TfNSW Customer Satisfaction Index May 2022

[tonyp]

The TfNSW Customer Satisfaction Survey results for 2022 (May) have been released.

https://www.transport.nsw.gov.au/news-a ... tion-index

There is not a great deal of difference from last year's results. Overall, metro and ferries still rate highest at 98%, light rail at 93%, while suburban train and bus have dropped a point to 92%.


Leaving aside issues that are more down to TfNSW rather than the individual operations, like ticketing, globalised passenger information and access to stations and stops, mode-specific detail issues rate as follows.


Comparing suburban train with metro, suburban is at its own best on access to the station and train, seat availability and presentation and knowledge of staff and worst at frequency, journey time and ease of connections. Apart from the externalities mentioned above, metro had no noteworthy downsides except information about service delays, which are extremely rare. Metro was significantly ahead of suburban on timeliness, frequency, journey time, cleanliness, safety and ease of connections. It was a point ahead of suburban on comfort, temperature and personal space and a point behind on seat availability.


Comparing light rail with bus, light rail generally maintained its previous level of satisfaction, passengers being most satisfied with safety, security, cleanliness and accessibility and least satisfied with frequency, journey times, seat availability and personal space. On buses, passengers were most satisfied with safety and accessibility and least satisfied with timeliness, frequency and comfort at the bus stop. On internal comfort, bus passengers were significantly more satisfied with seat availability and comfort and personal space compared with tram passengers and a little more satisfied with temperature on trams. Smoothness of ride isn't assessed for the railed modes, only for buses and ferries, but 91% of passengers were satisfied with ride quality on buses.


Like the metro, ferries have always rated very highly in these annual surveys and, similar to the metro, passengers are satisfied with just about everything, the only notable discontent being with frequency (which has improved dramatically on the Manly ferry since this survey). Smoothness of ride is rated at 98%.


Over the ten years (since 2012, or since 2019 for metro) that these surveys have been run under the present government, there has, overall, been a significant improvement in satisfaction for all modes. Metro and ferry have always been very high, up near 100%, though the ferries operation, at the beginning, did jump up from the 94% they were at before passing to Transdev Sydney Ferries and metro improved upon its initial running-in phase. Light rail has pretty consistently inhabited the low 90%s without any sign of upward movement, but I attribute this to the lines being trapped in the lowish frequencies and slow journey times that were forced upon them by poor planning and vehicle procurement decisions. The better peak headways on CSELR will hopefully lift passenger perceptions.


Buses and suburban trains have improved significantly from the 79% figure of 2012. Buses improved quite quickly and it's obvious that operational privatisation since then hasn't harmed their customer experience at all, contrary to the predictions of the doomsayers. Suburban trains sat points beliow the buses for a while but have now attained parity in customer satisfaction. Both those modes have inherited institutional issues that inhibit their performance, but light rail, as a clean-sheet development should in theory be doing better, indeed should be up with metro and ferries. However, TfNSW's bungled commissioning process have left it with a couple of bullet holes in its feet and it will take some years (and a better set of trams) to get itself up and running as it should.

[lunchbox]

^^^Thanks tonyp.
I find your ...."Leaving aside issues that are more down to TfNSW.." most interesting. It's dealing with TfNSW directly where I have the most difficulty. Did the Index address that?
55

[Merc1107]

^^^Thanks tonyp.
I find your ...."Leaving aside issues that are more down to TfNSW.." most interesting. It's dealing with TfNSW directly where I have the most difficulty. Did the Index address that?
55

Presumably they much rather cast a spotlight on operational issues that can be blamed on recalcitrant contractors rather than their own bumbling government bureaucracy!

[tonyp]

Well no, it's me who has focussed on the operators! The externalities (like ease of access to stations) are reported in the surveys and you're free to look them up in the link I provided. I'm focussing here on the performance of the operators.

Transperth issues a very detailed report nowadays. The other states' reporting is more difficult to access.

[Merc1107]

Transperth issues a very detailed report nowadays. The other states' reporting is more difficult to access.

Sometimes if you ask nicely you can get the desired information. This worked with NT DIPL some years back in obtaining some statistics.