Public Transportation on River Tagus

Patrick Ștefănescu

, Duarte Pedro de Sousa Tavares

, Marian Mocan

and Werner Ștefănescu

Faculty of Management in Production and Transportation, Politehnica University of Timișoara,

Str. Remus No.14, 300191, Timișoara, Romania

Alameda da Universidade - Cidade Universitária, Universidade de Lisboa, 1649 - 004 Lisboa, Portugal

Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Politehnica University of Timișoara,

Bv. Mihai Viteazu No.1, 300222, Timișoara, Romania

Keywords: Boat Fleet, Transport Operator, Public Transportation, Management.

Abstract: Finding new ways for traveling at a high commercial speed, comfortable, safe, cheap and preserving as

much as possible the environment by using less fuel is the new challenge for the public transport operators

that run their business in the 21st century. One of the alternatives for the passengers that are using public

transportation vehicles is to travel using water buses or ferries. The paper presents the five public

transportation routes on water that connects Lisbon with the other cities nearby. It is presented the entire

boat fleet used by the local transport operator Transtejo and Soflusa. The article is focused on finding

solutions for a particularly transport route that is Barreiro-Terreiro do Paço. The problem consists of using

boats having a capacity of 600 passengers out of rush hour leading to half loaded boats. Using boats with a

capacity of 500 passengers out of rush hour will have a high impact for the transport operator, passengers

and environment as it will be showed in the paper. The paper is structured as follow: introduction, data

regarding routes and boat fleet, case study route Barreiro-Terreiro do Paço, fuel consumption simulation,

solutions for the problem, conclusions and further research, acknowledgment, reference list.

1 INTRODUCTION

In the 21st century, mobility, transportation costs,

time spent in vehicles and environment protection

became the most important things. Due to these facts

governments along with public transport operators

came with solutions to these problems by offering

citizens living in big cities a better mobility, with

lower costs, in a shorter time and avoiding as much

as possible the pollution of the environment. One of

the solutions for passengers that are using public

transportation vehicles is to travel using water buses

or ferries. “This mean of transportation can be seen

in many capitals and big cities around the world

such as: Amsterdam, Budapest, Lisbon, Paris,

Rotterdam, Venice and many others. In these cities

we can see many floating vehicles for public

transportation of passengers such as: water taxis,

water buses, amphibious, vaporettos, ships, ferries”

(Ștefănescu, 2012). This alternative is better than the

other means of transportation due to the fact that

there are no: traffic lights, traffic queues, many stops

and offers a high commercial speed compared to the

other public transportation vehicles such as buses,

trolleybuses, trams. It is safer with fewer accidents

than on land with the buses, taxis and other public

transportation vehicles. It is cheap for passengers, in

the price per fair are included many and heavy

luggage and sometimes even cars example using

ferries, it is cheap for the public transportation

operator also due to the large transportation capacity

of the ship and the operating cost is less than other

public transportation vehicles. This type of

transportation can be divided into two categories: for

passengers that want to travel from point A to point

B and for sightseeing such as “hop on hop of trips”

(Ștefănescu, 2012). This paper analyzes the situation

when passengers connect with other means of

transportation for reaching their desired destination

point. The paper is focused on river Tagus that

separates Lisbon from the other cities, route

Barreiro-Terreiro do Paço presents the actual

situation, provides solutions to efficiencies public

transportation on river Tagus by: reducing fuel

consumption, using smaller boats with lower

transportation capacity and increasing the frequency

of transportation by increasing the travel speed. The

goal is to obtain benefits for the passengers and

502

ÈŸtef

anescu P., de Sousa Tavares D., Mocan M. and ÈŸtef

anescu W..

Public Transportation on River Tagus.

DOI: 10.5220/0004626905020507

In Proceedings of the International Conference on Knowledge Discovery and Information Retrieval and the International Conference on Knowledge

Management and Information Sharing (KMIS-2013), pages 502-507

ISBN: 978-989-8565-75-4

 2013 SCITEPRESS (Science and Technology Publications, Lda.)

public transportation operator and at the same time

to protect the environment. The paper is structure

into 6 chapters as follow: short introduction, data

regarding routes and boat fleet used by the transport

operator, chapter 3 is a case study of route: Barreiro-

Terreiro do Paço, in chapter 4 is made a fuel

consumption simulation, chapter 5 offers solutions

for the problem and the last part presents

conclusions and further research along with the

acknowledgment and reference list.

