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Leaky coaxial cables have found applications in the creation of network infrastructures for mobile and personal communication services in underground and enclosed spaces. A digital cellular system based on the GSM 900 standard and using radiated mode leaky coaxial cables has been implemented in an underground mass rapid transit environment. This paper presents the practical performance evaluation of the system. First, we start with a brief introduction of a radiated mode leaky coaxial cable and the digital cellular system GSM 900, and then we move into a full description of the measurement campaign; next we focus on an analysis of the measured performance data about received signal level, received signal quality, speech quality index and grade of service. The results show that the system performance is generally good; however, the poor system performance often occurs at the terminals of the leaky coaxial cable. In addition, it is found that the system performance is highly correlated with the density of train passenger. The higher train passenger density degrades the system performance. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The 20-km (12.5-mi) mass rapid transit underground railway system in central Bangkok, Thailand, recently opened for passengers. During construction, the project was divided into two separate civil design-build contracts: the northern section, comprising approximately 10 km (6.2 mi) of twin bored tunnels, and nine stations constructed within slurry walls by adopting top-down techniques. A crucial part of the design of the underground structures was the selection of appropriate design parameters for the slurry walls. The contractor was responsible for ground-related issues and carried out a detailed site investigation to confirm the ground conditions and define soil parameters for the design of the underground structures. The site investigation comprised 40 conventional wash-bored borings and six self-boring pressuremeter tests. This paper describes the site investigation that was carried out for the project and the ground conditions that were encountered, with particular focus on the use of the self-boring...

The 20-km (12.5-mi) mass rapid transit underground railway system in central Bangkok, Thailand, recently opened for passengers. During construction, the project was divided into two separate civil design–build contracts: the northern section, comprising approximately 10 km (6.2 mi) of twin bored tunnels, and nine stations constructed within slurry walls by adopting top-down techniques. A crucial part of the design of the underground structures was the selection of appropriate design parameters for the slurry walls. The contractor was responsible for ground-related issues and carried out a detailed site investigation to confirm the ground conditions and define soil parameters for the design of the underground structures. The site investigation comprised 40 conventional wash-bored borings and six self-boring pressuremeter tests. This paper describes the site investigation that was carried out for the project and the ground conditions that were encountered, with particular focus on the use of the self-boring pressuremeter to estimate the soil strength, stiffness, and in situ pressure for use in design of the slurry walls. The paper discusses the various methods used to interpret the data and compares the parameters derived from the pressuremeter to those derived from other methods and from back-analysis of the behavior of the wall during construction. It is concluded that in the conditions in Bangkok, the pressuremeter testing provided higher strength and stiffness values than determined from other methods and that these parameters were subsequently borne out by the behavior of the underground structures.

The purpose of this study is to establish a set of consistent guidelines for deciding entrance architecture of modern MRT (Mass Rapid Transit) stations in Taiwan, so that the details of constructio...

This study uses the opening of a new Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) line, known as the Circle Line (CL), between 2010 and 2012 in Singapore as the exogenous event to empirically test the impact of the new CL on housing wealth of households. Using a differences-in-differences (DID) approach, and with the non-landed private housing transaction data covering the period from 2009 to 2013, we find that the average housing prices in our sample increase by 1.6% in the post-opening of the CL. We also find significant capitalization of the new CL into housing prices, especially households living within a 400 meter radius (the treatment zone) from the closest MRT stations on the CL. The treatment effects that are measured by the marginal willingness to pay for houses located within the treatment zone is 13.2% relative to houses located outside the treatment zone. The new CL opening creates an estimated of S$1.23 billion housing effects for households living in the close proximity to the CL MRT stations. However, we do not find significant “anticipative” effects on house prices in the 6-month window prior to the opening of CL. The strongest treatment effect is found after the opening of the phase 1 of CL, and the intensity of treatment effects declines in phases 2 and 3 of the CL opening. The results show strong evidence of the causality from the accessibility to MRT stations on housing prices.

Mass rapid transit (MRT) technology had gone through a very comprehensive and intensive evolution in recent decades. Those developments and innovations occurred in both technological and engineering aspects. In this project, a laboratory-scaled mass rapid transit system based on Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) is built. The motivation of this project is to design and develop a laboratory scaled mass rapid transit system that can demonstrate the operation of a real MRT system to the public. Omron CJ2M series PLC, Shihlin Electric Human-machine-interface EU200 series, Lego 7938 City Train Set and Arduino microcontroller board are used to develop the system. Several NPN sensors are implemented in the system to perform the automated operation of a real MRT system. Other devices such as servo motor, light-emitting diode and DC motor are used to support the primary function of the rail system. In addition, simulation software in controlling the operation of an MRT system is also developed. The outcome has significantly contributed towards in depth knowledge and practical understanding of mechatronic system development and implementation.

