Statistical Analysis of User Survey for a Demand-Responsive Bus System in Rural German Cities Revealed 87.74 Percent Customer Satisfaction.
Survey Evaluated Customer Satisfaction with Demand-Responsive Buses in Three Rural German Cities, with Insights from 212 Participants.
Determinants of customer satisfaction with a true door-to-door DRT service in rural Germany
Summary Information
Demand Responsive Transport (DRT) services are considered to be especially fitting for rural communities. This study explored customer satisfaction for a DRT service deployed in June 2018 in the rural district of Northeim, Germany. After two months, the DRT service was tested in a much larger area in the districts of Goslar and Göttingen. The initial number of five buses in operation was subsequently increased to a total of eight operating buses with a capacity of eight passengers and one driver per vehicle.
METHODOLOGY
A customer survey was conducted during the two trial periods of the DRT service, with responses from 212 customers. The survey was distributed inside the buses during operating hours, in paper form, and could be returned to submission boxes inside the buses. Survey questions included the type of ticket used, whether and how many other guests were on the bus, waiting time, satisfaction with the entry possibilities of the bus, satisfaction with bus equipment, overall satisfaction, the reason for traveling car ownership, and job status. The researchers used an Ordered Logit model (OLOGIT) to identify the factors influencing overall satisfaction with the DRT system.
FINDINGS
- Results revealed that 87.74 percent of the users were ‘very satisfied’ or ‘rather satisfied’ with the DRT service.
- In terms of ease of entry into the vehicle, results showed that one unit increase in this variable led to 3.67 times increase in customer satisfaction.
- Results also revealed that an increase in age by one year was estimated to increase likelihood of higher customer satisfaction by a factor of 1.03.
