Structural equation modeling of user satisfaction of bus transit service quality based on stated preferences and latent variables

Few studies have been conducted on the service quality (SQ) of bus transit in developing countries. This paper presents a structural equation modeling (SEM) approach to identifying the relationships among major attributes that affect the SQ of bus transit in the city of Dhaka in Bangladesh. Specifically, 22 bus transit SQ attributes, drawn from 655 questionnaires, are used to develop different SEM models for the city. Along with stated preferences, the effect of three latent variables on SQ is analyzed. Among the developed models, the best model is selected by using different statistical approaches. With the best model, selected attributes are rated according to their relative importance on SQ. Acknowledging limited resources of a developing nation, this study gives a clear way ahead to planners, operating companies and transport managers to design appropriate transport policies which will ensure more effective services to current bus users as well as attracting new passengers.     

Paratransit Service in Indonesia: User Satisfaction and Future Choice

Abstract

This paper explores user satisfaction with making use of paratransit in Bandung, Indonesia. User perceptions of attributes are analyzed using factor analysis to find representing attribute types and factors of service quality. Ordinal probit analysis is employed to explore the characteristics of users regarding their perception of satisfaction with the paratransit service. Binary logistic analysis is undertaken to predict users’ choice probability in making use of paratransit in the future when there is a service improvement. The study reveals that what may be of importance in developed countries carries a different weight of importance for paratransit users. This fact can be explained by describing the characteristics of users that expressed their satisfaction, which also explains the target market for this mode. The analysis reveals the notion that financial motives seem to dominate when users select to use paratransit.     

User satisfaction with paratransit in competition with motorization in indonesia: anticipation of future implications

The rapid pace of motorization throughout the world has changed travel behavior, which in turn has influenced every aspect of transport operations. This impact has also increasingly challenged the future existence of such road-based urban public transport as paratransit due to its characteristics and problems, especially in developing countries. Since creating satisfied users can help retain paratransit’s existence, this research aims to explore user satisfaction with paratransit service in order to anticipate future implications for its competition with motorization in Bandung, Indonesia. It establishes important factors and attributes to explain user perceptions and priorities regarding the service. Its hypotheses explain how users measure paratransit’s quality of service, inferring that they are likely to continue to use it. Even though users are dissatisfied with several aspects of paratransit, and the impact of competition has been strong, loyal users can still be found. By considering the findings, existing problems of inappropriate-quality service can be addressed to satisfy users’ expectations. The study also suggests some anticipation of winning the competition with motorization.     

Segmentation of paratransit users based on service quality and travel behaviour in Bandung,Indonesia

Using a data-set collected among paratransit users in Bandung, Indonesia, this paper explores the impacts of paratransit users' negative experiences and dissatisfactions with their paratransit usage pattern. Segmentation and ordered probit analyses are used to examine the impacts of users' opinions on service quality on their trip-making behaviour. The results indicate that users are divided into six segments – namely, the unlucky, the young user, the experienced, the adapter, the infrequent user and the captive. The results further indicate that paratransit users, especially women, perceive negative experiences related to on-time performance (departure and arrival time) and security issues related to vehicles. Despite these dissatisfactions and negative experiences, they are still likely to use paratransit as part of their daily life. Two paratransit market segments (the adapter and the captive) are also likely to result in more trips using paratransit. The study offers several strategies and recommendations that can improve the current paratransit system so that it can better serve local needs.     

Structural equation approach to investigate trip-chaining and mode choice relationships in the context of developing countries

This paper investigates empirical relationships between trip chain type and mode class choice for developing countries. To formulate these two sets of decisions, four empirical models are developed using structural equation modeling (SEM). Those models are calibrated using one-month travel diary data collected in Dhaka city. SEM correlates the observed variables and identifies their relationship with trip-chaining type utility and mode class choice utility. The fitted models are selected based on statistical results and similarity with the real-life situation. Direct relationships between trip-chaining and mode choice utilities are found insignificant. However, several socio-demographic factors influence both simultaneously. Consequently, it is essential to consider mode class choice concurrently for modeling trip chains. This study also investigates the influencing factors for work-based and non-work-based trip chains separately and effects of road users’ heterogeneity. The research results can be utilized to perceive trip chain-mode choice patterns for developing countries.     