The use of regenerative braking is a key factor to reduce the energy consumption of a metro line. In the case where no device can store the energy produced during braking, only the metros that are accelerating at the same time can benefit from it. Maximizing the power transfers between accelerating and braking metros thus provides a simple strategy to benefit from regenerative energy without any other hardware device. In this thesis, we use a mathematical timetable model to classify various metro energy optimization rescheduling problems studied in the literature and prove their NP-hardness by polynomial reductions of SAT. We then focus on the problem of minimizing the global energy consumption of a metro timetable by modifying the dwell times in stations. We present a greedy heuristic algorithm which aims at locally synchronizing braking metros along the timetable with accelerating metros in their time neighbourhood, using a non-linear approximation of energy transfers. On a benchmark of six small size timetables, we show that our greedy heuristics performs better than CPLEX using a MILP formulation of the problem, even when it is able to prove the optimality of a linear approximation of the objective function. We also show that it runs ten times faster thana state-of-the-art evolutionary algorithm, called the covariance matrix adaptation evolution strategy (CMA-ES), using the same non-linear objective function on these small size instances. On real data leading to 10000 decision variables on which both MILP and CMA-ES do not provide solutions, the dedicated algorithm of our thesis computes solutions with a reduction of energy consumption ranging from 5% to 9%.; La réutilisation de l’énergie de freinage est un facteur clé pour réduire la consommation énergétique d’une ligne de métro. Si cette énergie ne peut pas être stockée, la seule manière de l’utiliser est d’en faire bénéficier les métros qui accélèrent au même moment. Maximiser les transferts de puissance entre les métros qui accélèrent et ceux qui freinent est donc une stratégie simple pour profiter de l’énergie de freinage. Dans cette thèse, nous utilisons un modèlemathématique de table horaire qui permet de classer des problèmes variés d’optimisation énergétique dans les métros, étudiés dans la littérature, et de prouver leur NP-difficulté par des réductions polynomiales de SAT. Nous nous concentrons particulièrement sur le problème de la minimisation de la consommation énergétique globale d’une table horaire de métro en ne modifiant que les temps d’arrêt en stations. Nous présentons un algorithme glouton qui viseà synchroniser localement, tout au long de la table horaire, les métros qui freinent avec les métros qui accélèrent dans leur voisinage temporel, en utilisant une approximation non linéaire des transferts d’énergie. Une évaluation sur six tables horaires de petite taille montre que notre heuristique gloutonne donne de meilleurs résultats qu’un modèle PLNE résolu par CPLEX. Ce même quand ce dernier est capable de prouver l’optimalité de solutions dont la fonction objectifest une approximation linéaire de la consommation énergétique. Notre heuristique donne aussi des résultats dix fois plus rapidement qu’un algorithme évolutionnaire de l’état de l’art nommé covariance matrix adaptation evolution strategy (CMA-ES), en utilisant la même fonction objectif non linéaire. Sur des données réelles contenant 10000 variables de décisions et sur lesquelles ni CPLEX ni CMA-ES ne sont pas capables de calculer une solution, l’algorithme dédié présenté dans notre thèse donne des solutions réduisant de 5% à 9% la consommationd’énergie.

The use of regenerative braking is a key factor to reduce the energy consumption of a metro line. In the case where no device can store the energy produced during braking, only the metros that are accelerating at the same time can benefit from it. Maximizing the power transfers between accelerating and braking metros thus provides a simple strategy to benefit from regenerative energy without any other hardware device. In this thesis, we use a mathematical timetable model to classify various metro energy optimization rescheduling problems studied in the literature and prove their NP-hardness by polynomial reductions of SAT. We then focus on the problem of minimizing the global energy consumption of a metro timetable by modifying the dwell times in stations. We present a greedy heuristic algorithm which aims at locally synchronizing braking metros along the timetable with accelerating metros in their time neighbourhood, using a non-linear approximation of energy transfers. On a benchmark of six small size timetables, we show that our greedy heuristics performs better than CPLEX using a MILP formulation of the problem, even when it is able to prove the optimality of a linear approximation of the objective function. We also show that it runs ten times faster thana state-of-the-art evolutionary algorithm, called the covariance matrix adaptation evolution strategy (CMA-ES), using the same non-linear objective function on these small size instances. On real data leading to 10000 decision variables on which both MILP and CMA-ES do not provide solutions, the dedicated algorithm of our thesis computes solutions with a reduction of energy consumption ranging from 5% to 9%.; La réutilisation de l’énergie de freinage est un facteur clé pour réduire la consommation énergétique d’une ligne de métro. Si cette énergie ne peut pas être stockée, la seule manière de l’utiliser est d’en faire bénéficier les métros qui accélèrent au même moment. Maximiser les transferts de puissance entre les métros qui accélèrent et ceux qui freinent est donc une stratégie simple pour profiter de l’énergie de freinage. Dans cette thèse, nous utilisons un modèlemathématique de table horaire qui permet de classer des problèmes variés d’optimisation énergétique dans les métros, étudiés dans la littérature, et de prouver leur NP-difficulté par des réductions polynomiales de SAT. Nous nous concentrons particulièrement sur le problème de la minimisation de la consommation énergétique globale d’une table horaire de métro en ne modifiant que les temps d’arrêt en stations. Nous présentons un algorithme glouton qui viseà synchroniser localement, tout au long de la table horaire, les métros qui freinent avec les métros qui accélèrent dans leur voisinage temporel, en utilisant une approximation non linéaire des transferts d’énergie. Une évaluation sur six tables horaires de petite taille montre que notre heuristique gloutonne donne de meilleurs résultats qu’un modèle PLNE résolu par CPLEX. Ce même quand ce dernier est capable de prouver l’optimalité de solutions dont la fonction objectifest une approximation linéaire de la consommation énergétique. Notre heuristique donne aussi des résultats dix fois plus rapidement qu’un algorithme évolutionnaire de l’état de l’art nommé covariance matrix adaptation evolution strategy (CMA-ES), en utilisant la même fonction objectif non linéaire. Sur des données réelles contenant 10000 variables de décisions et sur lesquelles ni CPLEX ni CMA-ES ne sont pas capables de calculer une solution, l’algorithme dédié présenté dans notre thèse donne des solutions réduisant de 5% à 9% la consommationd’énergie.

