Barcelona - Puerto La Cruz, Venezuela (2002-2003)

Modelistica participated in the Master Transport Plan for the Barcelona-Puerto La Cruz urban area, the most important in the East of Venezuela. The project was made between 2002 and 2003 and included a short-term plan with immediate actions, and a strategic plan for the medium and long term. An innovative proposal for the development of an integrated transit network was elaborated in full detail. The study was contracted by FONTUR, an institute that depends on the Ministry of Infrastructure of Venezuela. It was carried out by a Consortium between Modelistica, Transvial of Chile and Systra of France.

Objetives of the project

	Development of a socioeconomic and transport database, including a household survey and many traffic counts.
	Diagnosis of the study area to identify the main problems related to roads, transport and urban development
	Development of a very short-term plan (immediate actions) for roads, transport and traffic, including basic designs and terms of reference for the detailed engineering designs.
	Medium (5) and long-term (10) Structural Transport Plan, including basic designs and cost estimates.
	Implementation Plan, including an institutional proposal, legal documents and a financial plan for the Structural Transport Plan.

Integrated public transport network

An integrated land use and transport model based on TRANUS was developed to design and evaluate road and public transport proposals. The figure shows the layout of a proposal of bus routes as represented in the modeling system.

The main element in the public transport proposal was a network of bus routes integrated both operationally and tariff-wise. The idea is to concession the main components of the network: buses-km, control system, fares collection, maintenance, etc. The system operated as a single entity, even if it is composed of many private concessionaires.

The proposal consists of a number of main routes operating with standard buses on bus-only lanes, complemented with a minibus feeder network.

The financial analysis showed that the proposed system is feasible and does not require a subsidy for the operation or the acquisition of vehicles, and at the same time with fares similar to currently applying.

Design of the bus stops along the bus-only lanes

Design of highway solutions

Calculation of economic return and priority of each road project

To calculate the economic return of road projects simulations were made with the TRANUS model on a project-by-project basis. The first year rate of return was used to establish the priority of each project and the time in which they should be carried out, if any. The result was an investment plan by 5-year periods and priorities.

The following figure shows the results of the simulation with-and-without a specific project, for a 10-year projection, as shown in a TRANUS screen.

Costs and Benefits, and Net Present Value:

Contact information: info@modelistica.com