2 ROUTES AND BOAT FLEET

It all began with the “founding of Transtejo in 1975

and later, with the creation of Soflusa in 1993”

(http://www.transtejo.pt/pt/quem_somos/missao.htm

l).“The operational fleet consists of 33 vessels of

which 20 are Catamarans, 4 ferries (monohulls and

catamarans) for passengers and vehicles and 9

conventional vessels” (http://www.transtejo.pt/pt/

quem_somos/frota_list.htm). Nowadays Transtejo

Soflusa is the public transport operator offering

services for commuters that want to cross river

Tagus. In Table 1 is presented the boat fleet and

main characteristics (ferries excluded) and crew

number.

Table 1: Fleet information.

Boat Model No.

Transport

Capacity

Service

Speed

Av. Cons. Crew

Cacilhense 6 480 ≈7 Knots 50 L/h 4

Martim Moniz 2 1000 ≈7 Knots 180 L/h 5

Marvila 1 293 ≈7 Knots 38 L/h 4

Algés 4 496 22 Knots 410 L/h 4

S. Juliao 4 496 22 Knots 540 L/h 4

Cesário Verde 2 292 22 Knots 320 L/h 4

Fantasia 1 146 22 Knots 110 L/h 4

Damiao

de Goes

9 600 22 Knots 600 L/h 4

According to Table 1 more than half of boats are

new boats, the declared service speed is 22 Knots for

the new boats and around 7 knots for old boats. The

highest fuel consumption is registered at the new

600 passengers’ boats that are used also to serve

route between route Barreiro and Terreiro do Paço.

In “Figure 1” (http://www.transtejo.pt) is

represented the medium fuel consumption per

passenger/km during 3 consecutive years for the

entire boat fleet.

Figure 1: Medium fuel consumption per passenger/km.

Fuel consumption decreased from 2008 to 2010

because the transport operator introduced new boats;

some routes were redesign and became shorter and

the schedule modified by operating the boats at a

lower service speed and increasing with an average

time of 5 min. the trip. So instead of staying 5 extra

minutes at the docs the boats are cruising at a lower

service speed of 24km/h instead of 30km/h

increasing the time trip by 5 extra minutes. One

example for this situation is route Barreiro - Terreiro

do Paço. In “Table 2” (http://transporlis.sapo.pt) are

presented the 5 routes operated by Transtejo Soflusa

and the CO

emissions, the price per fare and the

number of bicycles that can be carried on board the

ship.

Table 2: Route characteristics and facilities.

Route Dist. CO

Price Bike

Trafaria - Porto Brandão –

Belém

4,20 km 21g 1,15€ 15

Cacilhas - Cais do Sodré 2,21 km 114g 1,20€ 3

Seixal - Cais do Sodré 7,50 km 374g 2,30€ 3

Montijo - Cais do Sodré 15,00 km 751g 2,70€ 3

Barreiro - Terreiro do Paço 10 km 406g 2,30€ 2/5

The CO

emissions are determined by the length

of each route along with the model of the boat and

the cruising speed that influence the fuel

consumption. The price is calculated taking into

consideration the route length and number of

passengers that use it. This is why the price for one

ticket between Cacilhas and Cais do Sodré is 1.20€

with 0.05€ more than on route Trafaria - Porto

Brandão – Belém which is with 2km longer. Another

example is Montijo - Cais do Sodré that is twice as

long as Seixal - Cais do Sodré and the price for one

ticket is just with 0.40€ more. The facilities for

passengers that want to take their bicycles with them

depend on some safety regulations. It is not only the

time but also the space management and the ebb and

PublicTransportationonRiverTagus

503

flow of the river for the safety of the passengers.

“Figure 2” (Ricardo Ferreira MUBi, 2012)

represents the interface of ground public

transportation with the fluvial transportation. It

highlights the 5 routes and the facilities for

commuters that have to change the vehicle to arrive

at their destination. The figure shows that Lisbon has

a well design infrastructure and the transfer hubs are

very good equipped satisfying passengers’ needs in

terms of public transportation.

Figure 2: Fluvial transportation hubs.