The energy cost accounts for a very high proportion of the operating cost of Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) systems and energy price continues to rise. Therefore, the energy cost of MRT systems will continue to increase. If some energy saving strategies are implemented, operating cost and energy consumption of MRT systems can be greatly reduced. This study analyzes the optimal schedule, regenerative taper voltage adjustment and no-load voltage adjustment of traction substations to determine energy saving strategies. A case study of a Taipei MRT line, under different operating conditions is analyzed. This research adopts commercial railway system software to simulate the operation of the Taipei MRT line. Regenerative braking energy and some other conditions for energy saving strategies are simulated. Energy saving effects are estimated to show the achievement of operational cost savings.

This issue includes the following headings: finding the right broadband public-private partnership (PPP): whats key for emerging economies?; reform has its rewards: telecom takes off in Myanmar; e-gov excellence: models from Colombia, Ghana, India, and Portugal; know what you know: creating a government technology strategy; and closing the gap: Facebook and intel connect the unconnected.

Governmental Debt Guarantees (GDGs) are often used to encourage involvement by promoters and financial institutions in Public-Private Partnerships (PPP) projects. However, even after demonstrating the bankability of a project and reducing debt cost, the success of the project may be prevented by the lack of long-term commitment from shareholders. Equity contributions by promoters in the project company may be recovered from earnings on short-term construction activities. Based on lesson learned from early PPP projects with GDG, the hold-up problem for government in the view of transaction cost economic (TCE) theory may worsen if the designed contractual structure does not adequately manage opportunistic behaviours from promoters. This study empirically examined the effects of a structured GDG mechanism with particular complementary measures applied in joint projects to develop the Taipei Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) stations. A GDG game model was then applied to bridge the theoretical gap based on the Taipei MRT experience. The analysis shows that requiring the promoter to provide sufficient equity and ensuring the commitment of the lender to provide the loan are the appropriate proactive measures. This study demonstrates its practical value for policy makers by combining case study, TCE and game theory in contractual issues.

The Greenprint 2030 is a resolute attempt on the part of MMDA to engage all stakeholders in a process to create a common vision for the region’s future. For the first time, all 16 cities and one municipality comprising Metro Manila are linked under one vision that sets developmental priorities for the region and provides direction to achieve those priorities. The vision is formulated within the wider Mega Manila context, considering the shared challenges and opportunities with adjacent provinces. Like other metropolitan plans, Greenprint 2030 starts with a vision. However, it differs from the comprehensive metropolitan planning exercises in that it focuses on developing strategic areas of opportunity. Through the vision process, connectivity, inclusiveness, and resilience emerged as the key entry points for strategic engagement. Based on the vision the Greenprint 2030 will provide metropolitan wide spatial guidance, demonstrate coordination mechanisms, and identify areas for catalytic investments. The green in Greenprint goes beyond trees and open spaces green is efficient transportation, affordable housing, and more resilient infrastructure. It emphasizes sustainable urban development as the underlying principle across the three themes of inclusivity, connectivity, and resiliency. These sectors work together to enable more efficient use of resources and to create a livable urban environment. The Greenprint 2030 offers the strategic direction which informs comprehensive spatial and development plans prepared by national and local government agencies, related to Metro and Mega Manila. Through this process, more options for metropolitan governance will also be examined. The aim is to equip the metropolitan area to compete globally and to provide its citizens a safe, resilient, and green environment.

