Developing a Printed Transit Information Material Design Manual

Previous phases of National Center for Transit Research (NCTR) research have shown that a significant proportion of the general public is unable to successfully plan a transit trip using printed transit information materials. There is evidence that such trip planning difficulties represent a major barrier to transit use among non-users, and may also contribute to the underutilization of transit services by existing users. A lack of recognized design standards has also contributed to inconsistencies in the material designs produced by different agencies, resulting in an unnecessary source of user confusion. At its inception, this project aimed to address these issues by developing a printed transit information material design manual capable of assisting transit agencies in the production of effective and consistent printed transit information materials. As the project progressed, it became clear that the term “design manual” was too prescriptive, and that the term “guidebook” better reflected the type of document that was being developed. As such, readers should be aware that this document includes references to both “design manual” and “guidebook”. Within this document, it should be noted that these two terms are interchangeable. This Technical Memorandum documents the different project tasks that were conducted in order to provide input into the development of the printed information material guidebook. This document is intended to provide supplementary information for those interested in finding out how the guidebook’s recommendations have been derived, and for those wishing to learn more about the subject area. This Technical Memorandum summarizes Project Tasks 1 and 2. Task 1 was to conduct a literature review to obtain a broad knowledge of the challenges faced by customers in planning a transit trip and the importance of printed materials within the wider context of the variety of transit information aids that exist. Another important goal of the review was to obtain existing guidelines and research on the design of printed materials, both from within the United States and abroad, and to synthesize these into a cohesive list of best practice recommendations. Task 2 was actually two sub-tasks based around a survey of transit agencies across the United States. The survey instrument was designed to obtain an understanding of the issues facing each agency in designing their materials. The other sub-task was to classify the sample materials sent by each agency in order to obtain an understanding of the designs currently employed across the transit industry. The document ends with a conclusions section. Supplementary Report to the Final Project Deliverable: Designing Printed Transit Information Materials - A Guidebook for Transit Service Providers

Developing effective mass transit systems - Proceedings of the 5th International Workshop on Public Transportation

A proceedings document has been developed by NBRTI/CUTR to report the findings of the 5th International Workshop on Public Transportation, which convened in Moscow in May 2007. This technical conference was organized to provide a forum for transportation officials from Russia and the United States to share knowledge and experience in relation to four identified transportation themes

Five-Phase Approach to Improve Design of Printed Transit Information and to Monitor Impact on Customer Satisfaction

Transfort, the transit service provider in Fort Collins, Colorado, conducted a major design overhaul of its printed information materials (system maps, route maps, and schedules) to achieve the following objectives: (a) increase user comprehension of printed materials, (b) increase ridership, and (c) reduce printing costs while adding four additional routes to the schedule book. To achieve those objectives, a five-phase process was developed to allow the redesign task to be informed by research literature, transit staff opinions, and the views of service users. The new designs were implemented incrementally between July 2007 and August 2008 and were accompanied by a marketing campaign that informed and explained the upcoming changes. Ongoing project monitoring efforts indicated high levels of customer satisfaction with the revised materials and their new features and significant cost savings of 26%, as well as some evidence of a positive ridership effect. These outcomes provide an endorsement of the five-phase approach developed by Transfort and suggest that it may be useful to other transit agencies considering a major revision of their printed information materials

Report on South American Bus Rapid Transit field visits: Tracking the evolution of the TransMilenio Model

This report shows how the implementation of new BRT systems in Guayaquil, Ecuador, and Pereira, Colombia, and the continued expansion of the iconic TransMilenio system in Bogotá, Colombia, illustrates the continued successful evolution of the “Bogotá Model”. The report was completed following a technical tour of these three cities in February 2007, sponsored by NBRTI, the American Public Transportation Association (APTA), and Breakthrough Technologies Institute (BTI)

Teenage Attitudes and Perceptions Regarding Transit Use

This study aimed to provide an understanding of teenagers\u27 attitudes and perceptions towards public transit, within the context of the wider issue of teenage mobility. The study found that there are a number of significant restrictions on teenage mobility in the United States, including driving age regulations, travel costs, parental safety concerns, and low-density urban development patterns that limit teenagers\u27 ability to walk or cycle. Analysis of eight focus group sessions conducted with samples of teenagers and parents from Miami and Tampa identified a series of mobility themes that play a major role in determining teenagers\u27 mode choice decisions: safety, cost, access/availability, reliability, and image. On many of these issues, the private vehicle was viewed as having a distinct advantage over transit. However, some areas were identified where transit can hold a strategic advantage, either from a teenage or parental viewpoint. These potential strategic advantages were used to develop marketing messages, such as highlighting to teenagers the independent mobility benefits offered by using transit, while pointing out to parents the time they could save by letting their children ride transit instead of transporting them themselves. Certain advantages over the private auto were also observed on the issues of cost and safety, which were used to develop additional marketing messages. A survey of transit agencies across the country was conducted to assess industry experience with promoting transit to teenagers. This survey showed that there were three main promotional program types: educational programs, reduced fares and transit passes, and that many agencies used a combination of these three types in their promotions. Major obstacles identified in marketing to teenagers included addressing transit\u27s negative social image, gaining the cooperation of the school system, gaining the cooperation of the parents, and retaining the program budget. The study concluded with a series of recommendations for transit agencies interested in implementing, or improving, programs that target teenage riders: (i) Track Teenage Ridership, (ii) Explore External Funding Options, (iii) Form Partnerships with the School System and Other Local Organizations, (iv) Use a Strategic Approach to Developing Marketing Messages, and (v) Consider Teenage Mobility Needs in Transit Service Provision

Impact of Miami, Florida, Urban Partnership Agreement Phase 1A on Transit User Perceptions of I-95 Express Bus Service

With the use of pre- and postdeployment onboard surveys conducted in May 2008 and May 2009, the effect of the Miami, Florida, Urban Partnership Agreement (UPA) project (I-95 Express Lanes) on user perceptions of the corridor\u27s I-95 Express bus service was assessed. Because the majority of 95 Express bus users are commuters who use the service in both directions and only the northbound direction had been improved by the Express Lanes at the time of the study presented in this paper, the project\u27s effect on user perceptions was significant. Although the service was already highly rated, the service\u27s ratings have increased further, with travel time and service reliability ratings improving by margins that were statistically significant at the 99% and 95% confidence level, respectively. These margins relate directly to the improvements in travel conditions brought about by the UPA project. Despite these enhanced performance perceptions, responses to other survey questions showed that mode shifts to transit because of the Express Lanes project have been negligible to date. This finding is consistent with the findings of the Florida Department of Transportation study, which showed that transit mode share remained relatively unchanged between 2008 and 2009

Quantifying the importance of image and perception to Bus Rapid Transit

This report presents the findings of a research project designed to quantify the importance of image and perception to Bus Rapid Transit (BRT), by identifying the different tangible and intangible service attributes that influence aggregate public perceptions of BRT and other transit modes. The report concludes that BRT (even in its lower investment forms) can compete with rail-based transit (at least in the perception of the general public) in return for lower capital cost investments

Applicability of Bogota\u27s TransMilenio BRT System to the United States

NBRTI published a report on the TransMilenio Bus Rapid Transit system in Bogotá, Colombia, discussing its applicability to the U.S transit context