Paratransit — Existing issues and future directions

Paratransit services bridge the gap between static fixed route transit and the flexible automobile travel. Paratransit services provide personalized public trapsportation by responding to the needs of individual markets and users. Unfortunately, fragmentation of the paratransit sector and institutional and regulatory constraints have prevented or complicated realization of paratransit's full potential. The orientation in this paper is not primarily to identify promising paratransit applications. Rather, it is to examine basic characteristics of paratransit services, fundamental issues unique to paratransit, existing problems that are constraining paratransit development, and ways to overcome or minimize existing difficulties. A taxonomy of paratransit services is proposed so that these systems can be better related to each other. The institutional environment of paratransit is examined from the viewpoints of planning, operations and regulation. A primary focus is on integration of various paratransit services and of paratransit and conventional fixed route services. Several proposals are made relating to improvements in existing services, new service concepts, new institutional arrangements and service integration.     

On the effect of operational service attributes on transit satisfaction

Public transport (PT) providers aim to offer services that meet users’ satisfaction, and for this, they can control some operational service attributes such as frequency, speed, crowdedness and reliability. Understanding how these objective attributes affect user satisfaction is essential to improve it cost-effectively, but these associations have not been examined enough in the PT literature. This study aims to unveil how key transit operational variables actually experienced by users affect their satisfaction. We analysed data derived from a multiannual consumer satisfaction survey for the Santiago de Chile Metro system; between January 2013 and June 2016 (n?=?41,993), where approximately 1000 questionnaires were completed each month. We also gained access to a set of operational variables managed by Metro for the same period, including more than 1.4 million records. With this unique dataset, we first developed a structural equation model (SEM) with users’ perceived attributes, finding that safety, ease of boarding, response to critical incidents (CI), the number and type of CI endured, and information, were the variables that mostly affected satisfaction. We also examined heterogeneity in transit satisfaction with SEM-MIMIC models, by characterising the user population through their trip and socioeconomic characteristics, finding a striking result: that as users age they are more satisfied with the system. Next, we assessed whether including operational service attributes, such as crowding levels, frequency, commercial speed and CI, added predictive power to the proposed model. We found that the number of CI, speed, frequency and crowdedness, plus their variability (measured through the coefficient of variation), affected transit satisfaction at significant levels. Including these objective service attributes provided more explanatory power to the SEM-MIMIC transit satisfaction models. Policy recommendations for improving satisfaction, derived from our results, are: to implement an automatic control system for the number of passengers on Metro platforms (as safety and ease of boarding are critical issues for passengers); and to deploy a comprehensive tactical plan to address CI: determine which happen more often, take actions to minimise them and provide better responsive actions.

     

Synopsis of bicycle demand in the City of Toronto: Investigating the effects of perception,consciousness and comfortability on the purpose of biking and bike ownership

This paper provides an empirical basis for the evaluation of policies and programs that can increase the usage of bikes for different purposes as well as bike ownership. It uses an integrated econometric model of latent variable connecting multiple discrete choices. Empirical models are estimated by using a bicycle demand survey conducted in the City of Toronto in 2009. Empirical investigations reveal that latent perceptions of ‘bikeability’ and ‘safety consciousness’ directly influence the choice of biking. It is also found that the choice of the level of bike ownership (number of bikes) is directly influenced by latent ‘comfortability of biking’. The number of bikes owned moreover has a strong influence on the choices of biking for different purposes. It is clear that bike users in the City of Toronto are highly safety conscious. Increasing on-street and separate bike lanes proved to have the maximum effects on attracting more people to biking by increasing the perception of bikeability in the city, comfortability of biking in the city and increasing bike users’ sense of safety. In terms of individuals’ characteristics, older males are found to be the most conformable and younger females are the least comfortable group of cyclists in Toronto.     

The role of paratransit: some reflections based on the experience of residents’ coach services in Hong Kong

Paratransit refers to urban transport services “somewhere between private passenger transport and conventional public transport in terms of cost and quality of service” [Rimmer (1980), Paratransit: A commentary. Environ. Plan. A 12, 937–944]. Since the 1980s, a new form of paratransit—residents’ coach, which provides exclusive transport services to residents living in private housing estates—has emerged in Hong Kong. What was the background underlying the emergence and subsequent growth of residents’ coach services? Also, what was the role of residents’ coach in the public transport system of Hong Kong? With the completion of more railway extensions, should residents’ coach services be replaced? If so, what are the potential impacts on people’s life? This paper addresses the above research questions through a large-scale questionnaire survey that examined not only people’s modal choice but also their residential choice, socio-economic background and attitudes. The findings suggest that transport policy makers should pay more attention to examine new forms of paratransit and the ways of integrating them into the overall public transport system, both spatially and temporally. It is only through the development of an efficient and multi-modal transport system can the maximum potential of paratransit in filling the transport gap between conventional mass transit and private cars be realized.     

