 million km of distances traveled by private vehicles and 12
million km of distances traveled by taxi Which will reduce traffic congestion.
The Municipality started implementing the first axis of the project, which starts
at Sweileh Roundabout and ends at the station, passing through the University
of Jordan, Sports City and Al-Shaheed and Al-Istiqlal Streets
The second axis will be implemented later from the Jordan Museum near the
Municipality building in Ras al-Ain and end at Sports City, passing through
Princess Basma Street and the fifth roundabout.
The third axis will exit from the station and end at the Customs Roundabout,
passing through Yarmouk Street and Middle East Square……..(3)

5. In Toronto (Canada's largest city) King Street Pilot Project
A 12-month King Street Pilot was initiated in November 2017. The project
spans 3.4km along one of Toronto’s busiest corridors, from Bathurst Street to
Jarvis Street in inner-city / downtown Toronto. The project introduced
dedicated streetcar lanes, moved streetcar stops to the far side of
intersections, prohibited left turns, provided right turn advances, and removed
parking. Some parking spaces were converted into public spaces, taxi stands,
and loading zones. The project included placemaking and public realm
improvements like temporary parklets and public art installations designed to
increase pedestrian traffic and support local businesses. Initial protests came
from the Toronto Taxi Alliance.
In response to the pressure, Council made a partial concession, allowing taxis
to conduct business as usual along King Street between the hours of 10 p.m.
and 5 a.m. The second wave of protest, which received considerable media
attention, came from a small number of business owners along King Street
who claimed that the project was negatively affecting restaurant and retail
sales. A report from April 20184 analyzed point-of-sale
information that showed that customer spending since the
pilot began was in-line with seasonal spending patterns of
over the past three years.
The report also showed positive transit benefits, including all-day weekday
ridership increased by 13%, transit reliability improved by 18%, and transit
travel times improved by 5 minutes in each direction. Additionally,
the average car travel time varied by less than a minute compared to pre-pilot
and the downtown traffic network was largely able to absorb and respond to
the changes in routing that drivers have made.
Discussion:
the benefits
Reducing time and effort and solving the problem of traffic congestion.
High-capacity vehicles such as articulated or even bi-articulated buses may be
used, typically with multiple doors for fast entry and exit. Double-decker
buses[citation needed] or guided buses may also be used. Advanced
powertrain control may be used for a smoother ride.
BRT systems typically feature significant investment in enclosed stations which
may incorporate attractive sliding glass doors, staffed ticket booths,

6. information booths, and other more standard features listed above. They will
often include level boarding, using either low-floor buses or higher boarding
platforms level, and multiple doors to speed passenger boardings and enhance
accessibility to disabled passengers. Fare validation upon entry to the station in
a similar manner to that used on entry to a subway system is also common,
particularly at busy stations. [citation needed] An example of high-quality
stations include those used on TransMilenio in Bogotá since December 2000
Environmental issues
Unlike electric-powered trains commonly used in rapid transit and light rail
systems, bus rapid transit often uses diesel- or gasoline-fueled engines. The
typical bus diesel engine causes noticeable levels of air pollution, noise and
vibration. It is noted however that BRT can still provide significant
environmental benefits over private cars. In addition, BRT systems can replace
an inefficient conventional bus network for more efficient, faster and less
polluting BRT buses. For example, Bogotá previously used 2,700 conventional
buses providing transportation to 1.6 million passengers daily while in 2013
TransMilenio transported 1.9 million passengers using only 630 BRT buses, a
fleet less than a quarter in size of the old fleet, that circulates at twice the
speed, with a huge reduction in air pollution.
Overcrowding and poor quality service
Many BRT systems suffer from overcrowding in buses and stations as
well as long wait times for buses. In Santiago de Chile the average of
the system is six passengers per square meter (5/sq yd) inside vehicles.
Users have reported days where the buses take too long to arrive and
are usually too overcrowded to accept new passengers. As of June 2017
the system has 15% of approval from the users and has lost 27% of its
passengers, who have turned mostly to cars
In Jakarta there have been also reports of overcrowding in buses and stations,
low frequency of the routes and many reports of sexual harassment cases as
well as problems with buses that burn on their own. The quality of the service
is so bad that in 2015 the Jakarta governor apologized for
the bad service ……… (4)

7. Conclusion:
The future for BRT is bright. Rapid motorization and ever-worsening traffic
conditions in many rapidly emerging economies and fast-growing cities make
investments in high-capacity, high-performance transit systems more
imperative than ever. Mounting concerns over the long-term environmental
and fiscal impacts of car-dependent sprawl, combined with global initiatives to
dramatically curb carbon emissions, further favor a world of expanded transit
services. The bulk of future population growth throughout the 21st century will
be in settings conducive to BRT
Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) systems have gained popularity
worldwide as a cost-effective alternative to far more expensive urban rail
investments. High-quality bus-based systems also better serve the low-density
settlement patterns of many suburban markets and small-to-medium size cities
due to the inherent flexibility advantages of rubber-tyre systems – the same
vehicle that provides speedy line-haul services on a dedicated bus lane or
busway can morph into a feeder vehicle, collecting and distributing customers
on local streets.
References:
1- https://www.itdp.org/library/standards-and-guides/the-bus-rapid-
transit-standard/what-is-brt/
2- https://www.metro.net/projects/bus-rapid-transit-studies/
3- https://www.almadenahnews.com/article/57840-
4- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bus_rapid_transit