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A Literature Review on Bus Comfort On-Board

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Computational Science and Its Applications – ICCSA 2024 Workshops (ICCSA 2024)

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Abstract

According to the UN’s 2030 Agenda, cities and human settlements aim to become inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable. In this context, cities are pivotal for social and economic development, serving as gathering places where everyone should enjoy a high standard of living and accessibility. Public transportation, particularly bus comfort on board, significantly influences the quality of urban transportation services. Measuring this comfort is essential for transportation providers to track, assess, and implement targeted improvements. Comfort is a complex concept influenced by factors like temperature, noise, vibration, acceleration, passenger load, and cleanliness.

The literature offers various approaches to measuring bus comfort, prompting this paper's review of existing research to establish a structured research base for future studies. Despite a wealth of literature on onboard bus comfort levels (OBCL), no methods yet establish graduated, dynamic comfort scales incorporating diverse passenger characteristics and real-time acceleration data. This gap prevents a comprehensive, real-time OBCL assessment that accurately reflects passenger experiences. Furthermore, extensive data collection is necessary to calibrate models and consolidate comfort scales effectively.

The insights from these studies help identify specific areas where comfort levels are inadequate, enabling transportation agencies to focus on targeted interventions for enhancing the passenger experience. While considerable progress has been made in understanding and measuring bus comfort, there remains a need for more sophisticated methodologies to develop comprehensive and dynamic comfort assessment tools aligned with the diverse needs of passengers and the dynamic nature of urban transportation systems.

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Acknowledgments

This study is supported by the MIUR (Ministry of Education, Universities and Research [Italy]) through the project entitled: SMART3R-FLITS: SMART Transport for TRavellers and Freight Logistics Integration Towards Sustainability (Project protocol: 2022J38SR9; CUP Code: F53D23005630006), financed with the PRIN 2022 (Research Projects of National Relevance) programme; and project e.INS – Ecosystem of Innovation for Next Generation Sardinia” funded by the Italian Ministry of University and Research (MIUR) under the Next-Generation EU Programme (National Recovery and Resilience Plan – PNRR, M4C2, INVESTMENT 1.5 – DD 1056 of 23/06/2022 , ECS00000038)- SPOKE 8 - CUP F53C22000430001. We authorize the MIUR to reproduce and distribute reprints for Governmental purposes, notwithstanding any copyright notations thereon. Any opinions, findings and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors, and do not necessarily reflect the views of the MIUR. Moreover, the authors are grateful CTM SpA, which made its data available for this study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Architecture, University of Cagliari, 09129, Cagliari, Italy

    Francesca Maltinti, Mauro Coni, James Rombi & Nicoletta Rassu

  2. Department of Civil Engineering, Architecture, Land, Environment and Mathematics, University of Brescia, 25123, Brescia, Italy

    Benedetto Barabino & Roberto Ventura

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  1. Francesca Maltinti
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  2. Mauro Coni
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  4. Benedetto Barabino
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  6. Nicoletta Rassu
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Correspondence to Francesca Maltinti .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mathematics and Computer Science, University of Perugia, Perugia, Italy

    Osvaldo Gervasi

  2. School of Engineering, University of Basilicata, Potenza, Italy

    Beniamino Murgante

  3. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Architecture, University of Cagliari, Cagliari, Italy

    Chiara Garau

  4. Faculty of Information Technology, Clayton Campus, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, Australia

    David Taniar

  5. Algoritmi Research Centre, University of Minho, Braga, Portugal

    Ana Maria A. C. Rocha

  6. Department of Chemistry, Biology and Biotechnology, University of Perugia, Perugia, Italy

    Maria Noelia Faginas Lago

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Author Contributions

Conceptualization: Francesca Maltinti, Nicoletta Rassu, Mauro Coni, Benedetto Barabino. Methodology and formal analysis: Francesca Maltinti, Nicoletta Rassu, Benedetto Barabino, Roberto Ventura, Mauro Coni. Introduction and literature review: Francesca Maltinti, Nicoletta Rassu, James Rombi. Writing-original draft preparation: Francesca Maltinti, Nicoletta Rassu, Benedetto Barabino. Writing review and editing: Francesca Maltinti, James Rombi. Visualization, all. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

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Maltinti, F., Coni, M., Rombi, J., Barabino, B., Ventura, R., Rassu, N. (2024). A Literature Review on Bus Comfort On-Board. In: Gervasi, O., Murgante, B., Garau, C., Taniar, D., C. Rocha, A.M.A., Faginas Lago, M.N. (eds) Computational Science and Its Applications – ICCSA 2024 Workshops. ICCSA 2024. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 14824. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-65332-2_6

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