Blog 8: Results from the assessment of the draft bus route plans for Ring I

In this blog post, we will discuss the results of the survey on the draft bus route plans for Ring I on a general level.

We will examine how the respondents have assessed the drafts, how the drafts affect the use of public transport, what kind of differences there are in the respondents’ assessment of the draft plans and how the drafts change the use of public transport per area, what kind of profiles the respondents represent in terms of their travel habits and how these profiles differ per area. We will also examine the open feedback we received through the survey.

We received a total of 1,765 open-ended answers – thank you for your valuable feedback!

Results of the survey on a general level

  • The average grade given to the drafts were very close to each other: 3.06 for draft A and 2.85 for draft B.
  • Draft B would both increase and decrease the use of public transport slightly more than draft A.
  • Approximately 64 percent of the respondents gave draft A a good grade (3–5), whereas approximately 58 percent gave a good grade to draft B.
  • 60 percent of the respondents use public transport on Ring I a couple of times a week or month. Only approximately 19 percent of the respondents use public transport on Ring I actively, that is, nearly on a daily basis.
  • Over half of the respondents were women (n: 4019).
  • Those aged between 50 and 64 were the most active age group to answer the survey.

Examining the results per area

Grades:

  • Draft A was given the best grade in the eastern part of Ring I. In Espoo, the average grade given to draft A is below 3. Draft A was given the best grades (4–5) east of Pitäjänmäki.
  • Draft B was given a better grade in the western part of Ring I, and the grade would start to decline when heading east.

 

Change in the use of public transport:

We carried out a more detailed regional examination of those postcode districts that would be most affected by the proposed bus route drafts. These areas include Mellunkylä, the area of Maunula–Patola, and Pitäjänmäki.

 

  • Draft A would increase the use of public transport more than draft B in all the above-mentioned areas.
  • In Mellunkylä, both drafts would result in a rather even increase in the use of public transport.
  • In Pitäjänmäki, 46 percent of the respondents estimated that draft A would increase their use of public transport. As regards draft B, 32 percent of the respondents were of this opinion. Draft B would decrease the use of public transport the most in Pitäjänmäki (32 percent of the respondents in the area).
  • More than half of the respondents in Mellunkylä and in the area of Maunula–Patola estimated that neither bus route draft would have an impact on their use of public transport.

How the drafts would increase the use of public transport on Ring I

In this analysis, the respondents were divided into six groups based on how they used public transport on Ring I as well as on how they generally used Ring I for travelling:

 

  1. Active public transport users
  2. Average public transport users
  3. Potential public transport users
  4. Passive public transport users
  5. Drivers
  6. Those not using Ring I

 

There was variation in the grade given to the drafts between different groups. Both drafts were given almost the same grade by potential users of public transport (draft A was given an average grade of 3.21 and draft B an average grade of 3.26). Active and average public transport users favored draft A (draft A was given average grades 3.89 & 3.69 and draft B average grades 2.91 & 3.03).

 

Drivers and those not using Ring I did not like either alternative.

 

In addition, there were differences in how the respondents saw that the drafts would change their use of public transport. Potential and passive users of public transport estimated that draft B would increase their use of public transport more, whereas active and average users of public transport thought that draft B would slightly decrease their use of public transport.

 

The largest number of potential users of public transport on Ring I can be found in Pakila, in the northern part of Leppävaara and in the area between Leppävaara and Tapiola. The most active users of public transport on Ring I were those living in the nothern parts of Mellunkylä and Leppävaara.

Open-ended answers

The open-ended answers were grouped according to the grade the respondent gave to drafts A and B (1–2 being bad and 4–5 good). Once the grouping was complete, the most commonly named topics were compiled in the following manner:

 

  • Good grade for both drafts A and B (n=350): evening and weekend services on Ring I are important and desired.
  • Good grade for draft A, bad grade for draft B (n=315): current routes 54 and 553 work fine and the addition of weekend services is regarded as being important.
  • Bad grade for draft A, good grade for draft B (n=198): the wish is to get a direct route that runs from one end to the other on Ring I; a fast, direct route without transfers is regarded as being important.
  • Bad grade for both drafts A and B (n=364): based on open feedback, the respondent was not in the target group of the survey (i.e. did not use public transport generally or on Ring I) but did give feedback.

 

Irrespective of the group, evening and weekend services and direct routes without transfers were regarded as being important factors.

 

Any comments?

Do you have any questions on the results? You can post questions in the comment section below this blog post. In the next blog post, we will tell you how the opinions of residents will be taken into account in the project and share a comprehensive report on project participation in the autumn.

 

It’s great that you have discovered our blog on the review of Ring I bus routes! This blog is updated by the public transport planners at HSL and functions as an official channel for interacting with our customers. The blog gives you an opportunity to have a discussion with us. Participate in the planning and voice your opinion!

 

The planning will be carried out from autumn 2022 to spring 2023. According to estimate, the possible changes to the Ring I bus routes will be implemented in the year 2025.

 

You can find more information on the review of Ring I bus routes here.