Blog 11: Thank you for participating in the review of Ring I bus routes!
The review of Ring I bus routes has been completed. We redesigned the bus network for Ring I between autumn 2022 and spring 2023. Changes to bus routes 54 and 553(K) will take effect in August 2025.
The work was carried out in close cooperation with people who live, travel and work along and around Ring I. In June, we asked about residents’ experiences of participating in the planning of the routes in a survey. We received about 2,800 responses. Thanks to all who completed the survey!
We will use the survey results to develop the means and methods of resident engagement in order to make participation and communications about the opportunities to participate even more attractive and easier in the future. In this post we will share some highlights of the survey results.
Respondents considered participation easy
The vast majority of respondents to the survey were over 40 years old. 50–60-year-olds were the most active respondents.
About half of the respondents had heard about the review of Ring I bus routes before completing the survey. The respondents had got information about the start and progress of the planning process mainly via the newsletter, HSL’s website and the HSL app. Most of those who had participated in the planning process had completed the travel survey or given feedback about the Ring I bus routes.
For the most part, participation in the planning was deemed fairly easy and pleasant. The experience of ease of participation decreased in the older age groups.
Respondents were able to tell about things that were important to them
About a quarter of the respondents (700 respondents) had participated in the planning in some way and answered the more detailed questions about their experience. About three quarters of these respondents felt they had received information about things important to them, but only about 40 percent felt that they had been able to affect the outcome of the planning process, and 30 percent felt that their opinions had not been heard.
Many respondents expressed their desire for a direct bus route that would run from one end of Ring I to the other. However, this plan does not include such route and this certainly affects the experience of being heard.
About 80 percent of the respondents felt that HSL has managed to tell transparently about the impact of resident participation on the plan and understand the reasons for the solutions adopted even if the solutions are not what they hoped for.
Completing surveys on a computer (67 percent) or on a phone (35 percent) as well as giving feedback were thought the most pleasant ways to participate. Other forms of participation were relatively evenly distributed between three and twelve percent.
Open-ended responses called for comprehensive communications
In the open-ended responses regarding communications, respondents hoped for active e-mail communications about the possibilities to participate, as well as comprehensive communications on HSL's channels and on the social media.
In the open-ended responses regarding participation in general, respondents provided a wealth of ideas about planning and their own travel needs. In addition, many respondents raised concerns for the lack of effectiveness of public participation.
Respondents also provided many good development ideas, which we will take a closer look at when we develop resident engagement and communications. Thank you for sharing your ideas and thoughts!
Many thanks to all who participated in the planning! This is the last post on this blog. We will tell about the future changes on our website closer to the date of the changes.