Picture provided by Jiatong Group Public Transport Company

Have you noticed that the buses around you are getting smaller and smaller?

Release the hand brake, shift gears, step on the accelerator... At 6:00 in the morning, the No. 97 bus slowly left the platform. Wang Zhongyi, the driver, started his day's work again. He was still driving a 12 meter long cart. However, he found that since when, buses 91 and 98, which were similar to his models, have become more and more "thin". "The length of the car body has changed, not less than 10 meters, and some are less than 6 meters," said Wang Zhongyi.

The bus company of Jiatong Group provided a set of data to confirm the impression of Wang Zhongyi. Jiaxing has gradually "launched new" small and medium-sized vehicles since 2019, with 267 buses under 10 meters in total in operation, of which the vehicles of 8 meters and below account for 21.5% of the total.

So, has the bus body changed from large to small, and has the passenger capacity become smaller? Can it meet the travel needs of the people? How does the trend of "miniaturization" reflect the reform ideas of Jiaxing public transport?

What is the choice of "slimming"?

Hexing Road is a north-south traffic artery in the old urban area of Jiaxing. At 10 a.m. on May 10, the morning peak was over. The reporter waited at the Qinjian Road bus stop on Hexing South Road and counted carefully. In 10 minutes, a total of three buses came - No. 93, No. 18 and No. 81.

The reporter decided to take bus 93 for an experience. The door is opened and there are 5 passengers in the car. There are three elderly people sitting in the front row, carrying several kinds of vegetables and cooked food in their hands, and they often chatter about their daily life. Two young people in the back row sat in a staggered position, looking out of the window with headphones on.

Passenger Chai Jinfa said: "Now we are still in the old city, and the busy carriages outside are also very busy. There will be fewer passengers driving forward, so it will be less busy."

Sure enough, two young people and one old person got off here when they arrived at Diamond Mansion; When we arrived at the South Suburb Garden, except for reporters, only Chai Jinfa was left in the carriage. At the age of 74, he is an old friend of this bus. He told the reporter: "My favorite thing after retirement is to take the No. 93 bus to several vegetable markets every morning, and then go back on the same road after buying vegetables. Sometimes I am the only one, just like a chartered bus."

In Chai Jinfa's memory, the buses that once "jostled one another" have become less crowded with the passage of time. "Now, no matter when and where you get on the bus, there are basically seats to take."

Undoubtedly, under the supply of multiple travel modes, the reduction of passenger flow and the increase of empty driving rate of vehicles have become the "indisputable fact" faced by public transport operations all over the country, and Jiaxing is no exception. Wang Zhongyi, the driver of the No. 97 bus, also felt deeply: "Ten years ago, during the morning rush hour, everyone had to rely on crowding to get on the bus, but now this rarely happens."

Ji Ming, a member of the General Party Branch of the Public Transport Company of Jiaxing Group, believes that there are two reasons for the "difference": first, the change of public travel concepts and habits. With the continuous improvement of Jiaxing's urban road network, taxi, online car hailing, bike sharing, private cars, electric bicycles and other travel modes are becoming more diverse, and buses are no longer the best choice for citizens to travel; Second, as a traditional transportation mode with fixed routes and fixed points, buses do not have an advantage in travel efficiency.

Therefore, in this case, it is a waste to continue to use large buses, which will also cause problems such as insufficient parking space and high use costs. Therefore, "downsizing" of buses is imperative. "Bus companies must transform and upgrade, and take the initiative to change." Ji Ming said that trying to make the bus body smaller is a sure move to adapt to the rapid changes in the urban transportation system.

What changes has "slimming" brought about?

It is reported that in 2015, the city's buses began to "slim down", and the first batch of new energy buses with a length of 10.5 meters was unveiled that year. In 2021, No. 811 microbus will be put into operation, with a body length of only 5.99 meters. This bus, nicknamed "Baobao Bus", once became a street "Internet celebrity".

So, how do bus companies, bus drivers and ordinary people feel since the model adjustment?

Traditional buses are not only large in size, but also fuel vehicles. The adjusted small and medium-sized buses use new energy, which is green, low-carbon and cheap. Ji Ming calculated an account for the reporter: about 1.1 million yuan/vehicle for 10 meters, about 900000 yuan/vehicle for 8 meters, and more than 600000 yuan/vehicle for 7 meters. If the 10 meters car is replaced by the 7 meters car, about 500000 yuan/vehicle can be saved in vehicle purchase cost alone. The energy consumption can also be saved by about 40%. Taking Route 91 as an example, there are 6 vehicles in the whole line, each vehicle can save 400000 yuan of energy consumption cost annually, a total of 2.4 million yuan a year. "There are so many bus lines in Jiaxing, the money saved every year is not a small amount."