This issue of the Handshake, IFCs quarterly journal on public-private partnerships, contains the following topics of interest: weighing the options: burn or bury?; waste and climate: supporting governments; community engagement: integrating Indias informal sector; an interview with the director of the documentary Trashed; and bonus: podcast with 2013 CNN hero on community cleanups.

A revised fire outbreak and evacuation simulation model, MFIRE, is presented in the paper. The model provides information for setting up an emergency ventilation scheme, establishing safety procedures and minimizing damage in underground network systems. MFIRE simulates the interdependence between the ventilation system and its pertinent fans and structures, and the changes in ambient conditions and the heat source. A laboratory based fire simulation was conducted in a small physical tunnel network to verify the MFIRE. The rates of air flow and temperature distribution in each tunnel are compared with the simulated results obtained by MFIRE. Regarding air flow, the experimental rates correlate with the simulated results very well. Because of the reduced physical scale of the laboratory model, the simulated temperature distributions do not quite correlate with the laboratory data. MFIRE is employed to simulate a hypothetical fire outbreak in the Taipei Mass Rapid Transit System. The simulation is designed to investigate the direction and rate of air flow, temperature distribution and emergency ventilation responses. The results have confirmed that the proposed “push–pull” ventilation model can exhaust the high temperature air and smoke out of the underground facilities efficiently once the fire breaks out.

A section of completed shield tunnel of the Panchiao Line of the Taipei Mass Rapid Transit (TRTS) was deformed and displaced due to an adjacent excavation. It was observed that the segments in the invert were separated from the concrete behind, and cracks were formed in the crown. In order to ensure that the shield tunnel section would meet the structural safety requirements set out by TRTS, the tunnel underwent repair work. This paper describes the damage, discusses the selection of repair methods, and outlines steel segment erection operations. It is the authors’ hope that the case presented would serve as a reference for other similar cases.

Many underground structures are constructed for use as car parks and shops in basements of buildings and as mass rapid transit stations, depressed roadways and civil defense shelters in cities located in coastal areas where the ground is level and the elevations are low, with an attendant high groundwater table. This paper discusses the various methods of resisting hydrostatic uplift. These include the use of tension piles and the installation of a water pressure relief system under the base slab of the basement. A case history in Singapore employing a pressure relief system below a three-level basement is presented.

As part of the current expansion to Changi Airport and the Mass Rapid Transit lines in Singapore, a unique bridge is to be incorporated within the new tunnel linking Terminals 2 and 3. The unusual physical circumstances and the aim to create an environment compatible with the intrigue and character of Singapore suited the adoption of a record-reaching 140-m low arch span for the centerpiece footbridge. With 200 m of shimmering glass cladding, the bridge will be an intimate part of the airport experience, though its in-service behavior and intricate frequency characteristics remain to be proved. These characteristics are similar to those of the recently completed London Millennium Bridge, the in-service behavior of which was unacceptable to the public. To determine the behavior of the Changi bridge during service and in ultimate conditions, it was found that performance as opposed to prescriptive design criteria was fundamental, in particular, its structural behavior under fire loading.

Fifteen years ago construction started on phase one of the Mass Rapid Transit tunnels in Singapore. Since that time tunnelling technology has advanced considerably. Earth Pressure Balance Machines (EPBMs) are far more commonly used than ever before on tunnelling projects in the Far East, Asia and Europe. For the first time in Singapore full-face tunnelling is being carried out in the Old Alluvium for the construction of North East Line Project (NELP). The TBMs selected for the NELP are, in the main, EPBMs. This paper compares the types of EPBMs chosen for each Contract, highlighting the particular design features of each. The paper also provides an update on the progress of the EPBM tunnelling operations currently being undertaken on the NELP.

The introduction reviews the tunnelling carried out in Singapore since the early eighties. Between 1983 and 1990, Phases 1 and 2 of the mass rapid transit system were constructed. These included some 20 km of bored and cut and cover tunnels together with 18 underground stations. Some particular points of interest in this massive project are briefly commented upon. Reference is also made to other underground or underwater schemes undertaken during this period such as the proposed large caverns project and the submerged tunnel to Pulau Seraya. A description of the subsurface works, now under construction in Singapore, follows. This includes an all underground North-East railway line, 20 km long with 16 stations. At a budget of US$3 billion, this is a major civil engineering undertaking. Another project is the extension of the railway to Changi Airport which involves 3.5 km of twin tube tunnelling together with a major underground station which is fully integrated into the airport terminals. An ongoing programme of further major railway extensions over the next 10 to 15 years is in place and an outline is given of some of the most important underground sectors. Other proposed projects such as the underground roads system and the deep level sewers are briefly described. Together they demonstrate the very significant volume of underground construction scheduled for the next century in Singapore.

