Institute of Transportation, MOTC

Title	A Study of On-board Measurements of Fuel Consumption and Greenhouse Gas Emissions of Buses (2/2)
Dept	Transportation Planning and Land Transport Division
Year	2012
Month
Price
Summary	Global climate change calls for effective programs for reducing emissions of greenhouse gases from all countries worldwide. For effective and efficient implementation, environmental considerations should be incorporated at the planning stage. The Institute of Transportation (IOT) has made considerable efforts in building travel demand forecasting models for evaluating transportation projects in economic terms. Incorporating environmental factors for evaluating effects of transportation policies on fuel consumption and air pollution, however, requires more research efforts. 　　This study continues the efforts of the project entitled, ‘A Study on the Correlation Analyses between Energy Consumption, Emissions and Transportation Planning’, which established a relationship between fuel consumption/ greenhouse gas emission rates and traffic operations factors of small automobiles. The objective of this study is to further enhance the functions of the Taiwan Intercity Transportation Demand Forecasting Model by integrating a module of fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions by building similar modules for buses. The target of the research is to establish a comprehensive mechanism for evaluating the environmental impact in the process of highway planning, so that the policy goals of sustainable transportation, including efficient fuel usage and reduction of air pollution, may be achieved. 　　The study made the following contributions: The project team used the new technology of On-board Emissions Measurement Systems to investigate real-world bus emissions regarding energy consumption and pollution when being operated on various classes of highways. The project team collected data from both coaches and urban buses to establish relationships between fuel consumption and vehicular speeds by highway classes. Verification Research results show the model may be transferred to diesel buses of different makes and models, on various routes and regions, and of diverse driver behavior characteristics, without significant errors. The project team successfully integrated the emissions model with the transportation demand forecasting model. A case study was conducted for analyzing fuel consumption characteristics of bus lane operations in Taipei City. The percentages of idling time appear too high for the bus-lane operations in both peak and off-peak periods, which reduce the efficiency both in bus operations and in fuel consumption. The study recommends (1) upgrading traffic signaling systems by, e.g., bus-pre-empt or bus-priority signaling; and (2) redesigning platform layouts to better accommodate the current passenger demands for improving the efficiency of bus lane operations. Moreover, the promotion of eco-driving to drivers and bus fuel saving devices, such as the stop-and-go system, is promising to improve the fuel economy of buses.
Post date	2012/09/26
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