Bus Stop Inventory

The Fairfax County Department of Transportation (DOT) is responsible for managing the bus stops of numerous transit agencies including Washington Metro Area Transit Authority (WMATA), CUE Bus System, Dulles Corridor Rapid Transit Project (DASH), and many other local carriers. In an effort to provide better pedestrian safety, the DOT sought to inventory and identify needed improvements associated with over 5,000 bus stops within the county. PBS&J was selected to survey bus stops, passenger amenities, and operational facilities using Global Positioning System (GPS) technology, and design a database for the survey information collected.

PBS&J created training programs for field crews and prepared all data collection equipment. Mock input screens and draft data dictionary screens were prepared for review and upon final approval, this information was used to build the forms for the GeoXT™ GPS CE hand held data controllers using TerraSync™ software. To provide the most versatile data set, given the wide geographic area of coverage, PBS&J post-processed the collected data to deliver a geospatial file format based on ESRI GIS technology. All post-processed data was subject to rigorous data quality control procedures to ensure consistency in data field accuracy. Safety assessment data collected included safe stopping distance, ADA compliance, accessibility, passenger access and egress, waiting areas, intersection pedestrian features, lighting, and bus operating safety/motorist obstructions. PBS&J also assisted in the development of minimum bus stop safety guidelines, which were used as a benchmark to identify and recommend improvements for deficient stops.