This paper analyzes the worst-case DC transient voltages of mass rapid transit (MRT) systems due to utility-capacitor switching on AC supply systems. The various factors affecting this phenomenon are analyzed in detail using extensive EMTP (Electromagnetic Transients Program) simulations. These factors include the size and location of utility capacitor, point-on-wave switching angles on the three phases, and DC link parameters. In this paper, genetic algorithms (GAs) are applied to determine the worst-case DC overvoltage caused by nonsimultaneous energization of utility capacitor. The effectiveness of the proposed GA approach is verified by comparing results with traditional statistical approaches.

Diaphragm walls 600 to 1200 mm thick are increasingly used as both temporary and permanent supports for excavations as deep as 20 m in congested urban areas in Singapore. Spaces enclosed by diaphragm walls include basements used for shops, offices, car park, underground mass rapid transit train stations, depressed roadways and civil defense centers. Diaphragm walls are effective as a water barrier during the construction phase in keeping the excavation dry and in reducing the lowering of the water table outside the excavation. However, experience in Singapore indicates that, during their service life, it is difficult to make the diaphragm walls dry enough for habitable or utilitarian uses without extensive grouting or the installation of a false wall.

This issue includes the following headings: donors: aid versus trade; investment: seeking strong partners; power: hydro heats up; water: sanitation solutions; and first person: African Development Bank President

Taipei Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) system features a high level of efficiency, energy savings and high levels of cleanliness, thus being one of the most favoured networks among all transport modes in Taiwan. However, owing to high construction costs, the MRT normally needs attention paid to it in order to produce the expected benefits and levels of operating performance in the future, especially in the MRT station area where it matters the most. Therefore, the focus of the study targets the MRT station areas to establish three efficiency evaluation models – “passenger traffic/construction cost”, “benefits of transportation environment/construction cost” and “benefits of passenger traffic and transportation environment/construction cost” through Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) to evaluate the benefits of MRT station area and its operating efficiency. According to the outcome of an empirical study, Jiantan Station reports global technical efficiency and scale efficiency overall and has an optimal scale as per the “passenger traffic/construction cost” efficiency evaluation model. Muzha, Wanfang Hospital and Xinhai stations report optimal global technical and scale efficiency in terms of the “benefits of transportation environment/construction cost” efficiency evaluation model, while Muzha, Wanfang Hospital, Xinhai, Technology Building, Nanjing E. Rd., Shipai, Mingde and Jiantan stations report optimal global technical and scale efficiency in terms of the “benefits of passenger traffic and transportation environment/construction cost” efficiency evaluation model.

Musical and dance ensembles from Singapore schools have acquired a habit of winning awards at local and international music festivals and competitions; a track record for the last few decades. This award winning mindset could not be made possible without kindred support of and for these ensembles by school leaders and administrators in many schools. Yet little is known of the ‘workings in the kitchen’; the processes involved in nurturing these ensembles that leads them to excellence in achievement. This study will explore the successes of a primary school band through a qualitative examination of the dedication and hard work of its members and conductor, highlighting the working ingredients that are similar and different with other international settings.

Singapore’s urban transport system is well known as a policy success story, and its key elements have been widely recounted. However, while acknowledging the strengths of the Singapore approach, this chapter discusses some of its shortcomings. It reviews the key elements of Singapore’s approach to its urban transport challenges, starting in the early 1970s. This approach established a prominent role for public transport and avoided the locking in of significant automobile dependence. However, a source of new tensions is an overemphasis on high traffic speeds in too many contexts. This emphasis is increasingly in danger of undermining other key elements of Singapore’s approach to transport issues, such as the requirement for space efficiency and the need to raise the status of alternatives to the car. Finally, the chapter points towards possible adjustments to Singapore’s model that might allow it to overcome its dilemmas.

Most Indian cities are experiencing rapid urbanization and majority of country’s population is expected to live in cities within the next two decades. The rapid demographic and spatial development in urban India is putting a tremendous pressure on the urban infrastructure services, and especially on urban transport which is lifeline for the economic development of the country. This paper will review the need for public transport in Indian cities, at the pace of its urbanization and urban transport scenario. It will highlight the challenges for development of Mass Rapid Transit Systems (MRTS) in those cities and suggest solutions to face them efficiently.

Achieving innovation and success in infrastructure development requires fresh perspectives. The paper introduces three systems perspectives based on the concepts of large-scale living systems, hard systematic thinking, and soft systemic methodology. These perspectives provide powerful mental frames of reference that assist in the diagnosis, structuring, and understanding of the nature and characteristics of major infrastructure development, the planning and learning processes, and the key success factors. These systems perspectives are illustrated by some Singapore experience that mainly consists of the lessons learned from the development of the international airport and the mass rapid transit systems.

Route Number 5 (Bannan Line) of Taipei Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) is the most popular line in the Taipei Metro System especially during rush hours periods. It has been estimated there are more than 8,000 passengers on the ticket platform during 18:00~19:00 at Taipei main station. The purpose of this research is to predict a specific departure frequency of passengers per train. Monte Carlo Simulation will be used to optimize departure frequency according to the passenger information provided by 22 stations, i.e., 22 random variables of route number 5. It is worth mentioning that we used 30,000 iterations to get the different samples of the optimization departure frequency, i.e., 10 trains/hr which matches the practical situation.

