2013 USF Research That Matters Conference - OneBusAway – Sharing Real-time Transit Information via Open-source Software

OneBusAway
Sharing real-time transit info
via open-source software
Sean J. Barbeau, Ph.D.
Shannon Haney
Center for Urban Transportation Research | University of South Florida

Overview

• OneBusAway Tampa
• Preliminary Survey Results
• HART Benefits

2

Open-source software

• Expensive/proprietary solutions customized for
each agency have dominated transit software
• Open-source solutions provide opportunity for
shared investment into transit information
services that anyone can use
• Open transit data powers these solutions
– General Transit Feed Spec. (GTFS) is de facto standard
– http://bit.ly/TransITech-Open-Transit-Data
– http://bit.ly/Z8VWJZ
3

OneBusAway

• Open-source real-time
transit information
system
• Created by University of
Washington
• Includes mobile apps
– iPhone
– Android
– Windows Phone

http://onebusaway.org

OneBusAway Deployments
Production:
• Puget Sound Region, WA
• New York City, NY
• Tampa, FL
• Detroit, MI (SMS and API only)
Tech Demo:
• New Zealand
• Atlanta, GA

4

Research
© 1998 Nick Veasey

• Investigate state-of-the-art in open-source transit
software for real-time info
– Sponsored by UTC National Center for Transit
Research
• http://bit.ly/moving-america-transit

• Partnership with Georgia Tech to study impact on
riders
– Dr. Kari Watkins and Candace Brakewood

• Partnership with HART for real-time transit data
and deployment
5

OneBusAway - Websites

Desktop browser

Text-only browser

Smartphone browser

7

OneBusAway – Desktop Website

8

OneBusAway – Desktop Website

9

OneBusAway – Mobile Apps

Android

iPhone

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

Windows Phone &
Windows 8

10

How does OneBusAway effect transit riders?

PRELIM. SURVEY RESULTS

13

Survey of Tampa Riders
 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 SURVEY
of Control Group

No
OneBusAway

AFTER SURVEY
of Control Group

(approx. 230 participants)

(107 Non-Users)

BEFORE SURVEY

AFTER SURVEY

of OneBusAway Group

of OneBusAway Group

(approx. 230 participants)

(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

14

Research Questions &
Improvements over Prior Research
5 Research Questions

Improvements

1.

Ridership: Does real-time information
increase transit ridership?

•

2.

Wait times: Does real-time
information decrease wait times?

3.

Transfers: Does real-time information
increase transfers?

4.

Satisfaction: Does real-time
information increase satisfaction with
transit service?

5.

This is the first study to address all 5
research questions.
– Ridership studied by Tang et al. (2012)
– Wait times studied by Watkins et al. (2011)

•

Pre-wave & post-wave survey design with a
control group is more robust than previous
studies.
– Ferris et al. (2011) & Zhang (2010) did not
have control groups

Safety: Does real-time information
increase (the perception of) safety?

References
1.
Watkins, K., Ferris, B., Borning, A., Rutherford, S., and Layton, D. (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 45. 839-848.
2.
Ferris, B., Watkins, K., and Borning, A. (2011) "OneBusAway: Behavioral and Satisfaction Changes Resulting from Providing Real-Time Arrival Information for Public Transit." Proceedings of the 2011
Transportation Research Board Annual Meeting.
3.
Tang, L., Thakuriah, P.V. (2012). “Ridership effects of real-time bus information system: A case study in the City of Chicago.” Transportation Research Part C, v.22, 2012 June, p.146(16)
4.
Zhang, Feng. (2010). “Traveler Responses to Real-Time Transit Passenger Information Systems.” Doctoral Dissertation. University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland.

15

Quantitative Results: Technologies Used
Which devices/technologies do you use?
77%

Laptop or Desktop Computer

60%
39%

Tablet

27%
65%

Text Messaging

OneBusAway Users

59%

Control Group
25%

Cell Phone (not smartphone)

36%
76%

Smartphone (iPhone, Bkby, Android, Other)

70%
0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

OneBusAway User Smartphones
iPhone
27%

Android 62%

0%

20%

Pre-Wave Survey: N1 = 110 OneBusAway User Group; N2 = 107 Control Group
All percentages rounded to the nearest whole number.

