Passenger Survey Report
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
2010 Chapel Hill Transit Consolidated Final Report Part 2: Passenger Survey Report ETC Institute (2010) Page 69 2010 Chapel Hill Transit Consolidated Final Report Section 2a: Executive Summary ETC Institute (2010) Page 70 2010 Chapel Hill Transit Consolidated Final Report 2010 Chapel Hill Transit (CHT) Passenger Survey Executive Summary Overview During the spring of 2010, Chapel Hill Transit (CHT) conducted an onboard transit survey. The survey was administered to a random sample of 1,675 riders on both express and local CHT routes. The results for the sample of 1,675 riders have a 95% level of confidence with a precision +/-2.4%. The primary objective of the survey was to gather input from riders to identify ways to improve transit services to better serve users. Methodology The survey was administered onboard CHT buses by representatives from Chapel Hill Transit. The goal was to complete 1,600 surveys, 400 surveys with riders on express routes and 1,200 surveys with riders on local routes. The goal was exceeded with a total of 428 riders surveyed on express routes and 1,247 riders surveyed on local routes, for a total of 1,675 completed surveys. The sampling plan for the project is provided below and shows the current monthly ridership, goals and number of completed surveys for each route. ETC Institute (2010) Page 71 2010 Chapel Hill Transit Consolidated Final Report The following section of the report contains a brief summary of the major findings from the passenger survey; the full passenger survey report includes the following: o charts depicting the overall results of the survey o importance-satisfaction analysis o tables that show crosstabulations of the survey results by type of route (express vs. local) o a copy of the survey instrument Characteristics of Transit Riders and Select Findings • Age of Transit Riders. Sixty-one percent (61%) of CHT riders were under the age of 34; 28% of riders were ages 35 to 54 and 11% of riders were ages 55 or older. • Annual Household Income. Thirty three percent (33%) of the CHT riders surveyed had an income under $30,000; 23% had an income between $30,000 and $49,999; 27% had income of more than $50,000 and 17% did not provide a response. • Occupation of Transit Riders. The most common occupations of transit riders were: student (32%), professional (29%), clerical (9%) and skilled technician (9%). Only 3% of transit riders identified themselves as unemployed. ETC Institute (2010) Page 72 2010 Chapel Hill Transit Consolidated Final Report • How Often Transit Riders use Chapel Hill Transit. Three-fourths (75%) of riders used public transit at least 5 days a week; 16% used it 3 to 4 days a week, 5% used it 1 to 2 days a week, 2% used it less than once a week, 1% indicated it was their first time riding the bus and 1% indicated it varied on how much they ride the bus. • How Long Transit Riders Have Been Using Chapel Hill Transit. Thirty-three percent (33%) of riders had been using public transportation for 1 year or less; 23% of riders had been using public transportation for 1 to 2 years, 43% had been using the bus for 3 years or more and 1% did not provide a response. • Vehicle Availability and Reasons for Use. Sixty-four percent (64%) of riders had another vehicle they could have used to make their trip and 36% did not. Of those riders who did own a car, the most frequently mentioned reasons they used the bus were because parking is too expensive (58%), parking is hard to find (46%) and they cared about the environment (31%). Of those riders who did not own a car, the most frequently mentioned reasons they used the bus were because it was their only alternative (57%) or they did not have a car available for their trip (25%). • Purpose of the Trip. The most frequently mentioned destinations of riders were: work (70%) or school (32%). • How Transit Riders Got to the Bus. The two most frequently mentioned ways riders got to the bus were: they walked (57%) or they drove their vehicle (31%). Of the riders who walked to their bus, 58% walked 1 block or less, 20% walked 2 blocks, 15% walked 3 or more blocks and 7% were not sure. • Overall Ratings of the Quality of Chapel Hill Transit. Eighty-eight percent (88%) of riders rated the overall quality of Chapel Hill Transit as either excellent or good; 10% felt it was average and only 2% felt it was poor. • Transit Services Riders Were Most Satisfied With. The transit services that riders were most satisfied with, based upon a combined percentage of very satisfied and satisfied responses, were: how safe riders feel while using the bus (90%), the courtesy of bus drivers (86%), how close bus stops are located to their workplace (84%), how knowledgeable bus drivers are about transit services (83%) and how safely