Abstract:
Experience in vehicle operation and maintenance in the demand-responsive transportation (DRT) system in Batavia, New York is briefly described. The system uses four 23-passenger Flexible Flxettes, and one 10-passenger Ford Courier each of which travel 600 miles per week during the busy season and totals 23,000 miles per year. The operation's preventive maintenance program requires a maintenance check every 1,000 miles. The cost of maintenance (including interior and exterior washing) for a total of 76,383 miles was 10.6 cents/mile. Maintenance costs and an analysis of maintenance and repair jobs are tabulated. Heavy and frequent use of brakes in DRT service cause excessive wear, and break adjustments, relining etc., have contributed significantly to vehicle downtime. Brakes must be relined every 5,000 miles and brake drums replaced each 10,000 miles. Valve failure is the principal weakness in the automobile type of gasoline engines used in most of the small vehicles. DRT service also requires a better system for the cooling of the transmission oil. The recommendation has been made for a replacement program that calls for new vehicles after 75,000 miles or 3 years of service. The program establishes the life of the body as 6 years, and the bodies are remounted on new chassis.
Supplemental Notes:
Presented at the Fifth Annual International Conference on Demand-Responsive Transportation Systems conducted by the TRB, Nov. 11-13, 1974, Oakland, Calif.; and co-sponsored by American Public Transit Association, California DOT, Alameda-Contra Costa Transit, MIT, UMTA and Technology Sharing Program of U.S. DOT. Distribution, posting, or copying of this PDF is strictly prohibited without written permission of the Transportation Research Board of the National Academy of Sciences. Unless otherwise indicated, all materials in this PDF are copyrighted by the National Academy of Sciences. Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
