(Blue Diamond Road) Corridor Study - Regional Transportation ...

8. Estimated System Costs RTC SR-160 Corridor Study
8.2 OPERATING COST ESTIMATES
Annual operating costs of transit alternatives in the corridor must also be considered when
selecting a transit investment. Operating costs represent an ongoing, recurring expense
that can quickly dwarf the start up capital investment of bus alternatives, and must be
accommodated within RTC’s annual transit operating budget.
8.2.1 Estimation Methodology
Two primary sources of information were used in the development of operating cost
estimates for transit alternatives in the SR-160 corridor – the Federal Transit Administration
(FTA) evaluation of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Area Express (MAX) and performance trend
data for CAT route 113 and MAX from RTC’s transit department. Hourly marginal operating
cost estimates from these two sources have been inflated to current year dollars and are
applied to annual revenue service hour estimates for each of the alternative bus routes
making up Alternatives 1 and 2 for the SR-160 corridor. Hourly operating cost estimates
incorporate the contractor hourly rate plus a variable cost per hour for RTC transit division
staff, and are shown in EXHIBIT 8-4.
EXHIBIT 8-4: Hourly Marginal Costs for CAT Services
Service Type 2004 2006 estimated
CAT Bus Route $52.52 $55.72
MAX $78.38 $83.15
Note: Costs reflect hourly contractor costs plus RTC variable costs per
hour as identified in performance trend data for route 113 and MAX
provided by RTC’s transit department. Costs have been escalated by
3% per year to arrive at estimated current year (2006) costs.
For each of the transit alternatives under consideration, annual revenue service hours were
estimated using some basic assumptions:
Peak frequency based on that of the current CAT route to which the proposed bus
alternative would connect;
Off-peak frequency estimated at half the peak period frequency or 60 minutes,
whichever is less;
Both peak and off-peak periods last twelve hours;
Weekdays – 254 in total – use the 12/12 peak/off-peak split while
weekends/holidays – 111 in total – are treated as 24 hours of off-peak operations;
Operating speeds for local, express, and BRT alternatives are 10 mph, 13 mph, and
16 mph respectively (based, in part, on data provided in the FTA review of MAX).
8-7