Rede Integrada de Transporte

Rede Integrada de Transporte

Green Line (Linha Verde) biarticulated express buses (ligeirão) at Marechal Floriano Station (Linha 550)
Overview
Locale	Curitiba, Brazil
Transit type	Bus Rapid Transit
Number of lines	6
Number of stations	21
Daily ridership	2,300,000 per day
Operation
Began operation	1974
Technical
System length	81.4 km
System map

Rede Integrada de Transporte (also known as RIT, locally pronounced [ˈʁedj ĩteˈɡɾadɐ dɪ tɾɐ̃sˈpɔɾtɪ],^[1] Portuguese for Integrated Transportation Network) is a bus rapid transit (BRT) system in Curitiba, Brazil, implemented in 1974 it notable as being the first of many such systems around the world^[2][3] and a component of one of the first and most successful examples of transit-oriented development.

Overview

Curitiba's bi-articulated buses and a tube-shaped bus stop, both parts of Rede Integrada de Transporte, the bus rapid transit system of Curitiba.

Curitiba has a well planned and integrated transportation system, which includes dedicated lanes on major streets for a bus rapid transit system.^[3][4] The buses are long, with 157 bi-articulated (split into three sections) and 29 single-articulated vehicles,^[5] and stop at designated elevated tube-shaped stations to allow for fare prepayment and platform level boarding, complete with handicapped access. A small ramp folds down from the bus onto the platform so there is no gap to cross to enter or leave the vehicle. All door loading and fare prepayment allows for short dwell times in stations. 20% of the stations have passing lanes to allow for express services^[6][7] The system, used by 85% of Curitiba's population (2.3 million passengers a day),^[8][9] is the source of inspiration^[10] for the TransMilenio in Bogotá, Colombia, Metrovia in Guayaquil, Ecuador as well as the Emerald Express (EmX) of Eugene, Oregon and Orange Line of the Los Angeles, California, The Strip and Downtown Express in Las Vegas, Nevada and for a future transportation system in Panama City, Panama, Transmetro system in Guatemala City, Guatemala, the Metrobús of Mexico City and Buenos Aires,^[11] Argentina, and for the city of Bangalore.^[12]

Recently, the transportation system has been facing problems due to the its reduced fleet and lack of maintenance. Buses represent only 1% of automobiles and overcrowding is a serious problem.^[13] Curitiba is the Brazilian capital with the highest automobiles per inhabitants ratio, with 1.2 million vehicles for a population of 1.8 million inhabitants,^[14] which explains the frequent traffic jams in the city.^[15] The citizens are forced to find alternative ways of reaching their destinations, given that overcrowding prevents the users of boarding the buses.^[16] For opponents of the government, the quality system has worsened since the last bid.^[17] Bicycle riders are also forced to illegally use the dedicated lanes,^[18] since Curitiba's accessibility to bicycle lanes is poor: Curitiba has just 35 km of exclusive bicycles lanes, much less many major European cities, such as Berlin, which contains 620 km of dedicated bicycle lanes.^[19][20]

History

Jaime Lerner, architect and designer of Curitiba's transport system.

Curitiba has over one hundred years of history in public transportation. The first system was a tram pulled by a mule during the imperial time in 1887. From 1910, Curitiba grew faster, so in 1912 an electrical tram replaced the mule-tracked one.^[21]

By the 1960s, Curitiba's population ballooned to 430,000, and some residents feared that the growth in population threatened to drastically change the character of the city. In 1964, Mayor Ivo Arzua solicited proposals for urban design. Architect Jaime Lerner, who later became mayor, led a team from the Universidade Federal do Paraná that suggested a reduction of private vehicle traffic in the downtown area and a convenient and affordable public transit system.^[22] The plan also sought to concentrate development along the bus routes to maximise the benefit of the high capacity system.

