In many countries around the globe, high-quality bus services are being implemented. Also in the Netherlands, bus operators have implemented services that are classified as Buses with a High Level of Service, BHLS (also Hoogwaardig Openbaar Vervoer, HOV, in Dutch). Upgrading conventional services to BHLS can lead to large ridership increases and modal shift rates from the car to the bus.

The objective of this work is to develop knowledge on the importance of BHLS aspects with respect to ridership and advise bus operators and transit authorities about the implementation of BHLS aspects. To investigate this, first the aspects of BHLS are determined based on a literature review. Then, the performance of bus lines on these BHLS aspects is assessed in a Dutch case study to investigate how BHLS in practice relates to the findings in literature. This is done for BHLS services as well as conventional services. The performances of the different services are compared to each other to explore what BHLS means in practice and how that relates to literature. Once the performance of each line is assessed, the relation of the BHLS aspects with ridership is investigated. This is done using a multiple linear regression model. Lastly, the impact of the deployment of dedicated BHLS vehicles on the operational efficiency is researched. Two sets of vehicle schedules are developed for a scenario where all lines are carried out by one single vehicle type and for a scenario where BHLS services have their own dedicated fleet. A framework is developed which can be used to estimate how much ridership should increase to cover the costs of a dedicated fleet.