Transport network data specialist Snapper Services launched its inaugural Mosaiq Global Public Transit Index at InnoTrans 2024, which compares the on-time performance (OTP) of bus networks in eight global locations using publicly available data and expert analysis of almost 4.8 million trips.
Networks in each location — Auckland, Budapest, the Republic of Ireland, New South Wales, Stockholm, Vancouver, and Washington — were assessed for a period of four weeks, and Tokyo, for three weeks. First-stop arrival and departure data was expertly analysed and compared using six defined ‘scenarios’, based on different thresholds of early, late and on-time.
According to the Index, Tokyo was the best on-time performer within the tightest timeframe for OTP. Japan’s capital emerges as a stand-out city when it comes to buses not leaving the first stop ahead of the stated departure time, with 0% leaving early.
Meanwhile, trips analysed in Washington were the ‘most late’ across all scenarios – including the widest time frame, the analysis found. However, Snapper Services says the Index is not intended to create a ranking, but to put a spotlight on what on-time performance means globally and how to reliably compare networks to find opportunities to learn and improve. As the index expands, the company plans to further explore the contributing factors to network performance.
Miki Szikszai, CEO, Snapper Services says: “This has been an eye-opening experience for us, and one that has revealed more than who the top performers for On-Time Performance are, but also what this metric means to transit authorities in different locations globally.
“Punctuality is a key human concern wherever you are in the world. It is a key determining factor in whether someone will choose public transit over a car. On-Time Performance is the most common way for transit operators and authorities to measure the punctuality of their services, and so it is a vital measurement that needs standardised data and specialist analytics tools to better understand it.
“It takes a lot to have consistent performance across the entire fleet. Auckland Transport – one of the top performers alongside Tokyo – places a huge emphasis on services that provide excellent customer experiences, and we believe its success is an outcome of a deliberate focus on that vision.”
