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ODOT-PTS / GTFS-ride

GTFS-ride is an open standard for storing and sharing fixed-route transit ridership data.
https://gtfsride.org
Apache License 2.0
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`arriving_load` more useful than `current_load` in `board_alight.txt` #3

Closed e-lo closed 7 years ago

e-lo commented 7 years ago

The load for the arriving bus is more useful to people at the stop than the load as it leaves the stop. Suggest replacing current_load with arriving_load.

sylvan-sh commented 7 years ago

Agree that the arriving load is more useful to people at the stop, and see GTFS-Realtime's OccupancyStatus as an excellent tool for agencies to communicate that information to their riders. Our intent is for agencies and organizations to use GTFS-ride to analyze their ridership, with feedback received indicating a preference for departing load. With such intent, does current_load, as it is now, make sense?

e-lo commented 7 years ago

I would presume that it would be useful to be consistent with GTFS-Realtime. Maybe it should be optional for either one.

sylvan-sh commented 7 years ago

We're already out of step w/ GTFS-Realtime in anticipating a numeric value (had left open as to whether to be absolute, percentage, or other; though clarification is increasingly looking like it is due). From the perspective of later analysis, are there specific gains of arriving load vs. departing load? I'm asking the same question of those advocating departing load as support for that measure was all we had heard prior to your comment, so we specified w/o further consideration.

e-lo commented 7 years ago

Are there specific gains of arriving load vs. departing load? From my perspective, yes. I do a lot of analysis on the effects of crowded vehicles. The load approaching a stop is more relevant for the ridership activity that happens at that stop.

For example, if there is a heavy load some drivers simply pass up all the waiting passengers. In other instances, it creates extremely prolonged dwell times because of the friction.

sylvan-sh commented 7 years ago

Excellent. I will share this with the team here and we will implement a means for such information to be represented.

sylvan-sh commented 7 years ago

Possible solution in ae9cac7.

sylvan-sh commented 7 years ago

I'm going to close out this issue. The solution in ae9cac7 has been included as we are preparing for the release of the standard. It is an integral element of board_alight.txt, and I'm excited to see how such data will be used to better understand crowding and associated ridership.