3 CASE STUDY BARREIRO -

TERREIRO DO PAÇO ROUTE

We identify this route from Barreiro to Terreiro do

Paço with some issues that can be efficiencies

obtaining benefits for: passengers, transport operator

Transtejo Soflusa, municipality of Lisbon and

protect the environment. The main problem that we

discovered here is that the operator is using all the

time same model of boat with same capacity for

passengers not taking into consideration the capacity

demand on rush hour and out of rush hour. This

apparent small thing generates lots of problems for:

passengers, transport operator and environment.

Transtejo Soflusa prefers to use the big boats with a

capacity of 600 pass. in spite of the fact that out of

rush hour the demand is less than 200 pass.

Regarding fuel consumption: boats with capacity of

600 passengers consume 600L/h and boats with

capacity of 500 passasengers consume 410L/h. The

operating speed will be 30km/h instead of 24km/h

and the crew number will be the same 4 persons. In

table 2 on route Seixal - Cais do Sodré where the

500 passengers boats are operating, the CO

is lower

with 32g per each trip. The time schedule will

remain the same but the trip will be faster with 5min.

instead of 25min. that is now out of rush hour it will

be 20min. The difference of 5 min. will be spent by

each ship in the docs. Now the trip last 25min. due

to the fact that the boats are cruising at 24km/h

instead of 30km/h as normal to save fuel making the

trip longer for each passenger that uses this route out

of rush hour. The number of bicycles that can be

taken on board will increase by 1. The single small

inconvenient is that the operator has to switch the

boats three times per day when entering and exiting

the rush hour. In the next table are presented the

number of boats by route, time and some

characteristics.

Table 3: Model of boat for each route and time table.

Route Boat Model

Boat

Capacity

No. Of Boats

In Rush

Hour

No. Of

Boats Out

of Rush

Hour

Trafaria -

Porto

Brandão –

Belém

Cacilhas

Class - slow

boat

470 pass. 1 boat 1 boat

Cacilhas -

Cais do

Sodré

Cacilhas

Class - slow

boat

470 pass. 3 boats 2 boat

Seixal - Cais

do Sodré

Algés Class

São Julião

Class

Pedro Nunes

Class

All fast boats

500 pass.

300 pass.

2 boats 1 boat

Route Boat Model

Boat

Capacity

No. Of Boats

In Rush

Hour

No. Of

Boats Out

of Rush

Hour

Montijo -

Cais do

Sodré

Algés Class

São Julião

Class

Pedro Nunes

Class

All fast boats

500 pass.

300 pass.

2 boats 1 boat

Barreiro -

Terreiro do

Paço

Almeida

Garrett Class

- fast boat

600 pass.

7 boats in

the morning

6 boats in

the evening

2 boats

After 23h30

until 2am -

4 FUEL CONSUMPTION

SIMULATION

In this paragraph we will present a fuel consumption

simulation for the actual fleet (600 capacity boats)

and a fuel simulation for 500 capacity boats. All the

technical data is obtain from the transport operator

Transtejo Soflusa.

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Table 4: Technical data regarding 600 pass. boats.

Capacity 600pass.

Motor'sBore(m) 0,165

Numberofboats 9



Cons(L/h)1moto

RPM Km.h‐1 Knots 12V 16V

2000 62,20 33,59 421,4 561,8

1800 55,98 30,23 315,2 422

1200 37,32 20,15 93,6 131,3

Figure 3: Fuel consumption for 600 pass. boat.

Table 5: Technical data regarding 500 pass. boats.

Capacity 496pass.

Motor'sBore(m) 0,165

Numberofboats 4

RPM Km.h‐1 Knots Cons(L/h)1moto

1900 59,09 31,91 263,5

1725 53,65 28,97 198,2

1510 46,96 25,36 130,5

1195 37,17 20,07 67

600 18,66 10,08 11

As we can conclude from the two charts it is a

difference of fuel consumption of more than 150 L/h if

both boats are equipped with a 12V engine. A huge

difference of more than 340 L/h is recorded if we compare

a 600 capacity boat with a 16V engine with a 500 capacity

boat with a 12V engine. Using boats with a capacity of

500 passengers is not only saving gas but also makes the

trip shorter with 5 minutes giving the crew the possibility

to rest at the end of each trip.

Figure 4: Fuel consumption for 500 pass. boat.

5 SOLUTIONS

Our proposal to increase the efficiency of public

transportation on route Barreiro-Terreiro do Paço is

to change out of rush hour boats that are used now

with smaller boats with a capacity of 500

passengers. This modification will generate benefits

for: passengers, Transtejo Soflusa, municipality and

will protect the environment.

