Author(s)

I. Străinescu & V. Rădulescu

Abstract

The development of the great cities in Romania, especially of the capital, Bucharest, and the dramatic rise in the number of cars, most of them purchased from Western Europe, has, over a long period of usage contributed to the pollution of these cities and resulted in horrific urban traffic, particularly during the morning and evening rush hours. To provide alternative transportation in Bucharest and the surrounding areas, RATB uses 300 km of tram lines with a park of 500 tram wagons, 18 trolley lines with a 485 km network and a park of 300 trolleys, the bus transport system with a 2900 km network and a park of 1300 buses, 3 Light Rail – LR lines and 4 subway lines. During rush hours, the tram and trolley lines are most of the time obstructed by cars, so the average transport speed is 6–9 km/h for trolleys and 8–10 km/h for trams. The traffic travel time for cars is around 220,000 vehicles/hour, 18,000 vehicles/hour for cabs and 854,000 passengers/hour for urban transportation with electrical vehicles and buses. The impact on the environment can be measured in noise levels which for 2007 were estimated at 62.8 dB and polluting car emission level: 2 t NOX, 10 t CO, 1.2 t unburned hydrocarbon / particles, 357 t SO2, 1113 t CO2. This paper will examine the decision factors and the planning concerns to provide a more efficient urban transport in Bucharest and other great cities in Romania, especially with electrical vehicles. To this end the paper proposes a methodology to optimize the selection mode and the track design for Light Rail – LR, using existing tram lines with the necessary additions, the construction of new subway lines for the busy areas and the continuous development of the tram and trolley urban transportation. Keywords: transit modes, mode selection, transit decision, capacity, travel time, light rail – LR, Metro, trams.

Keywords

transit modes, mode selection, transit decision, capacity, travel time, light rail – LR, Metro, trams