40%

60%

80%

Other Bkby
3%
8%

100%

16

Satisfaction with OneBusAway &
Likelihood to Continue using OneBusAway
How satisfied are you with OneBusAway?
Very Satisfied
Somewhat Satisfied
52%

33%

9% 4%

Neutral
Somewhat Dissatisfied
Very Dissatisfied

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

No Answer

After the OneBusAway pilot program ends, how likely are you to continue
using OneBusAway?
Very likely
Somewhat likely
76%

13%

Neutral

6%

Somewhat unlikely
Very unlikely
0%

20%

40%

N = 110 (OneBusAway User Group; Post-Wave Survey)

60%

80%

100%

No Answer

17

Frequency of Use of OneBusAway &
When OneBusAway is Used
In the last week, how often have you checked OneBusAway Tampa?
Every time I ride the bus
Most times I ride the bus
40%

25%

15%

7%

Sometimes

6% 5%

Rarely
Never
I didn't ride the bus
0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

No Answer

For the bus route that you ride most often, how often do you check OneBusAway
before leaving for the bus stop, when you're at home/work/school?
Always

Frequently
35%

29%

15%

11%

7%

Sometimes
Rarely
Never

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%


60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

No Answer

18

Overall Satisfaction with HART
Since you began using OneBusAway Tampa, do you feel more satisfied riding HART buses?

Agree strongly
Agree somewhat
31%

37%

25%

3%

Neutral
Disagree somewhat
Disagree strongly
No Answer

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

• 68% of OneBusAway users stated that they feel more satisfied riding
HART buses.
• More analysis is needed of satisfaction ratings from the pre- and postwave surveys.


19

Frequency of Trips on HART Buses
Has using OneBusAway changed the number of HART bus trips you take?
I ride much more often
I ride somewhat more
20%

18%

59%

1%
I ride about the same
I ride much less

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

No Answer

• 38% of OneBusAway Users stated that they have increased the number of
trips that they make on HART buses since they began using OneBusAway.
• BUT more analysis of the actual number of trips/week from the pre- and
post-wave surveys is needed.


20

Waiting Time for HART Buses
Has using OneBusAway changed the amount of time you wait at the bus stop?
I spend much more time waiting
I spend somewhat more time waiting
3%
3%

31%

37%

I spend about the same time waiting

25%

I spend somewhat less time waiting
I spend much less time waiting
No Answer
0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

• 62% of OneBusAway users stated that OneBusAway has decreased their
waiting time.
• BUT more analysis of the reported wait times from the pre- and postwave surveys is needed.

21

Feeling Relaxed when Waiting
Since you began using OneBusAway Tampa, do you feel more relaxed when waiting
for the bus?

Agree strongly
Agree somewhat
27%

39%

26%

Neutral
Disagree somewhat
Disagree strongly
No Answer

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

• 66% of OneBusAway users stated they feel more relaxed when waiting for the
bus since they began using OneBusAway.
• BUT more analysis is needed of reported levels of relaxation from the pre- and
post-wave surveys.


22

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!!”
Requests to Continue OneBusAway
• “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.”
Direct quotes from OneBusAway testers
Bold & underline added for emphasis

23

How did this research project effect HART?

REAL-WORLD BENEFITS

24

HART Benefits

• Enhanced Reliability of Responses to Patrons
• System-wide Access
• Improved Call Response Time

• Embrace Innovation Practices and Systems
25

The takeaways

CONCLUSIONS

26

Conclusions

• Open-source software can create a revolution
in real-time transit services
• Survey results indicate that OneBusAway
positively impacts their perceptions of transit
– Still analyzing if it actually affects their behavior

• Real-world benefits to HART and Tampa
transit riders

27

Thanks!

