More than nine in ten passengers are satisfied with public transport services, according to research undertaken on behalf of the National Transport Authority by Kantar MillwardBrown.
A total sample of 2,545 customers were interviewed from the 24th May to 30th June 2018. This included Dublin Bus, Bus Éireann, Iarnród Éireann and Luas customers.
According to the findings, 93% of passengers are satisfied with the service provided by their transport operator. This is up from 91% compared to the last time this research was carried out in November 2017.
The mode with the lowest satisfaction score in Autumn 2017, DART, has improved significantly from 84% to 93%. All other scores are relatively unchanged.
The vast majority of customers (nine in ten) thought the service was the same or better than twelve months earlier, with just a very small proportion stating it was worse.
Satisfaction with DART significantly improved from 84% to 93%. Almost one in four (24%) state that the service had improved in the last year. For other Iarnród Éireann services, 89% were satisfied with comfort and reliability scoring well.
Satisfaction with Bus Éireann services remain relatively unchanged at 83%. There is positive momentum with almost one in three (31%) saying the service had improved in the last year (significantly up from 25%). There has also been significant improvement in satisfaction relating to: level of comfort, ability to get the first bus and making connections to other transport.
Once again Dublin Bus performs well, with 95% satisfied with their service. This represents an increase of 3% compared to the previous round of research. Dublin Bus performed well for satisfaction relating to comfort, getting to destination on time and overall frequency of service.
However, weekend frequency, hours of operation and ability to make connections score relatively lower compared to other factors. These are issues that the NTA will address in the future with the operators.
Satisfaction with Luas services tops the poll with 96% overall satisfaction, only marginally down from 98% in Autumn 2017 – not a significant change.
As was the case in the previous research, scores on key and individual metrics remain very high for Luas customers. Frequency of service and getting to your destination on time got a 99% satisfaction score.
Anne Graham, CEO of the NTA, said:
“The figures we are releasing today show that public transport customers are very satisfied with the overall level of service that they get on their buses, trains and trams.
But we know that if we are to maintain that level of satisfaction, we will need to continue to improve our public transport services so that we can meet the increasing demand, this year, next year and in the years to come.
That is why the investment in sustainable transport announced by the government in the National Development Plan earlier this year is so important.
Projects like building hundreds of kilometres of bus and cycle infrastructure under BusConnects; the expansion of DART to places like Maynooth and Drogheda; and finally delivering on MetroLink; will make a real impact in terms of both reducing congestion and tackling climate change.”
