Apologies to everyone. It seems the internet address was incorrect. It
should be http://www.bartlett.ucl.ac.uk/fitbus/index.htm

Please note, I have corrected the address in the following information to
try and prevent further misunderstandings.

sorry again

Marcus Enoch





The art of bus planning is dying out. Where does the industry go from here?

FITBUS Seminar

Hosted by the Confederation of Passenger Transport, Imperial House, 15-19
Kingsway, London.
Wednesday 1st May 2002.

Space is limited so please email us in advance.

Programme

2.00pm - Introduction to the FITBUS Project
2.15pm - Presentation of results from WP2 and WP3 - the geo-demographic
planning tool in action
2.45pm - Question and discussion session
3.00pm - Tea
3.20pm - Presentation of results from WP4 - applying the tool to other
rural modes
3.40pm - Question and general discussion session
4.30pm - Close

For more information about the seminar or the FITBUS project generally,
visit http://www.bartlett.ucl.ac.uk/fitbus/index.htm or contact Helena
Titheridge ([log in to unmask]) or Marcus Enoch ([log in to unmask]).

For map of location, please visit:
http://www.streetmap.co.uk/streetmap.dll?grid2map?
x=530750&y=181250&zoom=1&isp=187&ism=500&arrow=y?69,141



Abstract
Bus planning has traditionally been a "craft-skill", with bus planners
gaining expertise through experience and local knowledge acquired over
time.  This expertise is being lost with an increasingly high turnover of
staff within the industry.  New ways in which bus planning skills and
competences can be maintained are needed.  Currently, local knowledge is
supplemented with data and craft with GIS (geographical information
systems) based tools and methods.  But as we move further into the 21st
century, craft and local knowledge will increasingly be supplementing GIS.
The FITBUS project has developed a method for bus planning suited to the
21st century.
A tool was needed to meet the differing requirements of commercial and
social planners - a way of translating the wealth of demographic and
lifestyle data available into information of use to the bus planner.
FITBUS has addressed these needs.
FITBUS is a classification scheme which groups the population according to
their bus use habits, access to different transport modes and socio-
economic characteristics.  It is a hierarchical system, with over 100
different groups at the lowest level, enabling planners to have as much or
little detail as needed.  The incorporation of transport supply along side
socio-economic variables in the classification structure allows both
potential markets and the socially excluded to be identified.  Thus serving
both commercial and social planners needs.
The FITBUS classification has been extended with the use of GIS to produce
a tool that calculates expected patronage levels of bus routes.  This tool
can be used for planning new routes, monitoring the performance of existing
routes or evaluating proposed routes with relation to best value.  The
FITBUS system could also be used in planning unconventional transport
modes.
The workshop will summarise the results of the first two work packages, and
more fully cover the findings from the application of the tool on bus
routes in West Sussex. It will also examine how the tool could be applied
to less conventional modes that are having an increasingly important role
in rural areas.