The Impact Of Geographic Location On The Utility Derived From Real-Time Public Transport Information

Abstract

This paper presents the results of a study undertaken in Dublin, to ascertain passenger preferences for public transport information. The study examines the need for public transport information across three stages of a public transport trip. The stages examined are as follows; stage one: pre-trip planning from home to work, stage two: at-stop/station information, and stage three: pre-trip planning from work to home. At each of these stages, the respondents were asked to choose between several methods of receiving information, via the internet, mobile phone, call centre or at stop real-time information displays. The study utilised a stated preference approach to ascertain what type of information respondents required at each stage and their willingness to pay for this information. This paper presents the findings of the study undertaken and reports several factors which affect respondent’s willingness to pay for public transport information. This paper examines several factors relating to the impact of the geographical location of a respondent in relation to the utility they derive from real-time public transport information. The first factor examined measures the impact that the proximity of an individual to a high quality public transport option has upon utility derived from real-time information. The second factor examines how the residential location of the respondent impacts upon the utility derived from real-time information. Both of these geographical factors were examined using the results of a stated choice experiment conducted in Dublin, Ireland. The first section of this paper presents the survey methodology applied in this study. The following sections present the demographic characteristics of the sample collected and the results of the multinomial logit modelling conducted on the stated choice results. The paper concludes with a discussion and conclusions section.