Review Reports - Methodology for Determining the Territories Where Scheduled Public Transport Should Be Changed to DRT

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

The manuscript identifies the regions where “demand responsive transport” is sensible. It is an important problem, worth publication, and with a utility aspect. The study is prepared well, but some elements of the manuscript need improvement.

As I think, a method should be presented more generally, independent of a “case study”. So, reconstruct the paper, describing a “pure” methodology first (that could be used everywhere), and show, as an example, what this method works in the specific region (giving data and results).

Detailed remarks:

Add a more general map to locate the investigated region in the Lithuanian territory.
Make the maps more readable (enlarge the size).
Add a scale for the maps (a line representing a specific distance).

Author Response

Sincerely thank you for Your review, comments and proposals. We reviewed the manuscript and made changes also particular clarifications. The list of references has been supplemented and all figures will be provided in more readable format as separate attachments.

Comment 1: As I think, a method should be presented more generally, independent of a “case study”. So, reconstruct the paper, describing a “pure” methodology first (that could be used everywhere), and show, as an example, what this method works in the specific region (giving data and results).

Response 1: Thank you for your comment. This methodology was substantiated by analysing and working with the selected territory; therefore, the refined methodology is presented at the end. But from your comment, it can be concluded that this was not understood, so the abstract was supplemented, and the methodology section has been adjusted to make it clearer.

Comment 2: Add a more general map to locate the investigated region in the Lithuanian territory.

Response 2: The map with the location of the investigated region in the Lithuanian territory has been added to the article.

Comment 3: Make the maps more readable (enlarge the size).

Response 3: In order to make the images more readable and preserve their resolution, the images were prepared in higher resolution and added as supplementary files.

Comment 4: Add a scale for the maps (a line representing a specific distance).

Response 4: All maps in the article have been improved by adding north directions and a map scale.

Reviewer 2 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

We recommend better emphasizing the novelty of the research and the importance of expanding complementary transport services, especially in rural and marginalized areas or those lacking transport services.
We recommend emphasizing the benefits in terms of reducing social isolation and equity.
Therefore, we recommend reading the following research papers.

1) Caramuta, C., Grosso, A., Longo, G., Ricchetti, C., & Rotaris, L. (2025). Design, implementation and monitoring of a Demand Responsive Transport service for student leisure transfers: The case study of University of Trieste. Transportation Engineering, 100345.

2)Campisi, T., Spadaro, C., Russo, A., Tesoriere, G., & Torrao, G. (2025, June). The Development of Integrated Public Transport and on Demand Services (PTs-DRTs) for Greater Flexibility and Complementarity of Transport Mode Choices. In International Conference on Computational Science and Its Applications (pp. 48-64). Cham: Springer Nature Switzerland.

3) https://www.archivesoftransport.com/index.php/aot/article/view/787

We recommend emphasizing the potential methodological replicability as well as the limitations of the research, emphasizing how the proposed results can be improved and/or how they can help improve sustainable mobility.

Finally, we recommend making Figure 6 more readable.
The document contains some typos and grammatical errors.

Comments on the Quality of English Language

The English could be improved to more clearly express the research.

Author Response

Comment 1: We recommend emphasizing the potential methodological replicability as well as the limitations of the research, emphasizing how the proposed results can be improved and/or how they can help improve sustainable mobility.

Response 1: Thank you for the comment. The Discussion and Conclusion chapter has been supplemented and corrected.

Comment 2: Finally, we recommend making Figure 6 more readable.

Response 2: In order to make the images more readable and preserve their resolution, the images were prepared in higher resolution and added as supplementary files.

Comment 3: The document contains some typos and grammatical errors.

Response 3: The text has been carefully reviewed and corrected. Thank you for your comment.

Other comments: Therefore, we recommend reading the following research papers.

Response: The literature analysis was supplemented with additional sources.

Reviewer 3 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

This manuscript proposed a practical methodology to idetify regions optimally suited for DRT and integrating DRT into regional public transport frameworks. The research has some significance for sustainable development of public transport.There are several comments for improvement.

