Transport User Voice – April 2020 – Bus Passenger Survey 2019

27 March 2020

Have a look at the latest results out now

Despite the national coronavirus ‘lockdown’, the transport watchdog continues to work behind the scenes to drive improvements.

It is important that decision-makers and operators have the insight they need to ensure that, when services resume, they can meet the needs of passengers. We know that those who use the bus, value it. We want to give those in charge the data they need to ensure it continues to deliver.

This week we published our latest Bus Passenger Survey. Between early September and mid-December 2019, Transport Focus spoke to 43,872 bus passengers across England (outside of London) making this the single largest response in the ten years that we have been carrying out the survey. It is now the world’s largest piece of regular published bus passenger research.

These latest results show a solid and largely consistent view of bus passenger experience.

Overall satisfaction in the journey last taken by passengers reached 89 per cent. There is a range in results across authorities from 76 per cent to 95 per cent in overall journey satisfaction, and a much wider variation in ratings for factors such as value for money, from 50 per cent to 77 per cent, and the punctuality of services from 53 per cent to 84 per cent.

Understanding why there are such variations at local operation and authority level is hugely important. The team at Transport Focus discusses, analyses and produces action plans with operators and authorities to identify where future improvements can be made.

Bus Passenger Survey evidence has been used to introduce changes and initiatives that improve key factors for passengers. This includes improved punctuality through new bus priority measures, better ratings for value for money through targeted fare deals and some of the ‘softer’ but important factors for passengers such as improved customer service provided by drivers. To find out more about how the results are used in ‘real life’, read What bus passengers think: how our passenger insight is used to improve services.

The survey also included some services in Scotland. And Transport Focus now also works more closely in partnership with London TravelWatch. The teams at London TravelWatch and Transport Focus will look to develop ways to compare the analysis from the Bus Passenger Survey with research undertaken by Transport for London that also reports on bus passenger satisfaction with services.

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