Passengers’ Perceived Service Quality of City Buses in Taipei: Scale Development and Measurement

Abstract

To understand fully passengers’ perceptions and expectations of the bus service quality in Taipei, business managers and governmental agencies must seek a proper scale that can reflect passengers’ opinions accurately. This study develops and tests a service quality scale designed for a city bus transit system in Taipei. Churchill’s paradigm and a focus group interview were combined into a multistage scale development procedure. Based on the procedure, Taipei city buses were selected as the example, for which a service quality scale was developed. The final scale contains four dimensions and 20 items. These four dimensions are ‘interaction with passengers’, ‘tangible service equipment’, ‘convenience of service’ and ‘operating management support’. Finally, the results of scale development and the managerial applications of the service quality scale for the city transit system are discussed.     

A simulation model for evaluating advanced dial-a-ride paratransit systems

This paper presents a simulation system that has been developed to model a variety of technology-oriented dial-a-ride paratransit systems operated in an urban environment. The latest advances in information technologies such as automatic vehicle location (AVL), digital telecommunication and computers have afforded a unique opportunity for public transit agencies to integrate these technologies in their paratransit systems for improved productivity and reliability. This opportunity has also prompted wide spread interest in quantifying the actual benefits that can be attained from such technological enhancement. The primary objective of the simulation model described in this paper was to facilitate the evaluation of the potential effects that these technologies may bring on a paratransit system. The paper discusses the general concepts, models and computational techniques applied in the simulation system, focusing on how various components are modeled and how they interact with each other in the overall simulation framework. The simulation system is applied to evaluate the potential operational improvement that may be attained from the application of automatic vehicle location technology.     

Improving the efficiency of demand-responsive paratransit services

State agencies responsible for ADA-eligible paratransit services are increasingly under pressure to contain costs and maximize service quality. Many do not operate vehicles themselves; instead, they contract out the provision of services. Contractors are paid for each hour of service. They are responsible for hiring crew, forming routes, dispatching, and operating and maintaining agency-owned vehicles. In the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Metro Mobility, the agency responsible for providing paratransit services, requires contractors to use agency-approved software for booking trips dynamically and sets parameters that guide contractors’ practices. Customer trips booked in this fashion may not utilize capacity in the most efficient manner. Therefore, beginning with the daily trip schedules generated by the software, this paper proposes two approaches for improving the efficiency of paratransit operations and estimates the benefit of using these approaches via experiments that utilize Metro Mobility data. The first approach re-optimizes routes developed at the end of each day. The second approach evaluates the benefit to state agencies of selectively using non-dedicated service providers such as taxis. Both approaches are tested on actual data obtained from Metro Mobility. The study shows that a conservative estimate of savings from re-optimization would be approximately 5% of Metro Mobility’s operating costs. Savings from the use of taxis are smaller and in the range of hundreds of dollars per day.     

Development of distress condition index of asphalt pavements using LTPP data through structural equation modeling

Traditional pavement distress index such as the Pavement Condition Index (PCI) developed by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers determines coefficients of distresses based on subjective ratings. This study proposed an asphalt pavement distress condition index based on various types of distress data collected from the Long-Term Pavement Performance (LTPP) database through Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). The SEM method treated the overall distress index as a latent variable while various distresses were treated as endogenous and other influence factors such as age, layer thickness, material type, weather, environment and traffic, were exogenous observed variables. The SEM method modeled the contributions of various distresses as well as the influence of other factors on the overall pavement distress condition. Influences of age, layer thickness, material type, environment and traffic on the latent distress condition were in accordance with previous studies. Compared with previous attempts to model latent pavement condition index utilizing SEM method, more pavement condition measurements and influencing factors were included. Specifically, this study adopted the robust maximum likelihood estimator (MLR) to estimate parameters for non-normally distributed data and derived the explicit expression of latent variables with intercepts. A multiple regression prediction model was built to calculate an overall condition index utilizing those measured distress data. The established pavement distress index prediction model provided a rational estimation of weighting coefficients for each distress type. The prediction model showed that alligator cracking, longitudinal cracking in wheel path, non-wheel path longitudinal cracking, transverse cracking, block cracking, edge cracking, patch and bleeding were significant for the latent pavement distress index.     

What influences satisfaction and loyalty in public transport? A review of the literature

Public transport ridership retention is a challenge for many cities. To develop comprehensive strategies aimed at retaining riders, it is necessary to understand the aspects of public transport that influence users to become loyal to the system. This paper analyses relevant literature regarding the causes of satisfaction and loyalty in public transport. We find that the service factors most associated with satisfaction are on-board cleanliness and comfort, courteous and helpful behaviour from operators, safety, as well as punctuality and frequency of service. On the other hand, loyalty is associated with users’ perceptions of value-for-money, on-board safety and cleanliness, interactions with personnel and the image and commitment to public transport that users feels. Furthermore, the results elucidate that the concept of loyalty is best defined based on users’ intentions to continue using the service, their willingness to recommend it to others, their overall satisfaction, but also and most importantly, their image of and involvement with public transport. Public transport users who have a positive image of the agency and consider public transport an integral component of city life are more likely to demonstrate loyalty and act like ambassadors for public transport agencies.     

