(Bus Terminal Location Selection with Multi Criteria Decision Making Methods: The Case of İstanbul Province)

Abstract

Purpose – Road transport is the most common mode of transport used in domestic passenger and freight transport. Bus terminals can be seen as the backbone of road transport. The location of the bus terminals is important as it effects the use of busses for road transport. With this study, the most suitable bus terminal location selection study was carried out within the framework of Istanbul province dynamics. Design/methodology/approach – The location of the bus terminals is important as it effects the use of busses for road transport. In this study, a two-stage hybrid AHP-TOPSIS model has been proposed to determine the optimal bus terminal location. To illustrate the application of the proposed model, three different alternatives for the Istanbul province; (i) the new bus station to be built in Başakşehir district, (ii) the new bus station to be built in the Sultangazi district and (iii) the expansion of Alibeyköy Pocket Bus Terminal have been evaluated. To evaluate the alternatives, three main criteria and thirteen subcriteria were determined. In the first stage, the weights of the criteria and sub-criteria have been determined by using Analytical Hierarchy Process based on the expert opinions. In the second stage, the alternatives have been evaluated and ranked by using TOPSIS method based on the criteria weights determined. Findings – As result, it has been determined that the optimal alternative is the expansion of Alibeyköy Bus Terminal. Whilst the New Bus Terminal that will be built in Sultangazi District emerges as the second best alternative, the New Bus Terminal alternative that will be built in Başakşehir District is found to be the worst alternative. Discussions – In this study, the need for a bus station in Istanbul was evaluated with multi-criteria decision making methods over three alternative possibilities. More suitable and effective alternatives have been researched. In the future studies, for the purpose of the better functioning of the model, the weight of the criteria can be adjusted by interviewing more experts. For developing the model further, different methods and criteria can also be integrated into the model.