This plan, known as the Curitiba Master Plan, was adopted in 1968. Lerner closed 15 November Street to vehicles, because it had very high pedestrian traffic. The plan had a new road design to minimise traffic: the Trinary Road System. This uses two one-way streets moving in opposite directions which surround a smaller, two-lane street where the express buses have their exclusive lane. This concept was first adopted in 1979, with the North-Side Trunk Line.^[23]

Five of these roads form a star that converges to the city centre. Land farther from these roads is zoned for lower density developments, to reduce traffic away from the main roads. A number of areas subject to floods were condemned and became parks.^[24]

In the 1980s, the Rede Integrada de Transporte was created, allowing transit between any point in the city by paying just one fare.^[25]

In 1996 the United Nations Conference on Human Settlements (Habitat II) praised Curitiba as "the most innovative city in the world".

The system has introduced a number of developments since in commenced as shown in the table below:^[26][27]

Key components of RIT development over time

1970s	1980s	1990s	2000s	2010
Bus stop shelters	Tube stations			Real time information
Conventional buses	Articulated buses	Bi-articulated buses	Cleaner buses	B100 (biodiesel) buses
Open Terminals	Closed terminals (paid area)
Paper and coin based ticketing (manual)			Electronic ticketing
Trunk-and-feeder services	+Inter-neighbourhood +Direct (Lingerinho)	+Special services		+Overtaking at busway stations
Urban services		Metropolitan services
	Dispatch at terminals			Real time control
OPENINGS:Sul (1974), Norte (1974), Boqueirão (1977)	Leste (1980), Oeste (1980)		Linha Verde (2009)

Awards and recognition

In 2010 the RIT received an "honorable mention" for the Green Line (Linha Verda) at the Sustainable Transport Award's of the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy (ITDP).^[28] The Green Line is also only one of twelve BRT routes across seven systems around the globe to be awarded the Gold BRT Standard by the ITDP in 2013. The remaining five RIT routes were given the Silver Standard making the RIT one of the few systems with all routes having either a Silver or Gold ranking.^[29]

Criticism

Despite the success the system has been subject to criticism. Overcrowding is common at peak times and none of the routes extend beyond the municipal boundary of the city which forces passengers in the generally poorer outlying suburbs to have to change buses and pay two fares.^[30] The system has also faced declining patronage and lost 14 million users between 2008 and 2014 while other Brazilian cities maintained or increased public transport usage.^[31] Plans are underway to install an underground metro on claims the BRT cannot provide sufficient capacity.^[32][33]

Routes

How the tube-station works.

Direct Line unit.

• Express (Expresso Biarticulado): These are large high-capacity buses that have exclusive traffic lanes, spreading radially from the city centre in 5 directions. They are treated as an "above-ground subway" because of their speed, capacity and frequent service. They have bright red color schemes and operate with tubular shaped stations. Passengers pay to enter the stations. This allows very quick boarding and disembarking.
• Inter-neighborhood (Interbairros): These are green buses that travel outside downtown. Lines 1 and 2 circle the city centre, the latter with a bigger radius. Lines 3 to 6 are important connections between some neighborhoods.
• Direct lines (Linha Direta): Commonly called ônibus ligeirinho (quickie bus), these are silver buses designed to be the quickest links between two points. They cover large distances with few stops. They link with tube stations. Curitiba is the pioneer in the worldwide Rapid Bus development.
• Feeder (Alimentador): These are local bus lines and are painted orange. All of them link one passenger terminal to a neighborhood and feed the express buses and other RIT lines with passengers. Large windows allow better sightseeing.
• "Downtown Circulator" (Circular Centro): These small white buses are designed to circle the city centre, and are used by pedestrians as a quick way of getting to the other side of the area.
• Regular routes (Convencional): These yellow-colored buses operate radially from the city centre.
• Interhospitals (Interhospitais): These white buses circle the town and link the main city hospitals.
• Tourism line (Linha Turismo): These colorful buses focus on the city's attractions. Paying R$35.00 / US$11.28 allows one to get on and off the bus five times, at the attraction of interest.

