Access Management at Public Transport Stations

Abstract

Access management is vital to maintain a safe flow of traffic within a development without compromising the access needs of the public. Good access management can be achieved by limiting and separating conflict points to obtain a balance between access and mobility. This study was set to assess the effect of different layouts of access management at public transport station on the traffic flow within Klang Valley. Attributes such as traffic volume, traffic speed, traffic conflict and merging time were considered within this study. Data was collected at 8 public transport stations during weekdays during peak and off-peak hours. By categorizing the existing access management available at the 8 public transport stations into 5 types, the findings revealed that there is no general significant relationship between traffic speed, traffic composition and road layout though the general fact is that no access management leads to more vehicular interactions and reduction in traffic speeds. It is also found that no specific pattern between merging time, traffic composition and road layout. The results suggest that the access management is site specific (as there is no one-size-fits-all in implementing access management) and merely considering the traffic operation parameters in design is inadequate to promise efficient and safe operational of traffic system. Instead, other elements such as the local and regional mobility, the behaviour of drivers within the area, traffic composition, interaction between vehicles and pedestrians, distance to the nearest traffic signal and crossing facilities should be considered in the course of design.