Phased Development of Rail Transit Routes

This thesis develops a method for optimizing the construction phases for rail transit extension projects with the objective of maximizing net present worth and examines the economic feasibility of such extension projects under different financial constraints. A Simulated Annealing Algorithm is used for solving this problem. A rail transit project is often divided into several phases due to its huge capital costs. A model is developed to optimize these phases for a simple, one-route rail transit system, running from a Central Business District to a suburban area. The most interesting result indicates that the economic feasibility of links with low demand is affected by the completion time of those links and their demand growth rate after extensions. Sensitivity analyses explore the effects of input parameters on optimized results. These analyses contribute useful guidelines for transportation planners and decision-makers in determining construction phases for rail transit extension projects.