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Transit Education
Glossary

Word of the Day


Destination - the point at which a trip terminates.

Modes of Transportation Terms


Bus - rubber-tired, self-propelled, manually steered vehicles operating on fixed routes and schedules on roadways. Types include advanced design, articulated, charter, circulator, double decked, express, feeder, intercity, medium-size, new look, sightseeing, small, standard-size, subscription, suburban, transit and van.

Bus, Charter - a bus transporting a group of persons who, pursuant to a common purpose, and under a single contract at a fixed price, have acquired the exclusive use of a bus to travel together under an itinerary.

Bus, Express - a bus that operates a portion of its route without stops or with a limited number of stops.

Bus, Transit - a bus with front and center doors, normally with a rear-mounted engine, low-back seating, and without luggage compartments or restroom facilities for use in frequent-stop service.

Bus, Trolley - an electric, rubber-tired transit vehicle, manually steered, propelled by a motor drawing current through overhead wires from a central power source not on board the vehicle. Also known as "trolley coach" or "trackless trolley."

Electric Rail - a rail car powered by current from a conduit along the track; the conduit is usually an overhead wire or third rail.

Light Rail Transit (LRT) - lightweight passenger rail cars operating singly (or in short, usually two-car trains) on fixed rails in right-of-way that is not separated from other traffic for much of the way; operates on city streets and draws its electrical power from overhead wires; includes streetcars, trolley cars and tramways; differs from heavy rail - which has a separated right of way, and includes commuter and intercity rail - in that it has lighter passenger capacity per hour and more closely spaced stops.

Monorail - a transit system consisting of vehicles supported and guided by a single guideway, usually elevated.

Rail, Commuter - local and regional passenger train operations between a central city and its suburbs.

Rail, Heavy - an electric railway with the capacity for a "heavy volume" of traffic and characterized by exclusive rights-of-way, multi-car trains, high speed and rapid acceleration, sophisticated signaling and high platform loading; also known as "rapid rail," "subway," "elevated railway" or "metropolitan railway (metro)."

Rail, Light - an electric railway with a "light volume" traffic capacity compared to heavy rail. Light rail may use shared or exclusive rights-of-way, high or low platform loading and multi-car trains or single cars; also known as "streetcar," "trolley car" and "tramway."

Shuttle - a public or private vehicle that travels back and forth over a particular route, especially a short route or one that provides connections between transportation systems, employment centers, etc.

Environmental Terms


Air Pollution - the presence of unwanted material in the air in sufficient amounts that interfere significantly with human comfort, health or welfare, or with full use and enjoyment of property.

Alternative Fuels - low polluting fuels that are used to propel a vehicle instead of high-sulfur diesel or gasoline. Examples include methanol, ethanol, propane, compressed natural gas, liquid natural gas, electricity and low-sulfur or "clean" diesel.

Clean Air Act (CAA) - federal legislation that sets national air quality standards.

Ethanol - an alternative fuel; a liquid alcohol fuel with vapor heavier than air; produced from agricultural products such as corn, grain and sugar cane.

Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) - an alternative fuel; a natural gas cooled to below its boiling point of -260 degrees Fahrenheit so that it becomes liquid; stored in a vacuum bottle-type container at very low temperatures and under moderate pressure. LNG vapor is lighter than air.

Ozone - a bluish gaseous reactive form of oxygen that is formed naturally in the atmosphere and is used for disinfecting, deodorizing and bleaching; an ozone layer is an atmospheric layer at heights of about 25 miles with high zone content which blocks most ultraviolet radiation.

Propane - an alternative fuel; a liquid petroleum gas (LPG) which is stored under moderate pressure and with vapor heavier than air; produced as a byproduct of natural gas and oil production.

General Terms


Accessibility - a measure of the ability or ease of all people to travel among various origins and destinations.

Bicycle Route - any road, street, path or way that is specifically designated in some manner as being open to bicycle travel, regardless of whether such facilities are designated for the exclusive use of bicycles or are to be shared with other vehicles or pedestrians.

Board - to go onto or into a transportation vehicle.

Bus Lane - a street or highway lane intended primarily for buses, either all day or during specified periods, but sometimes also used by carpools meeting requirements set out in traffic law.

Bus Stop - a place where passengers can board or alight from the bus, usually identified by a sign.

Carpool - an arrangement where two or more people share the use and cost of privately owned vehicles in traveling together to and from pre-arranged destinations.

Catenary - an overhead contact wire system that supplies power from a central source to an electric vehicle.

Commute - regular travel between home and a fixed location (i.e., work or school).

Commuter Rail - a passenger railroad service that operates within metropolitan areas on trackage that usually is part of the general railroad system; the operations, primarily for commuters, are generally run as part of a regional system that is publicly owned or by a railroad company as part of its overall service.

Crossover - in rail systems, a track with two switches that connects two parallel tracks.

Derail - to run off the track.

Destination - the point at which a trip terminates.

Fare Structure - the system set up to determine how much is to be paid by various passengers using a transit vehicle at any given time.

Fixed Route - service provided on a repetitive, fixed-schedule basis along a specific route with vehicles stopping to pick up and deliver passengers to specific locations; each fixed route trip serves the same origins and destinations, unlike demand responsive and taxicabs.

High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) Lane - a highway or street lane reserved for the use of high occupancy vehicles; technical term for a carpool lane, commuter lane or diamond lane.

Mass Transportation - transportation by bus, rail or other conveyance, either publicly or privately owned, that provides a general or special service to the public on a regular and continuing basis (not including school bus, charter or sightseeing service).

Mode - a particular form of travel; for example, walking or traveling by automobile, bus or train.

Operator - an employee of a transit system whose workday is spent operating a transit vehicle (train or bus).

Paratransit - comparable transportation service required by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990 for individuals with disabilities who are unable to use fixed-route transportation systems.

Park and Ride Lot - designated parking areas for automobile drivers who board transit vehicles from these locations.

Passenger - a person who rides a transportation vehicle, excluding the operator or other crew members.

Peak Period - morning and afternoon time periods when transit riding is heaviest.

Pedestrian - a person traveling on foot.

Platform - that portion of a transit facility directly adjacent to the tracks or roadway at which transit units stop to load and unload passengers.

Public Transit Agency - a public entity responsible for administering and managing transit activities and services; public transit agencies can directly operate transit service or contract out for all or part of the total transit service provided.

Public Transportation - transportation service to the public on a regular basis using vehicles that transport more than one person for compensation, usually, but not exclusively, over a set route or routes from one fixed point to another; also known as "mass transportation," "mass transit" and "transit."

Rapid Transit - rail or motorbus transit service operating completely separate from all modes of transportation on an exclusive right-of-way.

Ridesharing - a form of transportation, other than public transit, in which more than one person shares the use of the vehicle, such as a van or car, to make a trip; also known as "carpooling" or "vanpooling."

Ridership - the number of rides taken by people using a public transportation system in a given time period.

Subway - that portion of a transportation system that is constructed beneath the ground surface, regardless of its method of construction.

Transit System - the facilities, equipment, personnel and procedures needed to provide and maintain public transit service.

Trolley Car - a local term for a streetcar; also, a local term for a bus with a body simulating that of an old streetcar.

United States Department of Transportation (U.S. DOT) - the federal cabinet-level agency with responsibility for highways, mass transit, aviation and ports; headed by the secretary of transportation. The DOT includes the Federal Highway Administration and the Federal Transit Administration, among others.

Vanpool - an arrangement in which a group of passengers share the use and cost of a van in traveling to and from pre-arranged destinations together.

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