Scheduling Algorithm for On-demand Bus System

On-Demand Bus is a Demand Responsive Transit (DRT) service that passengers will be transported by the vehicles after they reserve a seat. The vehicle won't move if there is no reservation and the efficiency is expected as a new transportation service. It allows potential passengers to request service via the Internet or mobile phone, with requests for ride being processed by a server computer. The requests compose of pick-up location, delivery location and desired delivery time (or pick-up time). The computer executes two main algorithms which are vehicle-choosing algorithm and routing algorithm. Using the vehicle-choosing algorithm was used for decision about which vehicle will accept the new request. And the routing algorithm was used to design the new route and schedule for the vehicle chosen to serve the new request. After calculation, the system will report to the customer whether the request is accepted or not. If it is accepted, the vehicle will pick up and deliver him to his destination within a guaranteed time - not later than the desired delivery time (or not earlier than pick-up time). We also carried out an experiment to evaluate the developed algorithm worked as we designed