Double Deck Bus Stations

grabcad

The system is based in the design of double-deck stations equipped with access doors also at the upper deck, so passengers will be able to access directly to the upper deck of the buses without going through the lower floor and the stairs; therefore buses would have also to be designed with access doors in the upper deck. Passengers wouldn´t need to go through the stairs and the lower deck of the bus to board or leave it, so the operation would be much faster and confortable. The system would operate as a Bus Rapid Transport (BRT) system with enclosed bus stops where passengers pay their fares when entering the stations, although it is a flexible system so both buses and stations are also able to operate as standard buses and standard bus stops at off-peak hours or at low density areas. The standard Double Deck operation solution allows for duplicate the capacity of a Bus without a great increase in the costs of operation or investment, but it has the disadvantage of generating bottlenecks on the lower floor and the stairs, due to passengers of the upper deck who want to get on and off the bus while in stations. The proposed solution would make the double deck bus system much more efficient, as it removes its main disadvantage while keeping all its benefits. I submit a patent application of the idea earlier this year. It was shortlisted at the Bombardier YouCity Contest earlier this year (https://youcity.bombardier.com/idea.php?id=316), and again it was shortlisted for the 2012 Altran Foundation Contest (http://es.altran-foundation.org/el-premio-de-la-fundacion-en-espana/ganador-2012/finalistas.html), so now I'm looking for other companies or designers interested in developing the idea