No Transfers Required: Integrating Last Mile with Public Transit Using Opti-Mile

Abstract: Public transit is a popular mode of transit due to its affordability, despite the inconveniences due to the necessity of transfers required to reach most areas. For example, in the bus and metro network of New Delhi, only 30% of stops can be directly accessed from any starting point, thus requiring transfers for most commutes. Additionally, last-mile services like rickshaws, tuk-tuks or shuttles are commonly used as feeders to the nearest public transit access points, which further adds to the complexity and inefficiency of a journey. Ultimately, users often face a tradeoff between coverage and transfers to reach their destination, regardless of the mode of transit or the use of last-mile services. To address the problem of limited accessibility and inefficiency due to transfers in public transit systems, we propose ``opti-mile," a novel trip planning approach that combines last-mile services with public transit such that no transfers are required. Opti-mile allows users to customise trip parameters such as maximum walking distance, and acceptable fare range. We analyse the transit network of New Delhi, evaluating the efficiency, feasibility and advantages of opti-mile for optimal multi-modal trips between randomly selected source-destination pairs. We demonstrate that opti-mile trips lead to a 10% reduction in distance travelled for 18% increase in price compared to traditional shortest paths. We also show that opti-mile trips provide better coverage of the city than public transit, without a significant fare increase.