The car is smaller, and Liu Shenghou, the driver of No. 815 bus, feels more agile when driving. The minimum turning radius of the 5.99 meter long micro bus is less than 8 meters, and the width of its body is only 2.02 meters. On urban roads with complex traffic conditions and not too large turning radius, the micro bus shows more advantages, "Big cars are easy to scratch when turning, which is not as flexible and fast as small cars. The small cars also have voice alerts to change lanes, press lines, pedestrians entering blind areas and other functions to help drivers drive safely, which is really convenient."

Lu Xiaomei has more than 20 years' experience of taking ordinary buses and 2 years' experience of taking No. 811 micro bus, Her feelings are quite representative: "At present, there are bus lanes in most sections of the road, which may not be obvious to you, but when you arrive in the old city, you can clearly feel the impact of the huge body of the bus on the traffic, especially in the case of road congestion. In the process of turning and stopping, the slow start and turn of the bus will cause short-term small congestion, and our passengers look at it and feel it Be anxious. " Just then, Lu Genfang, a passenger on the 811 bus, took over the conversation: "Now the minibus turns and starts very fast, and there are fewer red lights waiting for us, so we can basically arrive at the destination on time."

The smaller, more flexible and faster bus area after "downsizing" means less impact on urban traffic pressure, which provides a "new idea" for urban congestion relief.

Wang Li, a citizen, is the owner of private cars. On the road of travel, she also really felt the benefits brought by the "downsizing" of the bus: "In the past, I always felt that it would be frustrating to follow the bus. The bus is big and starts slowly, which affects our passage. Now the bus is smaller and faster, and it is not in the way to park near the stop, so our private car travel is more smooth."

Can travel demand be "affordable"?

Since 2019, Jiaxing has started to change models of different sizes in order to better meet the needs of line optimization. In this regard, some people wonder whether the passenger capacity will decrease if the car becomes smaller? Can people's travel demand be "affordable"?

"In fact, bus' downsizing 'is not a one size fits all thing, but a process of gradual and continuous improvement." Ji Ming said frankly that Jiaxing currently invests less than 10 meters of bus routes, which are all routes with less passenger flow during peak hours. "For the peak travel time, we adopt the model configuration of 'mixed large and small vehicles', and implement the' tidal 'operation mode."

Taking the No. 32 bus stopping at Dongcha Primary School Station as an example, during the peak hours of boarding and alighting, the bus is upgraded to a large vehicle, and according to the actual travel needs of passengers, precise scheduling strategy is adopted to improve the vehicle load ratio while alleviating the problem of "slow waiting" of passengers.

Jiaxing bus is actively "building up" while doing "slimming down". Miniaturized public transport has made a subtraction in size, but in efficiency it is "speeding up" - pursuing more flexible train numbers, faster speed, and more accurate service.

"Last year, we updated a total of 69 small buses. Due to the characteristics of short mileage, fast turnover and high travel efficiency, it has played a very good role in improving the capacity turnover of the entire bus." Ji Ming said, of course, in order to meet the diverse travel needs of people, more accurate services are also essential.

The reporter learned in the interview that with the development of the city, the travel modes are increasingly diversified, but the "last mile" travel problem can not be ignored. "Our community is a new one. Although it is only one or two kilometers away from the park, vegetable market, supermarket, etc., we still want accurate bus lines when we go out, otherwise there will be a lot of inconvenience." Mr. Li, who lives in Jiujingyuan Community in the urban area, said. But Uncle Lin, a citizen, will go to the First Hospital of the city to dispense medicine every other week, and there is no direct bus at his home. He also worries: "I hope to open a direct medical line."

In fact, bus companies are always paying attention to the change of travel demand of the people. Ji Ming said that "convenience and quickness" must be the first consideration. In order to make up for the shortcomings of public travel and respond to the "voice" of the masses, Jiaxing has successively launched community micro buses, cloud buses and other small buses with urban shuttle function to solve the problem of low travel convenience of residents within the unit.

It is reported that micro bus is a short line bus mode connecting residential areas and major passenger flow distribution centers. The length of the bus body is generally less than 6 meters, mainly serving the travel groups 3 to 5 kilometers away from the destination. It not only ensures the good road traffic capacity of buses, but also facilitates the extension of public transport services to the end of cities such as streets and alleys, community schools, etc., filling the service gap of conventional public transport and solving the "last mile" travel problem.

Taking Wenbo Future Community as an example, in order to meet the public transport travel needs of residents in this community, in December 2022, Jiatong Group Public Transport Company added 813 micro bus lines to connect Jiujing Park, Wenbo Park, Yuxiangyuan, Yuanyi Baizhuang and other community stations. Aunt Chen, a citizen, lives near Longzhou Road in the urban area. Since the official operation of No. 813, she has to take bus to the Canal Park every day. The old man was very excited: "Before, there was no micro bus, and it took more than 10 minutes to walk to the bus station. Now, the micro bus goes directly to the door of my home, and it saves time and effort to go to the supermarket and park. Life is very beautiful!"