Transit Centers

A bus stop in the city.

Curitiba has 21 transit centers, where it is possible to transfer between routes for free. Most of them are connected by bus lanes and offer riders great flexibility.

• Bairro Alto
• Barreirinha
• Boa Vista
• Boqueirão
• Cabral
• Caiuá
• Campina do Siqueira
• Campo Comprido
• Capão da Imbuia
• Capão Raso
• Carmo
• Centenário
• CIC
• Fazendinha
• Hauer
• Pinheirinho
• Portão
• Santa Cândida
• Santa Felicidade
• Sítio Cercado
• Vila Oficinas

Alternative propulsion

Curitiba's bi-articulated bus running with 100% soybean-based biodiesel.

Hybrid biodiesel-electric buses provide feeder services in some routes.

Biofuels

The environmental performance of alternative fuels are significant and contribute to improving air quality, especially in large cities of Brazil, where public transport systems are still largely made up of buses. These alternatives also produce social impact, since Brazil is a major producer of soybeans and ethanol, and the increased use of alternative fuels causes the generation of jobs, particularly in the field:^[34]

• Biodiesel B-20
• Frying Oil B-20
• MAD8 (anhydrous ethanol blend with diesel).

Incidents

• On 8 January 2011, 2 buses collided and 37 people were injured.^[35][36]
• On 10 June 2010, 2 men died after being run over by a bus.^[37]
• On 28 January 2009, a woman died after falling from an overcrowded bus in movement.^[38]
• On 23 November 2008, a bus crashed into a store in Curitiba and 3 passengers were injured.^[39]
• In 2007, 71 accidents were registered.^[40]

