An experiment evaluating the impacts of real-time transit information on bus riders in Tampa, Florida

Public transit agencies often struggle with service reliability issues; when a bus does not arrive on time, passengers become frustrated and may be less likely to choose transit for future trips. To address reliability issues, transit authorities have begun to provide real-time information (RTI) to riders via mobile and web-enabled devices. The objective of this research is to quantify the benefits of RTI provided to bus riders. The method used is a behavioral experiment with a before–after control group design in which RTI is only provided to the experimental group. Web-based surveys are used to measure behavior, feeling, and satisfaction changes of bus riders in Tampa, Florida over a study period of approximately three months.