SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR VEHICLE ROUTING

Disclosed is a system and method for the automated routing of people and materials from one location to another based on automated vehicle technology as it applies to bus transit, ridesharing and car sharing, and on multiple modes of delivery including rail, water, road and air. An optimal transit algorithm is employed that uses Degree of Circuity (DOC) and Maximum Degree of Circuity (Max DOC) to better refine transit network design and scheduling. The given Max DOC and computed shortest travel times are used to define the maximum acceptable travel time for each passenger or package (i.e., “transport item” as used herein). Using those maximum acceptable travel times for passengers and/or packages as constraints, optimal routings are developed for each primary transport hub, such as a train station, using the Simulated Annealing (SA) algorithm. The SA algorithm may be used as a basis for optimal flexible feeder bus routing, which considers relocation of buses for multiple primary transport hubs, such as multiple train stations, and multiple primary transport vehicles, such as multiple trains at each such station.