Study on decision-making process for choosing an appropriate high speed transit

In recent years, High Speed Transit (HST) has been implemented to improve the level of service of public transit systems, ease traffic congestion and decrease greenhouse emissions in urban areas. Light rail transit (LRT) and bus rapid transit (BRT) are often deemed as favorable alternatives, but there has been the debate about which one is more appropriate. The informed decision cannot be made without simultaneously considering the relative merits of LRT and BRT, local objectives, travel demand, available funding and others factors. To assist in decision making of choosing an appropriate HST solution for an urban city, this paper firstly conducted literature review to compare the key features of BRT and LRT. Their impacts on the decision-making process were also analyzed. Then the paper examined how the decision was made in two selected cities: Guangzhou and Ottawa. Finally, a step by step decision-making process for choosing an appropriate HST system was suggested. Two questions were answered in this paper: (1) what is involved in deciding the best solution? (2) How can the final decision be reached?