Methodology to determine service delivery levels for public transportation

When designing transit services, the Level-of-Service concept has been widely used by transport planners and service providers to assess the service quality of an existing transit system. In addition to the service quality assessment, service providers also need to estimate the service levels that will satisfy a maximum number of users and potential users, across all socio-economic groups, so as to maximize patronage. This paper demonstrates a method using the concept of ‘user satisfaction levels’ and their ‘zone of tolerance’, along with total utility and marginal utility for service providers, to provide a range of service delivery levels for individual transit service attributes in the city of Kolkata. This range of service levels provides a guideline for service providers within which they can consider making an improvement in service level. However, the final decision on service improvement is an outcome of both financial and infrastructural feasibility.     

Automation of paratransit reservation,routing, and scheduling

Santa Clara County, California experienced a sharp growth in demand‐responsive paratransit ridership for individuals with disabilities, as a result of the passage of the 1990 Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA). This paper describes an automated paratransit system for the ADA‐type paratransit operation implemented in Santa Clara County. It automated paratransit reservation, scheduling, and routing functions. The key components of this system were a digital geographic database (DGD) and an automated trip scheduling system (ATSS). Empirical evidence after one year of operation indicates numerous benefits of this automation. There were significant reductions in the paratransit operating costs and an increase in the percent shared rides. The savings in operating costs far exceeded the annualized capital cost of automation. A user survey indicates that these improvements were achieved without degradation to service quality such as vehicle on‐time performance, invehicle travel times, vehicle response to open return, and ride comfort.     

Latent stage model for carsharing usage frequency estimation with Montréal case study

In order to predict the monthly usage frequency of members of a car-sharing scheme by analysing the gradual change of behaviour over time, a new model is proposed based on the Markov Chains model with latent stages. The model accounts for changing patterns of frequency from soon after signing up to later stages by including five latent user ‘life stages’. In applying the model to panel data from Montreal’s free-floating carsharing service the authors calculate each user’s ’lifetime’ applied to ‘system operation time’, the time period since the start of the scheme. Three-fold validation reveals effective performance of the model for both lifetime and system operation time dimensions. The model is further applied to illustrate how previous carsharing experience and the extension of the scheme to a larger area can affect usage frequency changes. We conclude that this approach is effective for usage prediction for novel transport schemes.

     

Multilevel modelling of Demand Responsive Transport (DRT) trips in Greater Manchester based on area-wide socio-economic data

Providing public transport in areas of low demand has long proved to be a challenge to policy makers and practitioners. With the developing economic, social and environmental trends, there is pressure for alternative solutions to the policy of subsidising conventional bus services. One potential solution is to adopt more flexible routes and/or timetables to better match the required demand. Therefore such ‘on demand’ or ‘Demand Responsive Transport’ (DRT) services (known as paratransit in the US) have been adopted in a number of locations. This paper seeks to explore the effects of area-wide factors on the demand of DRT by reporting the results of a statistical analysis of DRT service provision in the metropolitan region of Greater Manchester, the public transport authority of which offers one of the largest and most diverse range of DRT schemes in the UK. Specifically, this paper employs a multilevel modelling approach to investigate the impact of both DRT supply-oriented factors at the service area level and socio-economic factors at the lower super output area (LSOA) level on the average number of trips made by DRT per year. This hierarchical or ‘nested’ structure was adopted because typically the LSOAs within the same Service Area may share similar characteristics. It is found that the demand for DRT services was higher in areas with low car ownership, low population density, high proportion of white people, and high levels of social deprivation, measured in terms of income, employment, education, housing and services, health and disability, and living environment.     

Understanding cyclists’ perceptions,keys for a successful bicycle promotion

Many variables that influence bicycle use beyond time and cost have been included in models of various types. However, psycho-social factors that make the bicycle eligible as a modal alternative have not been identified properly. These factors are related to intention, attitudes and perceptions, and their identification can contribute to obtain the keys for a successful bicycle policy. Here, an in-depth investigation of cyclists’ perceptions is attempted using a large university survey designed and collected ad hoc, and then applying exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses. After identifying fourteen factors, a structural equations model was estimated to find structure and relationships among variables and to understand users’ intentions to use the bike. Four (latent) variables are identified, namely convenience, pro-bike, physical determinants and exogenous restrictions. The main conclusion is that convenience (flexible, efficient) and exogenous restrictions (danger, vandalism, facilities) are the most important elements to understand the attitudes towards the bicycle.