See also

• Bus Rapid Transit
• Bus Rapid Transit in Brazil
• Electric bus

References

1. The standard Brazilian Portuguese pronunciation, based on the variety spoken in Rio de Janeiro, is [ˈʁedʒĩːteˈɡɾadɐ dʒi tɾɐ̃ʃˈpɔʁtʃi].
2. "Recapturing Global Leadership in Bus Rapid Transit – A Survey of Select U.S. Cities" (PDF). Institute for Transportation and Development Policy. May 2011. Retrieved 2011-06-07. pp. 5
3. Cervero, Robert (1998), The Transit Metropolis, Island Press, Washington, D.C., pp. 265–296, ISBN 1-55963-591-6 Chapter 10/Creating a Linear City with a Surface Metro: Curitiba Brazil
4. The US Government Environmental Protection Agency website highlights the Curitiba transit project, describing the success of the city master plan in numbers.
5. "Latin America /Brazil/Curitiba". Retrieved 24 August 2014.
6. "Curitiba BRT". Retrieved 24 August 2014.
7. "Publictransit.us" (PDF). Retrieved 18 October 2011.
8. A study on Curitiba transportation by The University of Upsalla
9. "Curitiba’s Bus Rapid Transit: 2.3 Million Passengers a Day". TreeHugger. Retrieved 18 October 2011.
10. "BBC mentions transit system as landmark of Brazil's south". BBC. Retrieved 18 October 2011.
11. "Diario La Nación (Spanish)". Lanacion.com.ar. 13 June 2008. Retrieved 18 October 2011.
12. Indian Institute of Technology Delhi states Bangalore to adopt Curitiba transit system. These cities are listed in a study from Sidney University on Bus Rapid Transit, as well as in a study by the Japanese Institute for Global Environment Strategies with the UN Collaborating Center on Energy and Environment at the Risoe National Laboratory of Denmark which echoes this list.
13. "Bem Paraná – Ônibus são 1% da frota, mas estão em 10% dos acidentes". Bemparana.com.br. Retrieved 18 October 2011.
14. sábado, 27 setembro, 2008 (21 April 2008). "Curitiba tem maior frota de veículos por habitantes do Brasil « Área de Trabalho". Areadetrabalho.wordpress.com. Retrieved 18 October 2011.
15. "CMI Brasil – Inferno nas ruas de Curitiba". Midiaindependente.org. Retrieved 18 October 2011.
16. "Passageiros reclamam que superlotação é constante – Paraná-Online – Paranaense como você". Pron.com.br. Retrieved 18 October 2011.
17. "Bem Paraná – Bancada de oposição cobra respostas para problemas do transporte coletivo". Bemparana.com.br. Retrieved 18 October 2011.
18. "Em teste, ciclistas teimam em andar nas canaletas – Vida e Cidadania". Gazeta do Povo. Retrieved 18 October 2011.
19. "Bike City Berlin". TreeHugger. Retrieved 18 October 2011.
20. "Mais do que lazer, bicicleta é transporte alternativo – Vida e Cidadania". Gazeta do Povo. Retrieved 18 October 2011.
21. "Curitiba Transportation System: BRT = Bus Rapid Transit". Mariavazphoto.com. Retrieved 18 October 2011.
22. "Undisputed history of project as told by CNN reporter". Transcripts.cnn.com. 24 December 2000. Retrieved 18 October 2011.
23. A História do Transporte Coletivo de Curitiba Retrieved on 30 January 2009
24. The plan is well documented and can be seen in the bus route map: [Image:Curitiba_PublicTransport.png|Bus route plan]
25. One fare is confirmed by a US federal research stating that: "Passengers pay a single fare ... with unlimited transfers between buses". This may not be the same price to all passengers, as indicated by this CNN source, which claims the "system is subsidized by wealthy residents of the city center area", who perhaps pay more. In any case, all sources agree that payment for all transfers are done once for all daily rides, outside the stations, and prior to entering the bus.
26. "Curitiba, the cradle of Bus Rapid Transit" (PDF). Retrieved 24 Aug 14. Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
27. "Technical Datasheet Curitiba - Brazil". Retrieved 24 Aug 14. Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
28. "Ahmedabad Wins 2010 Sustainable Transport Award". Retrieved 24 August 2014.
29. "Best Practices 2013". Retrieved 24 August 2014.
30. "Cracks in the Curitiba Myth". Retrieved 24 Aug 14. Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
31. "Sistema de ônibus curitibano perdeu 14 milhões de usuários em 4 anos". Gazeta do Povo. 02/06/2012. Check date values in: |date= (help)
32. "IS A METRO THE SOLUTION FOR CURITIBA?". Retrieved 24 Aug 2014.
33. "Metro In Curitiba Is Coming". Retrieved 24 Aug 2014.
34. "URBS – Urbanização de Curitiba". Urbs.curitiba.pr.gov.br. Retrieved 18 October 2011.
35. "Acidente entre dois ônibus deixa 37 feridos em Curitiba". Noticias.terra.com.br. Retrieved 18 October 2011.
36. "Acidente entre biarticulado e ligeirinho deixa 40 feridos – Vida e Cidadania". Gazeta do Povo. 30 September 2010. Retrieved 18 October 2011.
37. "Corpos das vítimas de acidente de ônibus são enterrados em Curitiba – Vida e Cidadania". Gazeta do Povo. 30 September 2010. Retrieved 18 October 2011.
38. "Mulher morre após cair de ônibus superlotado em Curitiba – Vida e Cidadania". Gazeta do Povo. Retrieved 18 October 2011.
39. "Biarticulado invade loja na região central de Curitiba – Paraná-Online – Paranaense como você". Parana-online.com.br. Retrieved 18 October 2011.
40. "Ônibus foram responsáveis por 71 acidentes com pedestres e ciclistas em 2007 – Vida e Cidadania". Gazeta do Povo. Retrieved 18 October 2011.

External links

• Urbs, Urbanização de Curitiba S/A
• Chairman of RIT
• Proposed electric transport for Curitiba.