Analysis to identify and evaluate strategies to increase urban rail transit ridership (Puerto Rico)

A new rail transit system known as Tren Urbano (TU) is under construction in the San Juan Metropolitan Area (SJMA) in Puerto Rico. This research pretends to present a methodology to decision-makers in the public transportation field for identifying and ranking strategies that promote ridership in urban rail transit systems. The strategies that would increase the use of the TU were identified and divided into categories. To evaluate the strategies, the analysis was made using the Analytical Hierarchy Process. First, the categories were ranked based in the SJMA preference survey and the literature review. Second, the strategies within each category were ranked based on the literature review, national survey, and expert opinions. Finally the results were the ranking of strategies by categories, conclusions and related recommendations.