Center for Urban Transportation Research | University of South Florida

OneBusAwayEnhancing customer service

via mobile appsSean J. Barbeau, Ph.D.Shannon HaneyWalt Lenz

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Overview

• Background

• OneBusAway Interfaces

• OneBusAway Tampa

• Agency Benefits

• Future Work

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What is OneBusAway?

• What? Suite of tools that provides real-time bus/train tracking information– Open-source software project

• Freely available to set up at your agency

– Free to riders– Maintained by board, consortium of organizations

• Universities• Transit Agencies• Vendors

• Why? Make riding public transit easier by providing good information in usable formats– Research evaluates the impacts

Real-time arrival info

http://onebusaway.org

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Where is OneBusAway?

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Seattle WA: Original deployment

New York, NY: Adapted for the MTA (Bus Time)

Washington, DC: Beta

Atlanta, GA: Launched in early fall 2013

Tampa, FL: Launched in late

summer 2013

York, CA: Beta

Bear Transit (UC Berkeley): Beta

http://onebusaway.org

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How do you use OneBusAway?

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ONEBUSAWAY INTERFACES

How can riders access real-time transit info?

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OneBusAway – Mobile Apps

Android Windows Phone &Windows 8

iPhone

Support user location, route, stop contextual/personalized informationAll OPEN-SOURCE!

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OneBusAway - Websites

Desktop browser

Smartphone browserText-only browser

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ONEBUSAWAY TAMPAExpanding mobile transit apps to new cities

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Original OneBusAway mobile app design

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Multi-region architecture

• Region information is stored in centralized server directory (i.e., Regions API)

• Apps now find nearby regions using Regions API

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HART AVL OrbCAD

SQL Server

HARTUSF

OneBusAway

HART Buses

HART Comm.Tower

Trip/Vehicle Updates

USF OneBusAway

server

USFGTFS-realtime

USFGTFS-realtime

server

Real-time info

request

Real-time info

response

Real-time info

request

Real-time info

response

Created GTFS-realtime feed for HART

GTFS-realtime software is open-source :https://github.com/CUTR-at-USF/HART-GTFS-realtimeGenerator/wiki

13tampa.onebusaway.org

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TAMPA RESEARCH RESULTS

How does OneBusAway effect transit riders?

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Survey of Tampa Riders

Lead by Candace Brakewood and Dr. Kari Watkins at Georgia Tech Objective: Quantify the impacts of real-time bus information on

transit rider behavior and satisfaction in pilot deployment prior to public launch

Methodology: Before and after web-based survey with a non-user (control) group

Recruitment: HART website, HART email list & other email lists (USF); Free 1 day bus pass as incentive

BEFORE SURVEYof Control Group

(approx. 230 participants)

AFTER SURVEY of Control Group (107 Non-Users)

BEFORE SURVEYof OneBusAway Group

(approx. 230 participants)

AFTER SURVEY of OneBusAway Group

(110 OneBusAway Users)

“After” Survey results do not include:• 24 Participants in the Control Group that used OneBusAway• 27 Participants in the OneBusAway Group that did not use OneBusAway

No OneBusAway

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Analysis of Usual Wait Times

0% 50% 100%

3% 3% 31% 38% 26%

I spend much more time waiting

I spend somewhat more time waiting

I spend about the same time waiting

I spend somewhat less time waiting

I spend much less time waiting

• Identical questions about usual wait time on regular route on the before and after surveys

Usual Wait Time (minutes)Sample Size Before After Difference

n Mean (SD) Mean (SD) Mean

Control Group 10210.71 10.50

-0.21(3.88) (4.25)

OneBusAway Group 10711.36 9.56

-1.79(4.06) (4.68)

Comparison Difference of Means: t=2.65, two-tailed p=0.009 < 0.01

• Experimental group post-wave survey only: Has using OneBusAway changed the amount of time you wait at the bus stop?

Bottom graphic: n=109. Figures rounded to the nearest whole percent.16

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Analysis of Feelings While Waiting for the Bus

• Experimental group post-wave survey only asked: Since you began using OneBusAway, do you feel more relaxed when waiting for the bus?

