Allsop – DETERMINING WHICH REQUIREMENTS OF PUBLIC TRANSPORT USERS IN LARGE CITIES COULD BE MET BY MODERN INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY 1987

Description

This 1987 UCL Transport Studies Group report surveyed households, terminal passengers and information-centre users in three NW London corridors and analysed LRT telephone enquiries to identify public-transport information needs and where modern information technology could help. Key findings: London Underground maps have very high household penetration and are widely used, while bus and coach information is harder to obtain and interpret. Printed timetables have limited appeal; rail information reaches more homes than bus timetables. Most travellers know familiar services but lack confidence planning journeys requiring interchanges, often underestimate journey times and overestimate fares, and typically decide onward travel before setting out. Travel centres and telephone enquiries handle large volumes (LRT ~1.2m calls; centres ~3m enquiries annually) for timetables, route existence and fares, yet awareness of phone numbers is moderate. Priority recommendations include decision-support tools for enquiry staff, expanded and tailored printed materials, public self-service systems and in-journey real-time information—especially to improve local bus service information.