Aware of the limitations of the earlier Concept Design study, which had relatively limited data availability and a compressed scope, time frame and budget, the ADB in 2016 contracted Far East Mobility as part of a wider team of individual experts on various urban transport topics to carry out several tasks, primarily related to updating the earlier BRT plans to match the current situation. The earlier Concept Design was thoroughly revised and effectively completely changed, with the revised designs building upon BRT planning and design ‘lessons learned’ by Far East Mobility in many projects over the preceding five years. The stations were re-designed to a much higher capacity level, with improved access and platform placement and high capacity configurations matching the demand conditions of the corridor. The corridors were also substantially revised over the course of the studies in 2016 and 2017, especially as the political attitudes toward implementing BRT in the highest demand but politically sensitive Peace Avenue corridor shifted.

The revised designs and plans drew on additional surveys but especially useful was the smart card data, which was used to provide demand profiles per route and time of day, and also provided bus speed information. This rich store of smart card data greatly reduced the survey requirements.

In addition to the smart card data, the newly established control centre provided traffic videos and data on the signal phases for all signalized intersections.

As well as developing intersection proposals for the BRT corridor, proposed traffic circulation changes in the central area, defining the station types and platforms, and helping determine the BRT corridors to be included in the project, Far East Mobility developed several detailed visualizations of the proposed BRT stations and corridors and made several project presentations at major workshops and meetings.

Traffic conditions had changed greatly since the earlier Concept Design study in 2011, with much higher volumes and more severe congestion. In this situation the intersection design and traffic flow configuration was very important, and Far East Mobility provided a Traffic Engineering/Safety Specialist to develop a revised traffic circulation network in the central area which could accommodate BRT while not worsening the mixed traffic conditions.

The Traffic Engineering/Safety Specialist was already familiar with Ulaanbaatar, having worked on the earlier Concept Design study in 2011. As well as the road network circulation changes fairly comprehensively covering the central area (where future phase BRT stations and corridors were also considered, with corridors crossing in the CBD), the expert prepared CAD designs of the roadways, stations and intersections.