Hub nodes identification in public transport networks using markov chain model

Identifying hub nodes in public transport networks is essential for transport planning, safety evaluation and location advantage research. Some assumptions are first discussed, and a new method based on Markov chain model is proposed to measure the importance of nodes in public transport network. The transition probability is then deduced and the existence and uniqueness of solutions are presented. Two solution algorithms are described. One real-world public transit network is analyzed using the method proposed and the results are discussed.