• Identical questions about feelings while waiting asked on the before and after surveys

0% 50% 100%

28% 40% 27% 4%

Agree strongly

Agree somewhat

Neutral

Disagree somewhat

Disagree strongly

Bottom graphic: n=108; Figures rounded to the nearest whole percent.

Control Group OneBusAway User Group Diff. in Gain Scores% Frequently + Always % Frequently + Always Wilcoxon Test

Feelings Before After Before After W p-value Productive 11% 10% 10% 17% 6201 0.051 *Anxious 18% 19% 26% 25% 4548 0.082 *Relaxed 34% 34% 27% 25% 5518 0.592Frustrated 24% 26% 25% 18% 4241 0.006 ***Significance: * p<0.10; ** p<0.05; *** p<0.01

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Analysis of Satisfaction

• Experimental group post-wave survey only asked: Since you began using OneBusAway, do you feel more satisfied riding HART buses?

• Identical questions about satisfaction asked on the before and after surveys

0% 50% 100%

32% 38% 26% 3%

Agree strongly

Agree somewhat

Neutral

Disagree somewhat

Disagree strongly

Bottom graphic: n=107Figures rounded to the nearest whole percent.

Control Group OneBusAway Group Diff. in Gain Scores

% Satisfied % Satisfied Wilcoxon Test Before After Before After W p-value How frequently the bus comes 37% 41% 40% 44% 5812 0.459How long you have to wait for the bus 39% 34% 36% 46% 6425 0.020 **How often the bus arrives at the stop on time 54% 45% 45% 59% 7094 0.0001 ***How often you arrive at your destination on time 57% 53% 55% 63% 5835 0.236How often you have to transfer buses to get to your destination 44% 42% 38% 36% 4916 0.342Overall HART bus service 63% 59% 57% 58% 5717 0.410 Significance: * p<0.10; ** p<0.05; *** p<0.01

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Qualitative Results

Riders Realize the Benefits

• “Excellent program saves time in waiting for the buses.” • “I think the OneBusAway app is a life saver. Being able to know

exactly when the bus is coming is helpful.”• “…Has really helped me catch busses that aren't originating at the

Marion Transit Center. Often when catching busses along their route, I felt like it was the "wild, wild, west" with times, busses not showing, etc. OneBusAway helped make everything much more sensible and relaxing!!”

• “Please keep One Bus Away going in Tampa. Thank you.”• “This is too useful to not be deployed soon. I have coworkers asking

me how I'm so accurate on scheduling, and when I explain it, they are eagerly awaiting the service rollout so they can have it.”

Requests to Continue OneBusAway

Direct quotes from OneBusAway testersBold & underline added for emphasis

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AGENCY BENEFITSHow did OneBusAway Tampa effect HART?

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HART Benefits

• Enhanced Reliability of Responses to Patrons

• System-wide Access

• Improved Call Response Time

• Embrace Innovation Practices and Systems

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HART – Next Steps

• Google Maps Integration (Completed)• SMS (text message) – flip phones, basic phones• IVR (phone call in) – access for visually impaired

and those without cell or web• Advertising sales – revenue generation• Real-Time Service and Detour Alerts

Integration (HyperAlert)• Addition of USF Bull Runner Real-Time Data

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FUTURE WORKWhat’s next?

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Feedback from riders

• Currently, OneBusAway users can submit feedback via email, which results in useful information:– “Every day since the new rotation the 37 route for stop 5930

scheduled for 5:23pm is always late. I miss my connection at Brandon mall.”

– “On the corner of Busch Ave and Nebraska Ave the bus drivers stop there because of the detour on Yukon st. Every time I stand at the corner no mater what side of Nebraska I am on the bus drivers tell me I am supposed to be on the other side.”