1. Suggest using key quantitative indicators to support the research conclusions in the abstract.
2. Suggest providing the paper structure and section arrangement at the end of the Introduction.
3. Figure 1: Adding a compass and scale bar.
4. Explain the background map source of Figure 2 and add a compass and scale bar.
5. Figure 3: Adding a compass and scale bar.
6. According to the definition of K, K has units. There is no unit in the solution of formula (2), please indicate the unit.
7. Figure 4: Please indicate the source of the background map and add a compass.
8. Figure 5:Please indicate the source of the background map and add a compass.
9. Please explain the software tools used for analysis and drawing. All the pictures were drawn by Vissum? Please provide screenshots of the interface for using Vissum to build scenes and create graphics.
10. Please explain the shortcomings and limitations of the research in the final section, as well as future research prospects.

Author Response

Comment 1: Suggest using key quantitative indicators to support the research conclusions in the abstract.

Response 1: The abstract was supplemented with the main key quantitative indicators, and the Discussions and Conclusions chapter started from the main indicators and results of the research.

Comment 2: Suggest providing the paper structure and section arrangement at the end of the Introduction.

Response 2: Thank you for the comment. The Introduction was supplemented with a description of the paper's structure.

Comment 3: Figure 1: Adding a compass and scale bar.

Response 3: All maps in the article have been improved by adding north directions and a map scale.

Comment 4: Explain the background map source of Figure 2 and add a compass and scale bar.

Response 4: The background source used to create the figure is the World Topo Map from Esri. This note is added to the Figure title.

Comment 5: Figure 3: Adding a compass and scale bar.

Response 5: All maps in the article have been improved by adding north directions and a map scale.

Comment 6: According to the definition of K, K has units. There is no unit in the solution of formula (2), please indicate the unit.

Response 6: Thank you for the comment. The units have been added.

Comment 7: Figure 4: Please indicate the source of the background map and add a compass.

Response 7: The background source used to create the figure is the PTV default Map, HERE. This note you can see in the bottom left corner of the map. All maps in the article have been improved by adding north directions and a map scale.

Comment 8: Figure 5. Please indicate the source of the background map and add a compass.

Response 8: The background source used to create the figure is the PTV default Map, HERE. This note you can see in the bottom left corner of the map. All maps in the article have been improved by adding north directions and a map scale.

Comment 9: Please explain the software tools used for analysis and drawing. All the pictures were drawn by Vissum? Please provide screenshots of the interface for using Vissum to build scenes and create graphics.

Response 9: Pictures 4 and 5 were drawn in the PTV Visum program. The mark “@2024 PTV, HERE” in the left corner of the images indicates that the images were generated using the PTV software package.

Comment 10: Please explain the shortcomings and limitations of the research in the final section, as well as future research prospects.

Response 10: The text added to the Discussion and Conclusions chapter: “This research is only an initial stage; further in-depth analysis on how the DRT system operates, such as vehicle capacity, booking time, fleet size, average speed, energy type (electric or fuel), and measures for handling full capacity situations, among others”

Reviewer 4 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

The pilot study provides convincing evidence supporting the efficacy of the proposed methodology, and proposes five-step methodology for allocating territories to the DRT (Demand-Responsive Transport) service mode. My detailed comments are as follows:

The number of references is generally sufficient, but it is recommended to include more studies, particularly those focusing on the calculation or delineation of DRT territories.
On Page 6, Line 264, the basis for defining the limits of the DRT service area should be clarified.
The paper should provide more details on how the DRT system operates, such as vehicle capacity, advance booking time, fleet size, average speed, energy type (electric or fuel), and measures for handling full capacity situations, among others.
The authors should further elaborate on how the optimal DRT scheme is identified within the proposed five-step methodology.
It would be helpful to quantify the improvement in public transport efficiency achieved by applying the DRT-based scheme.
The paper should clarify how the parameters in the five-step methodology model are calibrated to ensure accuracy and applicability.

Author Response

Comment 1: The number of references is generally sufficient, but it is recommended to include more studies, particularly those focusing on the calculation or delineation of DRT territories.

Response 1: Thank you for the comment. 3 more citations of literature sources have been added to the literature analysis and the reference list.

