Reading Passenger Preferences for Public Transport Around the World Setting out to gain insight into passengers’ expectations, RATP Dev carried out an International Public Transport Passenger survey in 11 of the countries where it operates. With around 7930 respondents from France and the UK, to Hong Kong, Italy, Australia, USA, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Morocco and South Africa, the survey presents an adequate overview of the way people in different cities see public transport and how they wish to see it in the future. So, let’s see some of the topics addressed in the survey. The Role of Public Transport in the City Agreeing with the overall frame, most respondents pointed out the positive improvements that public transport brought to the quality of life in their cities. While freedom of movement came on top of the merits mentioned, contributing to a better ecological environment mattered to more than half of the survey takers. What Drives People to Use Public Transport, What Stands in the Way One core difference between the locations surveyed was the reason why people prefer public transport. In Europe, Sydney and other locations, the main driver was to avoid traffic and the parking hassle. In Cairo, cost was a deciding factor, followed by speed, especially for metro users. Other grounds to opt for the public ride included proximity to passengers’ location and how safe they felt on their transit of choice. The Human Factor According to the survey, people still prefer to see more human faces in their operated transport for various reasons. The number one reason is information and assistance (64%). Let’s admit it, it’s easier to ask someone than to try and decode some transport maps and ticket categories. It also apparently makes people feel safer, reassured that in case of any issue they can lean on the next agent and get some helpful clues. Potential Services and Nice to Haves The survey tested several ideas for potential additional services, asking passengers to choose from a variety of options. The results showed that customers craved access to Wi-Fi across the world. Flexible payment methods (pay-as-you-go) came in second, with especially high demand in Johannesburg and Tuscany. In the Greater Paris, Singapore, among other regions, riders asked for information on the passenger load of each train in order to have the right expectation of seat availability. Now that you’ve taken a tour around world transport, how do you wish to see public transport in Egypt?
