METPEX · A MEasurement Tool to determine the quality of the Passenger EXperience

Public transport is central to people’s lives and well-being, especially vulnerable groups (e.g. less mobile, elderly and disabled). It is essential in providing access to employment, shops, services and leisure. The need to encourage greater public transport use is critical in achieving sustainability targets. For many, the perception and reality of public transport does not encourage use, especially when multimodal forms of transport are needed. A holistic understanding of passenger experience is critical to develop and support transport accessibility. Whilst previous research has focussed on different aspects of passenger experience, the diversity of tools developed limits their usefulness, effectiveness and transferability. Given the maturity of research, there is a need to synthesize methods and knowledge, to produce a pan-European standardised tool for use across transport modes and with different passenger groups to focus attention away from the design of discrete elements to the whole journey experience. Taking a holistic approach to the study of the passenger experience will provide a bridge between transport, sustainability, design, accessibility and land use; acknowledging the central importance of mobility to quality of life. To plug this gap, METPEX will develop an inclusive passenger experience measurement tool for European transport providers, passenger groups and municipalities validated through its use across 8 sites of varying transport complexity. Its development will be informed by the consortium’s understanding that data collection methods themselves have to be inclusive. The data collected will enable the creation and dissemination of service quality and accessibility benchmark indicators. Through its deployment the tool will have far reaching impact in terms of providing more grounded intelligence to inform transport design, accessibility, land use and sustainability, and ultimately improve mobility and quality of life for EU citizens.