Conquest Research & Consultancy Ltd – BUS TIMETABLE RESEARCH 1999

Description

Conquest Research ran a mixed-method pilot (hall tests n≈322 plus depth interviews) comparing three London bus-timetable designs: Current full-detail (A), Intermediate reduced (B) and Radical simplified (C), plus combined day/night variants (E/F) and separate night timetables. Key findings: users distrust exact times and prefer interval-based displays; the Radical design (C) performed best—about half ranked it first, ~80% ranked it first or second, and 87% found it easier to understand—recommended interval wording: “about every 8–12 minutes.” The Intermediate (B) sat between A and C but performed poorly on journey-time tasks, confused users and is not recommended in its present form. The Current (A) retains a core third of supporters who value precision, though nearly half ranked it last. Night-timetable testing mirrored these trends (F favored overall, night users more split). Recommended refinements: add limited precise detail to C for some users, clarify journey-time display (colour/boxing), make direction/stop names more prominent, and emphasise differing final destinations on combined night timetables.