The purpose of this study was to design a speed controller for mass rapid transit (MRT) train by using a single input fuzzy logic controller (SIFLC). A complete train model, which was designed according to the design of a Taipei MRT train was used for analyzing both mechanical and electrical parts. The SIFLC was used for improving a fuzzy logic controller (FLC) by reducing its number of control rules. The results indicated that the SIFLC exhibited more favorable performance than the FLC did and a substantial reduction in the number of fuzzy rules and processing time. Therefore, tuning the SIFLC was easier compared with tuning the FLC; furthermore, the simulation time of the SIFLC was shorter than that of the FLC, exhibiting reductions of up to 17.3% in a constant track (track without gradient and curvature) and up to 12.27% in a variable track (track with gradient and curvature).

Mobile phones are common in our daily life, but the users’ preferences for postures or screen operating styles have not been studied. This was a cross-sectional and observational study. We randomly sampled passengers who used mobile phones on the Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) system in metropolitan Taipei. A checklist was used to observe their body postures and screen operating styles while sitting or standing. As a result, 1,230 subjects from 400 trips were observed. Overall, of all the passengers who were sitting, 41% of them were using mobile phones. The majority of the tasks involved browsing (84%) with their phones in a portrait orientation (93%). Different-hand holding/operating was the most commonly used operating style while sitting (46%) and same-hand holding/operating was the most common while standing (46%). The distribution of screen operating styles was significantly different for those sitting than for those standing and for different genders and age groups. The most frequently observed postures while sitting were having one’s trunk against a backrest, feet on the floor and with or without an arm supported (58%). As for the users who were standing, the both- and different-hands groups had a high proportion of arms unsupported, feet on the floor and either their trunk supported or not. In contrast, the same-hand group tended to have their trunk unsupported, were holding a pole or handstrap and had both feet on floor. Further studies are warranted to characterize the ergonomic exposure of these commonly used postures and operating styles, and our results will help guide the selection of experimental conditions for laboratory settings.

Physical inactivity is a significant contributor to worldwide mortality and morbidity associated with non-communicable diseases. An excellent avenue to incorporate lifestyle physical activity into regular routine is to encourage the use of stairs during daily commutes. We evaluated the effectiveness of point-of-decision prompts (PODPs) in promoting the use of stairs instead of the escalators in a Singapore Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) station. We measured the number of stair climbers before the PODPs were put up, during the 4 weeks that they were in use, and 2 weeks after they were removed. Measurements at a no intervention control site were additionally taken. The use of stair-riser banners was associated with an increase in the number of people using the stairs by a factor of 1.49 (95% CI 1.34–1.64). After the banners were removed, the number of stair climbers at the experimental station dropped to slightly below baseline levels. The Singapore MRT serves a diverse multi-ethnic population with an average daily ridership of over 2 million and 88 stations island-wide. An increase of physical activity among these MRT commuters would have a large impact at the population level. Our findings can be translated into part of the national strategy to encourage an active lifestyle in Singaporeans.

Mode shifting is an effective solution to improve transport sustainability. This study developed an indicator system for measuring mode-based transport sustainability at the local level, and the results provided a basis for evaluating the proposed improvement solutions. A case study of Taipei and Kaohsiung confirmed that the mode-based transport sustainability model could highlight which mode provided the most superior transport sustainability and which indicator or aspect could be improved to enhance the transport sustainability of the two cities. The findings from Taipei and Kaohsiung revealed that the use of Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) and bicycles significantly improved transport sustainability, but that the effects of motorcycle use on transport sustainability varied according to local circumstances. Analysis of four transport sustainability improvement scenarios indicated that building bicycle exclusive lanes would have significant environmental and social benefits both in Taipei and Kaohsiung. Increasing parking fees for cars and motorcycles would have a relatively insignificant effect on improving sustainability in Taipei City. Constructing an infrastructure for electric motorcycles in Kaohsiung would provide the most significant improvement to transport sustainability of any of the four scenarios.

The operation of a mass rapid transit (MRT) should consider the balance between total system costs and service level. For a MRT system, the main service is to provide passengers with the cost-affordable mobility, under the regulation of MRT service indicators; the government sets the minimum standards to ensure a certain level of MTR services. Thereby, how to establish an optimal operating timetable is one of the important operational issues for a MRT system. In the past research concerning MRT operations, most researches focused on the issues of train delay, energy saving, route design or overall system operating regards, and placed less focus on the optimal timetable problem. In the Kaohsiung Mass Rapid Transit (KMRT) system, the total ridership has not reached a predicted level, but the service provided in terms of the Train Service Plan (TSP) is more than needed. Therefore, a time-dependent time table for the KMRT system is crucial to minimize total system cost while maintaining the certain level of train service. In this research, we aim to develop a time-dependent timetable model which is able to dynamically adjust train schedule depending on the passenger spatio-temporal distribution demands during daily operation. The developed model will be solved by minimizing both the operating cost and passenger waiting cost. Finally, numerical case study and sensitivity analysis will be conducted to demonstrate the feasibility and effectiveness of the developed models and solution algorithms.