bus drivers operate vehicles (83%). • Transit Services Riders Were Least Satisfied With. The transit services that riders were least satisfied with, based upon a combination of very dissatisfied and dissatisfied responses were: the availability of bus service on Saturdays (34%) and the availability of bus service on Sundays (33%). • Chapel Hill Transit Services Riders Felt Were Most Important. The transit service most important to riders was the timeliness of buses (62%). Other services that riders felt were important were: the hours that bus service is offered (25%), how quickly buses get to destinations (24%) and how safe riders feel while using the bus (18%). ETC Institute (2010) Page 73 2010 Chapel Hill Transit Consolidated Final Report • Items That Would Encourage Riders to Use Public Transit More Often. The items that would most encourage riders to use public transportation more often were: more frequent service (38%), more service offered later (35%), more service on Saturdays (31%) and more service on Sundays (27%). • Other Findings. o If CHT service had not been available, fifty-seven percent (57%) of riders would have used their car to make their trip; 21% would have walked and 15% would have gotten a ride from someone else. o Most (84%) of riders indicated they would still be using CHT a year from now; 11% would not and 5% did not know. o The most frequently mentioned way that riders received information about CHT services was through CHT’s website (67% of riders received information from the CHT website). o Most riders (82%) did not use CHT’s trip planner; 18% did use it. o A little more than half (52%) of riders used CHT’s NextBus; 48% did not. ETC Institute (2010) Page 74 2010 Chapel Hill Transit Consolidated Final Report Section 2b: Charts and Graphs ETC Institute (2010) Page 75 2010 Chapel Hill Transit Consolidated Final Report How Often Passengers Currently Use Chapel Hill Transit (CHT) by percentage of the riders surveyed Varies 1% First time riding 1% Less than 3-4 days a week once a week 16% 2% 1-2 days a week 5% 6+ days a week 11% 5 days a week 64% Source: ETC Institute (2010 Chapel Hill Transit Passenger Survey) How Long Passengers Have Been Using CHT’s Services At Least Once A Week by percentage of the riders surveyed 7-12 months 15% 1-6 months 10% 1-2 years Less than a month 23% 8% Not provided 1% 4+ years 3-4 years 24% 19% Source: ETC Institute (2010 Chapel Hill Transit Passenger Survey) ETC Institute (2010) Page 76 2010 Chapel Hill Transit Consolidated Final Report Do you have another vehicle that you could have used to make the trip? by percentage of the riders surveyed Yes 64% No 36% Source: ETC Institute (2010 Chapel Hill Transit Passenger Survey) Did you board the bus at a park and ride location today? by percentage of the riders surveyed Yes 41% No 59% Source: ETC Institute (2010 Chapel Hill Transit Passenger Survey) ETC Institute (2010) Page 77 2010 Chapel Hill Transit Consolidated Final Report Reasons Passengers Used Public Transit If They Did Own a Car by percentage of riders who owned a car Parking is too expensive 58% Parking is hard to find 46% I care about the environment 31% To avoid traffic congestion 21% The bus is faster than driving 13% Driving is too expensive 12% Don't like driving 9% Don't have a license 4% 0% 20% 40% 60% Source: ETC Institute (2010 Chapel Hill Transit Passenger Survey) Reasons Passengers Used Public Transit If They Did Not Own a Car by percentage of riders who did not own a car Its my only alternative 57% No car available for this trip 25% I am too young to drive 4% I am too old to drive 3% 0% 20% 40% 60% Source: ETC Institute (2010 Chapel Hill Transit Passenger Survey) ETC Institute (2010) Page 78 2010 Chapel Hill Transit Consolidated Final Report Purpose of the Trip by percentage of the riders surveyed (multiple responses allowed) Work 70% College/school 32% Personal business 8% Shopping 6% Hospital/doctor's office 6% Social/recreation 4% 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% Source: ETC Institute (2010 Chapel Hill Transit Passenger Survey) How Passengers Got to the Bus They Were Riding by percentage of the riders surveyed (multiple responses allowed) Walk 57% Drove a car 34% Transferred from another CHT bus 3% Transferred from a Triangle Transit bus 2% Got a ride from someone else 1% Rode a bicycle 1% 0% 20% 40% 60% Source: ETC Institute (2010 Chapel Hill Transit Passenger Survey) ETC Institute (2010) Page 79 2010 Chapel Hill Transit Consolidated Final Report Number of Blocks Passengers Had to Walk to Get to the Bus They Were Riding by percentage of riders who walked to get to the bus they were riding 1 block 48% Less than 1 block 10% Not sure 7% 6+ blocks 2 blocks 2% 20% 5 blocks 2% 3 blocks 8% 4 blocks 3% Source: ETC Institute (2010 Chapel Hill Transit Passenger Survey) How Passengers