Caramuta, C., Grosso, A., Longo, G., Ricchetti, C., & Rotaris, L. (2025). Design, implementation and monitoring of a Demand Responsive Transport service for student leisure transfers: The case study of University of Trieste. Transportation Engineering, 100345

Campisi, T., Spadaro, C., Russo, A., Tesoriere, G., & Torrao, G. (2025, June). The Development of Integrated Public Transport and on Demand Services (PTs-DRTs) for Greater Flexibility and Complementarity of Transport Mode Choices. In International Conference on Computational Science and Its Applications (pp. 48-64). Cham: Springer Nature Switzerland.

Camprisi, T., Russo, A., Spadaro, C., Tiesoriere, G., Torrao, G. (2025). Times slot choice analysis for DRT service: evidence from Ragusa province, Italy.

Comment 2: On Page 6, Line 264, the basis for defining the limits of the DRT service area should be clarified.

Response 2:Thank you for the comment. The more detailed definitions for the DRT areas are provided lower in the chapter with the explanations.

Comment 3: The paper should provide more details on how the DRT system operates, such as vehicle capacity, advance booking time, fleet size, average speed, energy type (electric or fuel), and measures for handling full capacity situations, among others.

Response 3: Thanks for your comment. The DRT system was planned to use the same public transport fleet (without changing the size and fuel type of vehicles), allowing residents to send their demand the day before, without changing the speed or main routes for other passengers. Your proposed analysis is planned to be done in further research. Text added in the Discussion and Conclusions chapter: “This research is only an initial stage; further in-depth analysis on how the DRT system operates, such as vehicle capacity, booking time, fleet size, average speed, energy type (electric or fuel), and measures for handling full capacity situations, among others”

Comment 4: The authors should further elaborate on how the optimal DRT scheme is identified within the proposed five-step methodology.

Response 4:Thank you for the comment. This article aims to delineate a methodology for identifying territories particularly suited for DRT implementation. But from your comment, it can be concluded that this was not understood, so the abstract was supplemented, and the Discussions and Conclusions chapter has been adjusted to make it clearer.

Comment 5: It would be helpful to quantify the improvement in public transport efficiency achieved by applying the DRT-based scheme.

Response 5: The abstract was supplemented with the main key quantitative indicators, and the Discussions and Conclusions chapter started from the main indicators and results of the research.

Comment 6: The paper should clarify how the parameters in the five-step methodology model are calibrated to ensure accuracy and applicability.

Response 6: The text was changed in the 2.1 chapter: “The developed model was calibrated by comparing the obtained passenger flows with passenger flow calculation studies conducted in September 2022. Comparisons of passenger flows on all routes used in the model were used for verification.”

Round 2

Reviewer 1 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

I state that all of my remarks were considered. I am satisfied with the correction. Now, the manuscript is more proffesional and readable. Especially clear and communicative are the maps. I appreciate this work. I formulate no additional remarks, so, I recommend publishing this study in "Future transportation".

Author Response

Comment 1: I state that all of my remarks were considered. I am satisfied with the correction. Now, the manuscript is more proffesional and readable. Especially clear and communicative are the maps. I appreciate this work. I formulate no additional remarks, so, I recommend publishing this study in "Future transportation".

Response 1: Thank You for you review

Reviewer 2 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

The document still contains some grammatical errors and typos. We recommend checking that all acronyms are written out in full when they first appear in the text.
Once this has been corrected, the manuscript will be eligible for publication.

Comments on the Quality of English Language

The English could be improved to more clearly express the research.

Author Response

Comment 1: The document still contains some grammatical errors and typos. We recommend checking that all acronyms are written out in full when they first appear in the text.
Once this has been corrected, the manuscript will be eligible for publication.

Response 1: thank You for your review, document was checked (grammar/typos and acronyms were reviewed)

Reviewer 3 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

The manuscript has improved a lot. Figure 1 was not shown, please check it. The authors should do a thorough proofreading of the entire manuscript before publication.

Author Response

Comment 1: The manuscript has improved a lot. Figure 1 was not shown, please check it. The authors should do a thorough proofreading of the entire manuscript before publication.

Response 1: thank You for review. Figure 1 is mentioned in part 2. Methodology and creation of the model. All figures provided in more readable format as separate attachments.