The first Expressway in Sri Lanka was declared open recently, connecting the financial capital with southern towns of Sri Lanka. Known as the Southern Expressway (E01), the already commissioned first stage spans close to 100 km with eight interchanges. With the speed limit stipulated at 100 km/h, which is about 25% higher than comparable expressways of other countries in the region, destination transit times are reduced by more than 50% as compared to other routes. While the gain through reduced transit times is presently confined mainly to commuters, advantage of this rapid transit facility in true sense could only be derived by directing value addition to economic activities. For speedy economic development of a country, ability for rapid transit of people and goods becomes a prerequisite with the mode of transport being an important parameter. As the preferred means, land transport mode has to be looked at in terms of social and economic view points. In this sense, road based transport has to be weighed against rail based, for mass rapid transit, which naturally would tend to present more economy in the latter from a holistic view point. Therefore, while developing the road sector, it is necessary for the country to concentrate on establishing an efficient rail network linking major economic centres.

Developed at the request of the Mexican G20 Presidency for consideration by the Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors at the G20 Leaders' Summit in Mexico, and jointly prepared with the Asian Development Bank, this policy paper positioned green transport in the context of cities development. Urban transport determines the shape of a city and its ecological footprint. Many cities in low and middle income countries are at a crossroads. Policy decisions taken now, while car use is still relatively low and cities retain a relatively transit friendly, compact urban form, will affect how people will live in their cities for many decades into the future. A new paradigm of urban transport can be part of the solution to reversing the deteriorating situation in some cities of developing countries, and supporting others to embark on a sustainable, low carbon, green growth path: developing a city for people rather than cars, and including public and mass transport as a major component of the modal structure. Implementing such a new paradigm can be truly transformational. This joint World Bank and Asian Development Bank paper lays out six aspects, which are most difficult to align, yet, are critical to ensure the sustainability of urban transport systems, visionary leadership, integrated strategy for land use and urban transport, coordination among agencies, domestic capacity, adequate cost recovery, and private participation in the operation and construction of urban transport systems. The paper proposes a set of new initiatives for G20 leaders' consideration, including the development of an umbrella toolkit to guide policy makers in charge of urban planning to make transport decisions best suited to their local contexts.

This issue includes the following headings: mass rapid transit: a tool for urban expansion; financing: beyond sovereign guarantees; and low-income housing: lessons from Latin America.

This purpose of present study was used the signal detection theory to evaluate the proper way to identify the meaning of information signs in traffic facilities. An empirical study of information signs used in the Taipei mass rapid transit system was performed to assess the proposed model. The clear and definite implication of posted signs and the impact those signs have on cognitional decision-making were measured by the sensitivity index d' and bias s as defined by signal detection theory. For the design of information signs, the ease with which a sign can be identified not only depends upon the clarity of the signs but also depends on cognizable judgment tendency. A properly designed pictograph will have an impact on the convenience of the general public. Placing importance on sign design and human convenience will enhance the satisfaction of patrons with public facilities.

The Malaysian economy decelerated as solid domestic demand was not sufficient to offset a weakening external environment. Private consumption growth continued at a healthy pace. Favorable rubber and palm oil prices drove up incomes of smallholders while continued employment and wage growth supported urban incomes. In contrast, fixed investment was more volatile, with private investment showing signs of picking up while public investments lagged. Malaysia's overall balance of payments recorded a larger surplus in the first half of the year reflecting a widening current account surplus and substantial net financial inflows. Malaysia's open economy is expected to slow further in the remainder of 2011 and into early 2012 mainly due to the deterioration in the outlook for external demand. Cities are central to Malaysia's aspiration to become a high-income economy. Smart cities are skilled and innovative. They play a crucial role in catalyzing economic growth by generating productivity gains through agglomeration economies. Smart cities are green and sustainable. They ensure a high quality of life to all citizens and the sustainability of economic gains. Finally, smart cities are resilient.

Thailand needs to avoid the high-carbon growth path of many developed countries and, instead, take a low-carbon growth path. A green low-carbon growth path is in Thailand's own interest as it can simultaneously tackle local environmental degradation, global climate change, and energy security challenges. It can also position Thailand as a regional leader in green, sustainable growth. Green low-carbon growth in Thailand could focus on the following four pillars: 1) maintaining rapid economic growth while adjusting the country's economic structure toward a less energy, and carbon-intensive economy; 2) achieving greater urbanization while shifting toward green livable low-carbon cities; 3) meeting the huge thirst for energy while transforming the energy sector toward one of high energy efficiency and widespread diffusion of low-carbon technologies; and 4) improving quality of life while shifting toward a resource-efficient and sustainable lifestyle.