On March 19 this year, another point-to-point customized bus, the Health Direct Bus 815, was officially opened, connecting Jiaxing First Hospital and the Community Health Service Center in Chengnan Street, Nanhu District. This makes it convenient for patients in both places to seek medical treatment, and opens up the "last mile" travel problem of two-way referral.

Today, the public transportation company of Jiatong Group continues to expand its service radius. Buses "go through streets and lanes" and fully integrate into the "end of the city" to meet the diversified and customized needs of the people. All kinds of customized buses for commuting and school commuting enable office workers and student groups to reach their destinations quickly without transferring.

Data is the most powerful proof: since 2019, Jiaxing has successively added 7 regular bus lines, 21 new micro bus lines, and 82 customized bus lines, with an increase of 211.85 kilometers in line length and 107.7 kilometers in line network coverage.

"Focusing on 'short, smooth and fast', micro bus has laid a solid foundation for building an efficient and convenient travel circle, whether it is accurately embedded in public transport services according to demand in urban cells or giving play to the advantages of bus intensification in urban congestion points." Zhang Fengling, deputy general manager of Jiaxing Public Transport Co., Ltd., said.

How can urban public transport seek innovation and change?

It is needless to say that the "big to small" transformation of public transport is indeed an urgent need for innovation and change from the perspective of urban public transport development. Then, will "big to small" become the future development trend of urban public transport? What other ways can urban public transport break through?

How to achieve the best balance between the momentum of public transport and urban development and residents' needs is an unsolved topic in the development of modern cities. In October last year, the Ministry of Transport and other nine departments jointly issued the Several Opinions on Promoting the Healthy and Sustainable Development of Urban Public Transport, pointing out that it is necessary to "improve the operational efficiency of urban bus and trolley bus through big data applications" and "support the development of the 'public transport+tourism' service model".

Big data enabling and accurate diagnosis of citizens' travel demand is a way to improve the efficiency of public transportation. In October 2022, Jiaxing Group held a seminar on the construction planning of Jiaxing Public Transport Digital Center Project, which officially kicked off the reform of public transport digitalization. After more than a year of construction, Jiaxing Public Transport Digital Center has been officially opened. The center covers six sections: bus data overview, passenger flow analysis, line network analysis, dispatching monitoring, digital security and digital locomotive. Through the digital cockpit of the digital center, we can see the operating situation of resources such as the city of Jiaxing, 1260 urban and rural (inter city) buses, 181 bus lines, 1994 bus stops, 7000 public bicycles, 1000 public bicycle outlets, and can provide services such as real-time query of urban public transportation information and cross regional and cross mode combined travel planning. With this "smart brain", the lines with high single vehicle passenger capacity can continue to optimize the operation scheduling, which is more suitable for passengers' travel habits; For lines with low passenger capacity per vehicle, it can also timely warn inefficient lines, re optimize and adjust the line scheme, and provide more decision-making basis for line network layout, operation dispatching, etc.

The new mode of "public transportation+cultural tourism" also makes the traditional travel mode glow with new vitality. The bus special line for sightseeing in the spring is a new attempt of Jiaxing's public transport reform and innovation. Since March 30 of this year, Jiaxing's transportation department has opened a number of urban bus lines for outing and flower appreciation, covering Xiuhu Park, Jiaxing Botanical Garden and other places. The unique way of travel gives citizens and tourists a different experience. "When you come to the Botanical Garden for an outing in the beautiful spring, there will be no congestion, parking difficulties and other problems when you travel by bus. Along the way, you can have a panoramic view of the city's beauty," said Mr. Xu, a citizen. Now, with the further improvement of the public transportation network, "taking public transportation on weekends" has become one of the normalities of citizens' life.

Micro bus network is also the direction of transformation. Taking Haining as an example, in January 2022, Haining City will open the first online community bus in Jiaxing - Chang'an Town Community Bus Line 3. Passengers can carpool online or reserve a special car through the "online appointment bus" module of Haining Travel App. Compared with the regular bus, scheduled bus and scheduled bus, the online community bus breaks the traditional travel mode, and dynamically starts and matches routes according to the real-time travel needs of passengers, meeting the personalized travel needs of the terminal area of the bus network and citizens.

In recent years, the bus and bus line network have been upgraded repeatedly, like a mirror, reflecting the era glory of the rapid development of the city, and condensing the earth shaking changes of a city into small cars. However, no matter how the times change, public transportation is always one of the most important public goods in the urban operation system.

"Even under the complex background of urban differentiation and diversified travel demand, public transportation is still indispensable." Zhang Fengling said that she believes that public transportation services that become "small and refined" after "downsizing and strengthening" can bring more sense of gain and happiness to people.