– “Bus shelter at w palm drive and a Howard av needs trash pick up please”

• However, the variety of information can be difficult to triage and share with the various responsible departments/agencies

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Future improvements

• Better crowd-source info– Examining integration with

services like “SeeClickFix.com”

• Better analytics– What stops riders are using

• Working with PSTA to expand regional coverage of OneBusAway Tampa

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PSTA Benefits

• PSTA currently shares real-time info via:– web site– voice call– text messaging

• But, no mobile apps*

*One 3rd party Windows Phone app exists

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PSTA Benefits

• By joining OneBusAway Tampa, PSTA gets:– mobile apps for iPhone, Android,

and Windows Phone– regional transit info in a single

system, with HART and any other agencies that join

– enhanced customer feedback via the app

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CONCLUSIONSThe takeaways

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Conclusions

• Mobile apps (e.g., OneBusAway) and real-time data can create a revolution in transit customer service

• Tampa research indicates significant improvements in the waiting experience:– Decreases in self-reported usual wait times– Decreases in negative feelings, particularly frustration – Increases in satisfaction with wait times

• Real-world benefits to HART and Tampa transit riders

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Resources

• OneBusAway - http://onebusaway.org/

• Transit Agencies - http://onebusaway.org/transit-agencies/

• Developers - https://github.com/OneBusAway/onebusaway/wiki

• Webinar on OneBusAway Multi-region - http://bit.ly/CUTR_Webcast_OBA_Multiregion

• APTA presentation on Tampa experiment - http://bit.ly/APTA2014-TampOneBusAwayExperiment

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Past studies

• Real-time transit information has many benefits– Shorter perceived wait time [1]

– Shorter actual wait time [1]

– Lowers learning curve for new riders [2]

– Increased ridership (maybe?) [3]

– Increased feeling of safety (e.g., at night) [5][6]

• Riders prefer accessing real-time transit info via mobile apps [1]

[1] Kari Edison Watkins, Brian Ferris, Alan Borning, G. Scott Rutherford, and David Layton (2011), "Where Is My Bus? Impact of mobile real-time information on the perceived and actual wait time of transit riders," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Vol. 45 pp. 839-848.[2] C. Cluett, S. Bregman, and J. Richman (2003). "Customer Preferences for Transit ATIS," Federal Transit Administration. Available at http://ntl.bts.gov/lib/jpodocs/repts_te/13935/13935.pdf#sthash.jwn5Oltr.dpuf[3] Lei Tang and Piyushimita Thakuriah (2012), "Ridership effects of real-time bus information system: A case study in the City of Chicago," Transportation Research Part C: Emerging Technologies, Vol. 22 pp. 146-161.[4] Aaron Steinfeld and John Zimmerman, "Interviews with transit riders in San Francisco and Seattle," ed, 2010.[5] Brian Ferris, Kari Watkins, and Alan Borning (2010), "OneBusAway: results from providing real-time arrival information for public transit," in Proceedings of the 28th International CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, Atlanta, Georgia, USA, pp. 1807-1816. [6] A. Gooze, K. Watkins, and A. Borning (2013), "Benefits of Real-Time Information and the Impacts of Data Accuracy on the Rider Experience," in Transportation Research Board 92nd Annual Meeting, Washington, D.C., January 13, 2013.

Tony Kurdzuk/The Star-Ledger

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Thanks!

Sean J. Barbeau, Ph.D.barbeau@cutr.usf.edu813.974.7208

Shannon Haneyhaneys@gohart.org 813.384.6602

Walt LenzWLenz@psta.net727.540.1878

Thanks to Candace Brakewood and Kari Watkins for survey slides!

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Challenge

• Custom mobile apps are expensive– Some estimates > $150,000k for a single platform [7]

– Doesn’t include maintenance cost• Implementing and maintaining custom apps on all

popular smartphone platforms is cost-prohibitive• Open data is good, but doesn’t always result in

apps by 3rd party developers• How can we cost-effectively launch mobile transit

apps in new cities?

[7] Larry Lauvray "iPad App Development Cost - A Breakdown." Propelics Blog, Vol. Accessed at: http://www.propelics.com/ipad-app-development-cost-a-breakdown/

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New OneBusAway Region Checklist

Transit Data in GTFS format AVL system that provides arrival estimates Implement a GTFS-realtime (or SIRI) feed Set up a OneBusAway Server Do some quality-control testing Launch OneBusAway apps in new city!

• Via request to onebusway-developers group!

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Tampa Study Limitations

• Length of Study– June 2013 BRT opening in Tampa

• Representativeness of sample to all HART riders– More Caucasian respondents– Higher household income levels– Higher levels of car ownership (but fewer

licenses)

• Applicability beyond Tampa– Limited to transit-dependent populations

BRT Stop

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OneBusAway – Desktop Website

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OneBusAway – Desktop Website