Rail transit is the main part of Expo passenger organizing. It plans to attract about 50% passengers. The relationship between rail transit and Expo entrances is very important. It is very significant to think about and take advantage of mass rapid transit (MRT)'s accessibility during spatial planning on urban mega-event such as Expo. Firstly, this paper proposes a hypothesis of how rail transit accessibility effects the selection of Expo entrances. Passengers will choose such entrances that have higher rail transit accessibility. Secondly, through the systematic analysis of the relationship between rail transit accessibility and the number of imported passenger, this paper establishes the model of entrance location potential based on rail transit accessibility. It argues that the entrances' location potential depends on entrances' scale and the level of rail transit accessibility. Rail transit accessibility is confirmed by the nodes connection of rail station, distance impedance between nodes and rail capacity. At last, through the correlation analysis between the number of imported passenger and relative entrance location potential of every entrance, this paper concerns how rail transit accessibility affects the selection of Expo entrances and the results of the effect.

Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) station is the transport node, with population concentrated, closed-space, more gates this type of space a high risk of accidents hidden. The study based multi-agent simulation (MAS) system to create wayfinding simulation in MRT station, to create an effective evacuation simulation model. It can use to this type of space as a basis for risk assessment and future planning and design of the test platform.

Experiential researches proved that pedestrian oriented design (POD) is contributive to raise transit trips in USA cities. No one discussed about the influences of POD on mass rapid transit riderships in Chinese City. This paper discusses this issue by taking Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) Jhonghe Line Jingan station and Dingxi station in Taipei for case studies and taking advantage of questionnaire and multiple regression analysis. Finally, this paper finds positive relationships between POD and transit riderships in Chinese City, Taipei.

Delhi Metro Rail Corporation Ltd (DMRC) a government entity has been entrusted the responsibility for implementation and subsequent operation of MRTS (Mass Rapid Transit System) in India’s capital city- New Delhi; 15 years down the line, DMRC makes 2,700 trips per day carrying 1.6 million passengers, who on an average travel a distance of 17 kilometres each. Notwithstanding the contribution DMRC would make to the environment by being an accessible non-polluting mode of transport for the public, the Corporation has been a trail-blazer of sort not only nationally (where it sets benchmarks in project execution and operational performance for other MRTS in the country to emulate) but also globally in sustainability .This profile details the efforts undertaken by the DMRC in safeguarding the environment and minimising energy use since its inception. It is organized in two parts; the first part describes various sustainable measures taken by DMRC, while the second part describes DMRC’s efforts to secure carbon finance and suggests measures to enhance its sustainability quotient.

This paper discusses a new framework of public transport system adapted to Chinese metropolitans, based on Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) network system. Economic and Trip Chain analysis including the existing rail transit and the Bus Rapid Transit are presented in this paper. A Study on strategy and methodology of Sub-cycle Bus (SCT) planning, as essential part for establishing macro framework with coordinating the MRT and SCT bus network, integrating application of the bilevel programming theories and optimization methods is conducted. A solution and a sample of the framework are given.

The island city-state of Singapore has one of the best public transport systems in the world. The Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) railway network is the main backbone of this system. Construction of a new 33.6 km long underground Circle MRT Line (CCL) started in 2001. Costing approximately $6.7 billion, the CCL will link all the radial lines leading to the city (Fig. 6.1a). The first stage of this construction (CCL1) was 5.4 km long and was subdivided into two contracts: C824 and C825 (Fig. 6.1b).

A major research study by the UK Overseas Development Administration (ODA) and designed to establish the necessary considerations for viability of mass rapid transit railways in developing cities was recently completed. The analytical core of the study was a pre-appraisal model, which combines an innovative strategic land use/transport model utilizing relationships from developing cities and an economic evaluation model. This model -MRTAP- has now been developed into a user-friendly package which the ODA intends to make widely available in the developing world. This paper describes the basis of this model.

This research aims at the bus holding strategies for the simulation of Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) transferring system in a terminal station with platform constraints for bus in the metropolitan area. We developed and evaluated the transfer system through computer simulation models for MRT with bus system that the goals of bus holding strategies in the model were: reduce bus waiting time, reduce passengers waiting time for the bus, and reduce passengers traveling time. In order to enhance the performance of the MRT-Bus transfer system, we develop several bus holding strategies scenarios that use different traveling time functions of buses at different time intervals, such as rush hours and off-peak hours, with bus platform capacity constraints in the transfer models to construct proposed transfer models in the MRT transfer system. Real-time traffic information acquired by the Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) through Global Positioning System (GPS) provided input data for the simulation models. Performance index function were derived and served as performance measure to compare different bus holding strategies.