The study explored the development process and current state of metro station guidelines, with a focus on vertical circulation, i.e. escalators, elevators, and stairways. The key factors in station design are current and expected passenger volumes, emergency and evacuation targets, accessibility requirements and space constraints. Within stations, platforms are identified as the most critical zone, and vertical circulation is the most critical element. Poorly designed vertical circulation leads to queuing customers and delayed journeys, and elements should be designed to maintain equal passenger flow.
Beyond mitigating localised bottlenecks, total station capacity must also be assessed and this is approached through station planning and operationally-oriented design. The latter requires the capacity to collect and analyse data to inform decisions in real-time. The data includes information on passenger movements within stations and loading patterns on trains. Technological advances have the potential to enable the abundance of data required.
Combining a data-driven understanding of passenger flow information with planning-oriented guidelines will better ensure that sufficient capacity is provided and avoid legacy problems with passenger flow management.