Somerville Bus Survey

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Somerville Bus Survey
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Survey Goals

• Benchmark current usage of and satisfaction with
  MBTA bus service through Somerville
• Identify any issues with specific bus routes
• Quantify potential improvements to bus service

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Survey Methodology

• Survey distributed via paper and email
• Available in English, Spanish, Portuguese, and
  French
• Mail-in paper survey distributed across
  Somerville, including handouts at bus stops and
  local events (e.g., ArtBeat)
• Link to Web-based version on SomervilleSTEP.org,
  City of Somerville web site, Somerville Journal,
  and email invitations
• Survey open July 15 - October 11, 2006
• 245 total survey completions (53 via paper
  survey)
• Survey findings are directional and not based on
  a statistically accurate sampling of the
  Somerville population

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Key Findings

• Many Somerville residents depend on bus service
  for a variety of needs and ride buses regularly
• Though satisfied overall with bus routes and stop
  locations, people are generally dissatisfied with
  frequency of service
• Bus routes with the highest satisfaction include
  the 88, 87, and 80
• Bus routes with the lowest satisfaction include
  the 95, 90, and 92
• The most important improvements are better
  adherence to schedule, more trips, and bus
  schedules posted at stops
• Reliability is the top reason for those who dont
  use buses

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Neighborhood of Residence

• Survey respondents represent a cross-section of
  Somerville neighborhoods

Which Somerville neighborhood do you live in or
closest to?
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Ethnicity

• White respondents are overrepresented in the
  survey

Which best describes your ethnicity (optional)?
7
Age

• Survey respondents represent a cross-section of
  ages, with strong representation in late 20s and
  30s

Please select your age group (optional).
8
Car Ownership and Bike Ridership

• More than a third do not own a car, and slightly
  more than half ride a bike

Do you own a car?
Do you ride a bike?
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Active Ridership

• The vast majority of survey respondents ride
  Somerville buses

Do you currently ride MBTA buses in Somerville
(at least once a month)?
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Frequency of Bus Usage

• 72 ride Somerville buses at least a few days a
  week

How often do you ride MBTA buses in Somerville?
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Reasons for Bus Usage

• Many rely on buses for more than commuting to work

For what reasons do you ride buses? (Check all
that apply.)
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Reliance on Bus Service

• Half rely on buses as their primary mode of
  transportation

Are buses your primary mode of transportation?
13
Multi-Modal Transit Users

• Most regularly use buses in combination with
  other transportation, such as subway

Do you usually ride buses in conjunction with
another mode of transportation, such as
transferring to a subway line?
14
Overall Satisfaction with Somerville Bus Service

• 80 are neutral or negative about frequency of
  service bus routes and stop locations generally
  satisfy riders

How would you rate your overall satisfaction with
bus service in Somerville? Please rate each of
the following.
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Overall Satisfaction by Bus

• Highest satisfaction with the 88, 87, and 80
  lowest satisfaction with the 95, 90, and 92

Aggregated mean ratings of 4 characteristics of
each bus

• Please rate the following aspects of each bus
  line that you ride regularly. If you do not ride
  a particular bus regularly, leave that question
  blank.
• How often this bus runs
• How often this bus is on time
• What route this bus takes
• Where the bus stops are located

Only 11 respondents for these buses


Very satisfied
Very dissatisfied
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Satisfaction with Frequency by Bus

• Frequency of trips is a particular problem with
  the 90, 85, 95, 92, and 91

Mean ratings of How often this bus runs
Overall rating of route

Only 11 respondents for these buses

Very satisfied
Very dissatisfied
17
Satisfaction with On-Time Service by Bus

• On-time service is a particular problem with the
  86, 91, 90, and 96

Mean ratings of How often this bus is on time
Overall rating of route


Only 11 respondents for these buses
Very satisfied
Very dissatisfied
18
Satisfaction with Routes by Bus

• People appreciate the routes of most buses,
  especially the 85, CT2, 88, and 87 the 95 route
  should be examined

Mean ratings of What route this bus takes
Overall rating of route
Only 11 respondents for these buses


Very satisfied
Very dissatisfied
19
Satisfaction with Stop Locations by Bus

• People appreciate the stop locations of most
  buses, especially the 88, 80, and 87 the 95
  stops should be examined

Mean ratings of Where the bus stops are located
Overall rating of route
Only 11 respondents for these buses


Very satisfied
Very dissatisfied
20
Priorities for Improvements

• The most important improvements are on-time
  service and frequency of service

How important would each of the following changes
be to you? (1-5 scale, mean value)
Not at allimportant
Veryimportant
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Reasons for Not Riding Buses

• The most common complaints from those who dont
  ride buses regularly are unreliability of service
  and poor bus routes

Why don't you ride buses in Somerville? (Check
all the reasons that apply.)
(37 responses)
22
Likelihood of Increasing Ridership

• 45 of those who dont ride buses regularly are
  likely or very likely to ride more often if
  improvements are made

If bus service in Somerville were improved, how
likely would you be to ride buses more often?
(36 responses)
23
SCM Transportation Awareness and Usage

• About half of respondents are aware of SCM, but
  very few who have heard of it have used it

Are you aware of transportation services for
disabled and elderly Somerville residents
provided by SCM Transportation?
If yes, have you or any family members used SCM?
(Of respondents who answered yes to awareness
question)
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MBTA RIDE Awareness and Usage

• Most respondents are aware of RIDE, but very few
  who have heard of it have used it

Are you aware of transportation services for
disabled and elderly Somerville residents
provided by RIDE (MBTA)?
If yes, have you or any family members used
RIDE (MBTA)?
(Of respondents who answered yes to awareness
question)