Passengers’ spent time on each trip out of rush

hour will decrees from 25min. to 20min. The total

number of bicycles allowed to be carried on board

will increase from 2 that are now to 3. Ticket price

will be lower out of rush hour due to the decreasing

of operating cost for the transport operator.

This switch between the two types of boats will

generate a better management of the boat fleet and

increase the income of the transport operator by

decreasing the operating costs. The crew will have 5

extra minutes for resting in the docs at the end of

each trip. Fuel consumption will decrees and will

avoid exploiting the boats engine below the

operating speed of 22Knots. Decreasing the ticket

price the transport operator can attract more

passengers.

Increasing the number of passengers that use the

boat service to cross river Tagus will lead to a

decongestion of the 2 main bridges that connect

Lisbon with the cities located on the other side of the

river. The area will be more quiet and cleaner by

reducing the traffic on the 2 bridges and the CO

level produced by road vehicles and bigger boats. A

PublicTransportationonRiverTagus

505

higher income for municipality will be generated by

increasing the number of passengers that use the on

water public transportation and decreasing the costs

with maintaining the road infrastructure of the 2

bridges.

Reducing the CO

level produce by the bigger

boats that are in use now and by the vehicles that are

using the bridges to cross the river Tagus will help

the environment. Reducing the noise and dust in that

area helps the birds to live there. In “Figure 5”

(http://www.transportes-xxi.net/forum/download/file

.php?id=109531&mode=view) is presented a boat

with a 600 passengers capacity and in “Figure 6”

(http://www.transportes-xxi.net/forum/download/file

.php?id=109531&mode=view) is a 500 passengers

capacity boat that are in service now.

Figure 5: Boat with a 600 passengers capacity.

Figure 6: Boat with a 500 passengers capacity.

6 CONCLUSIONS

Good management is when the stakeholders in our

case: municipality, transport operator and passengers

obtain the results that they predict without

destroying the environment. Municipality focuses on

a clean and green city with good connections

between city centre, suburban places and other

cities. Having a transport operator that makes his job

and bring income to the municipality budget is

another goal. The operator wants to attract new

passengers, to obtain profit, to have lower operating

costs with the fleet and the infrastructure and if it is

possible to obtain a monopoly of the area where it

operates. Passengers want to travel fast, safe,

comfortable, at a lower price and with less number

of transfers between routes. Also they need mobility

to take with them their bicycles and cars and easy

access to information panels and for purchasing

tickets. Traveling with one “contactless card and the

possibility to use it for other porpoises and recharge

it from ATM, internet or vending machines”

(Ștefănescu et al., 2012) is another goal for

passengers. Saving money, time and protect the

environment is possible by: using less papers tickets

due to the implementation of the “ticketing system”

(Ștefănescu, 2012), increasing the commercial

speed, using hybrid engines or electrical power

vehicles such as “amphibious that are used in

Budapest and Rotterdam” (http://riverride.com/ and

http://www.floatingdutchman.nl/en/about-the-bus/)

“and for ground transportation Phileas buses as in

Eindhoven” (http://www.apts-phileas.com/) reduces

the CO

emissions. It is faster and safer to travel by

boat but the infrastructure and the fleet are very

expensive and if there is no river that everything is

reduce to public transportation with ground and

underground vehicles. “Timișoara is one of the cities

that have the oportunity to develop a public

transportation on water but strugle with the

investment in infrastructure and fleet” (Ștefănescu,

2011) “In his book (Ghionea, 2010) says that there

should be a philological level for transfers from one

vehicle to another that should not be crossed. In his

example for citizens living in big cities the total

number of transfers during a trip should not exceed

one and for commuters should not be higher than

three”. The conclusion to this fact is that commuters

are more tolerant than citizens living in big cities

and for Lisbon passengers that use boats have to

change just once or twice due to the fact that the bots

terminal are connected in most of the cases with all

the public transportation vehicles such as: taxi,

buses, trams, metro, trains as showed in picture 2.

An interesting question raised in (Clayton, 1987)

paper is „if hovercraft can be the new solution for

high speed channel ferries” this topic will represent

the future work for this paper.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

“This work was partially supported by the strategic

grant POSDRU 107/1.5/S/77265, inside POSDRU

Romania 2007-2013 co-financed by the European

Social Fund – Investing in People.”

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