Curitiba’s Bus System is Model for Rapid Transit

8/7/2019 Curitibas Bus System is Model for Rapid Transit

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The bus system of Curitiba, Brazil, exemplifies amodel Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system, and plays alarge part in making this a livable city. The buses runfrequentlysome as often as every 90 secondsandreliably, and the stations are convenient, well-designed, comfortable, and attractive. Consequently,Curitiba has one of the most heavily used, yet low-cost, transit systems in the world. It offers many of the features of a subway systemvehicle movementsunimpeded by traffic signals and congestion, fare col-lection prior to boarding, quick passenger loadingand unloadingbut it is above ground and visible.Around 70 percent of Curit ibas commuters use theBRT to travel to work, resulting in congestion-freestreets and pollution-free air for the 2.2 millioninhabitants of greater Curitiba.

The Evolution of Curitibas BRTThirty years ago, Curitibas forward-thinking and

cost-conscious planners integrated public transporta-

tion into all the other elements of the urban planningsystem. They initiated a system that focused onmeeting the transportation needs of all peoplerather than those using private automobilesandconsistently followed through with a staged imple-mentation of their plan. They avoided large-scale andexpensive projects in favor of hundreds of modest initiatives.

A previous comprehensive plan for Curitiba,

developed in 1943, had envisioned exponentialgrowth in automobile traffic with wide boulevardsradiating from the core of the city to accommodate it.Rights of way for the boulevards were acquired, butmany other parts of the plan never materialized. Thenin 1965, prompted by fears among city officials thatCuritibas rapid growth would lead to uncheckeddevelopment and congested streets, they adopted anew Master Plan. Curitiba would no longer grow inall directions from the core, but would grow alongdesignated corridors in a linear form, spurred byzoning and land use policies promoting high densityindustrial and residential development along thecorridors. Downtown Curitiba would no longer bethe primary destination of travel, but a hub andterminus. Mass transit would replace the car as theprimary means of transport within the city, and thedevelopment along the corridors would produce ahigh volume of transit ridership. The wide boulevardsestablished in the earlier plan would provide the cross

section required for exclusive bus lanes in which anexpress bus service would operate.

A Hierarchical System of Bus ServicesCuritibas bus system is composed of a hierarchical

system of services. Minibuses routed through residen-tial neighborhoods feed passengers to conventionalbuses on circumferential routes around the central

race, poverty & the environment | winter 2005/ 2006

By Joseph Goodman, Melissa Laube, and Judith Schwenk

Curitibas Bus System is Model for

Rapid Transit

us systems provide a versatile form of public transportation with the flexibility to serve a variety of access needsand unlimited range of locations throughout a metropolitan area. Buses also travel on urban roadways, so infra-structure investments can be substantially lower than the capital costs required for rail systems. As a result, bus

service can be implemented cost-effectively on many routes. Yet, despite the inherent advantages of a bus service,conventional urban buses inching their way through congested streets dont win much political support. Theessence of a Bus Rapid Transit is to improve bus operating speed and reliability on arterial streets by reducing oreliminating the various types of delay.

B


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city and on inter-district routes. The backbone of the

system is composed of the Bus Rapid Transit,operating on the five main arteries leading into thecenter of the city like spokes on a wheel hub.

Buses running in the dedicated lanes stop at cylin-drical, clear-walled tube stations with turnstiles, steps,and wheelchair lifts. Passengers pay their fares as theyenter the stations, and wait for buses on raisedplatforms. Instead of steps, buses have extra wide doorsand ramps that extend out to the station platformwhen the doors open. The tube stations serve the dualpurpose of providing shelter from the elements, andfacilitating the simultaneous loading and unloading of

passengers, including wheelchairs, efficiently. Thissystem of same-level bus boarding, plus the pre-boarding fare payment, results in a typical dwell t imeof no more than 15 to 19 seconds at a stop.

Passengers pay a single fare equivalent to about 40cents (U.S.) for travel throughout the system, withunlimited transfers between buses at terminals wheredifferent services intersect. Transfers occur within theprepaid sections of the terminals, so transfer ticketsare not needed. Also, located within t hese terminalsare conveniences, such as public telephones, postoffices, newspaper stands, and small retail facilities.

Ten private bus companies, which run the actualbuses, are paid by distance traveled rather thanpassenger volume to allow a balanced distribution of bus routes and eliminate clogging of main roads. Allten bus companies earn an operating profit. The citypays the companies about one percent of the busvalue per month. After ten years, the city takescontrol of the buses and uses them for transportationto parks, or as mobile schools.

The Intersection of Transit and Land Use PlanningCuritibas Master Plan integrated transportation

with land use planning, calling for a cultural, social,

and economic transformation of the city. It limitedcentral area growth, while encouraging commercial

growth along the transport arteries radiating out from

the city center. The city center was partly closed tovehicular traffic, and pedestrian streets were created.Linear development along the arteries reduced the tra-ditional importance of the downtown area as theprimary focus of day-to-day transport activity, therebyminimizing congestion and the typical morning andafternoon flows of traffic. Instead, rush hour inCuritiba has heavy commuter movements in bothdirections along the public transportation arteries.

Other policies have also contributed to the successof the transit system. Land within two blocks of thetransit arteries is zoned for high density, since it

generates more transit ridership per square foot.Beyond the two blocks, zoned residential densitiestaper in proportion to distance from transitways.Planners discourage auto-oriented centers and channelnew retail growth to transit corridors. Very limitedpublic parking is available in the downtown area, andmost employers offer transportation subsidies, espe-cially to low-skilled and low-paid employees.

The BRTA Success StoryThe popularity of Curitibas BRT has effected a

modal shift from automobile travel to bus travel.Based on 1991 traveler survey results, it was estimatedthat the introduction of the BRT had caused areduction of about 27 million auto trips per year,saving about 27 million liters of fuel annually. In par-ticular, 28 percent of BRT riders previously traveledby car. Compared to eight other Brazilian cities of itssize, Curitiba uses about 30 percent less fuel percapita, resulting in one of the lowest rates of ambientair pollution in the country. Today about 1,100 busesmake 12,500 trips every day, serving more than 1.3million passengers50 times the number from 20years ago. Eighty percent of travelers use the expressor direct bus services. Best of all, Curitibanos spend

only about 10 percent of their income on travelmuch below the national average. I

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race, poverty & the environment | winter 2005/ 2006

Case Studies and Solutions

This article i s excerpted from a Federal Transportation Administration publication on Issues in Bus Rapid Transit. Bert Arrillaga, chief of

the Service Innovation Division in the Office of Mobility Innovation, provided guidance and overall direction for its content. Staff

members from both the Federal Transportation Administration and the Volpe National Transportation Systems Center (Volpe Center)

participated in its w riting. http://w ww.ft a.dot.gov/7692_ENG_HTML.htm


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Curitiba’s Bus System is Model for Rapid Transit