Sean J. Barbeau, Ph.D.
barbeau@cutr.usf.edu
813.974.7208
Shannon Haney
haneys@gohart.org
813.384.6602
28

Survey Administration: Content
Approximately 30 Questions
•

Travel Behavior
(Trips/week, Transfers/week, Prima
ry Route, Usual Wait Time)

•

Attitudes (Satisfaction with Bus
Service, Safety when
Waiting, Relaxed/Frustrated when
Waiting)

•

Use of Information (Schedules)

•

OneBusAway Specific Questions
(Interfaces, Frequency of Use)

•

Survey Monkey

Technology Use & Demographics

30

Survey Administration: Timeline
January 2013

• Pre-test survey
questionnaire

February 11 to
February 24

• 2 Week Period of
Recruitment & Pre-Wave
Survey

February 25 to
May 5

• 2.5 Month Period to
“Test” OneBusAway

May 6 to May
19

• 2 Week Period to
Complete Post-Wave
Survey

End of May

• Study completed prior to
MetroRapid BRT Launch

31

Interfaces for OneBusAway “Testers”
1. Web App
2. Text-Only Mobile Web
3. iPhone-Optimized Mobile Web

4. Android Application
–

Required setting change, see image

5. iPhone Application
–

Required setting change

Setting changes will not be required for the Android and iPhone applications once development of
“multi-region” apps is completed in the summer of 2013.

32

Demographics of OneBusAway Study
vs. Overall Ridership
• Ethnicity: A greater percentage of white riders
participated in the OneBusAway study.
– OneBusAway Study: 59% of OneBusAway Group is
white & 51% of Control Group is white
– 2009 HART Rider Survey: 29% white & 49% black

• Age: OneBusAway study has fewer young riders.
– OneBusAway Study: No one under 18 years of age
was allowed to participate per Georgia Tech IRB
– 2009 HART Rider Survey: 2% age 15 and under &
24% ages 16-24

• Annual Household Income: OneBusAway study
participants have significantly higher incomes.
– OneBusAway Study: 20% of OneBusAway Group &
15% of Control Group with $50,000 or more
– 2009 HART Rider Survey: 6% of riders with $50,000
or more


33

OneBusAway Interfaces Used
How have you accessed OneBusAway?
Android App

Android Application

Desktop Website

48%

Website

32%

iPhone App

18%

Mobile Web (iPhone)

16%

Mobile Web (Text)

8%

0%

10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60%

Percentages add up to more than 100% because OneBusAway Users could select all the interfaces that they had used.
N = 110 OneBusAway Users; 138 total responses; 2% No answer/Not sure

34

Frequency of Use of OneBusAway &
When OneBusAway is Used
In the last week, how often have you checked OneBusAway Tampa?
Every time I ride the bus
Most times I ride the bus
40%

25%

15%

7%

Sometimes

6% 5%

Rarely
Never
I didn't ride the bus
0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

No Answer

For the bus route that you ride most often, how often do you check OneBusAway
before leaving for the bus stop, when you're at home/work/school?
Always

Frequently
35%

29%

15%

11%

7%

Sometimes
Rarely
Never

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%


50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

No Answer

35

Accuracy of OneBusAway &
Commonly Reported Problems
How often did OneBusAway show the
correct number of minutes until the bus
actually arrived at the stop?

Most Common Problems
1.

Number of minutes shown in
OneBusAway jumped up/down
(43/110 = 31% of OneBusAway Users)

Always

2.
Usually

19%

7% 3% 9%

60%


Sometimes
Rarely

3.

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

0% of OneBusAway users said “Never”

100%

Searched for a route but
OneBusAway did not find the route

I'm not sure
No answer

OneBusAway showed that a bus was
coming, but the bus never arrived
(This is usually called a ‘ghost bus’)

4.

OneBusAway appeared to be down

36

Frequency of Transfers on HART Buses
Has using OneBusAway changed the number of transfers that you make on HART buses?

I transfer much more often
I transfer somewhat more

8%

8%

76%

2%3%

I transfer about the same number of times
I transfer somewhat less
I transfer much less

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

No Answer

• 76% of OneBusAway Users stated that their number of transfers is about the same.


37

Qualitative Results (2/2)
Positive Feedback on Interfaces & Features
• “The iPhone App is awesome. Thanks!”
• “…I also like that you can save frequently
used stops with the app, because it saves
time.”

Requests for More Features
• “Would love if there was a way to access
the schedule so you can see more than just
the next 2 upcoming buses.”
• “…It would be nice if the flex buses are
added to the list”
• “Would be nice to see a digital board at
each stop indicating how far away a bus is
like I've been seeing in other cities…”
Direct quotes from OneBusAway testers

38

2013 USF Research That Matters Conference - OneBusAway – Sharing Real-time Transit Information via Open-source Software

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