Best practices of Integrated Transport Systems have dug into “customer oriented systems”, developing customer experience departments in order to better identify needs and plan around them. Which practice is done in your city to measure satisfaction of public transport users? Does it consider evaluating on the following items?
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Every year the Authority for Transports in Lisbon Metropolitan Area (http://www.amtl.pt) elaborates a client satisfaction study, taking in consideration the several service providers in the area.
When evaluating customer experience, AMTL takes the following into consideration:
The 2014 study can be accessed here (portuguese only): http://www.amtl.pt?cr=9622
Tram lines (group of companies) and Bus company make surveys in main city stations to the people waiting for the tram or bus, sometimes on the street to know about pedestrian and even there exists some road zones where they give paper with questionaries to the drivers and ask for feedback. (Personal interview, Google Form Web system, competitions or ideas contests) Now change to online system of course.
As well as there exists in every important crossroads special beacons to have an accurate feedback of the number of cars using the road usually underground near surface to register every use of the road. Sometimes when they are going to make a change in traffic they use surface cable system sensor.
Now a review of the situation here:
Coverage
Our orography and economy is a handicap but we have a reasonable coverage in main populated zones. Talking about the capital city (Santa Cruz de Tenerife) after Tram line 1 develop ALL urban lines suffered a revolution but with a month fare pass you are able to go near everywhere.
Availability
Generaly mornings and afternoon, special hours of much traffic are very well covered but the night is not very well done. We are in a quiet zone the tourism zones with disco-pub and night activity are in the coast and usually people use the car. The public integrated system only makes an effort in special massive days activities like: Carnaval, Sleepless Night Musseum and this kind of events, and special days where exists massive use usually the bus system because of the day of party in every city local festival. Its like a circle... no bus or tram at night... you must use own car... and again.
Travel Times
Just in the city times are short enough for you to organize your life.
Specialy if you use Tram, very accurate. The Bus depends on the traffic and number of cars make difficult some routes but its good i think.
Reliability
Some lines are NOT very realiable. We have so much lines and last years less drivers (economy) some times there exists difficulties. The panel system that announce times to arrive is not very good but we begin to have ONLY in the city (gps and beacon systems... poor) a new system (just begining now)
Flexibility
Yes, this feature is well enough IF YOU UNDERSTAND THE TRANSPORT SYSTEM.
Somebody wants to go bus like years ago and don't understand the combinated transport system.
Accesibility
Main lines (Tram and massive bus lines) have very good and modern units.
Reduced mobility have a cover and people is supportive with babycars blind and tourist with big bags (but bus not ready for it in city lines)
There was a survey report prepared in 2012 by Clean Air Network Nepal and Clean Energy Nepal on the quality of Public Transport in Kathmandu. The survey included the different aspects such as: in-vehicle time, frequency of service, availability of service during anti-social time, and level of comfort by overcrowding and recklessness in driving.
Availability: About 45.9% passengers feel that public transport is fairly frequent during peak hours and 46.7% feel it is fairly frequent during non-peak hours. About 21.3% feel it to be infrequent during peak hours and 15.9% feel it is infrequent during non-peak hours. The frequency of public transport is dependent on routes. Mostly passengers consider waiting time of 5-10 minutes as fairly frequent. Traffic congestion has also been a serious problem for Kathmandu valley especially during peak hours and contributes somewhat disruption to scheduling of public transport.(Based on the report 2012 by CEN on Public Transport Quality Survey)
Reliability: The public transport system in Kathmandu is haphazard and it can hypothetically be assumed that public transport services are unreliable; while the passenger perception of waiting time, in-vehicle time, fare, passenger occupancy and comfort level also points towards unreliability. However, about 49% of passengers find public transportation fairly reliable, 24% find it neither reliable nor unreliable, while 19.6% find it fairly unreliable and 5.3% find it very unreliable. The public transportation users are mainly middle class, working group people and school/college students for whom economically there are no other viable options than public transportation for daily usage. The fact that 49% find it reliable can be related to people being used to the regular service, with no other viable option to rely than current public transportation system. (Based on the report 2012 by CEN on Public Transport Quality Survey)
Accessibility: About 31% of people find the public transportation neither frequently nor infrequently accessible; 28.7% find frequently accessible; and 28.7% find infrequently accessible while 10.8% find it not accessible at all during evening/night hours. The evening/night hours here refers to 6:00 – 8:00 P.M as after 8:00 P.M accessibility of public transport is negligible. The accessibility of public transportation during evening/night time is somewhat limited and dependent on different routes as shown by the survey results. Public transport services are concentrated during the working day and a frequency tends to be very low from early evening onward. This has been of particular concern to people with low incomes, many of whom work and require transport late at night. (Based on the report 2012 by CEN on Public Transport Quality Survey)