HSL area outperformed other Nordic cities in the international BEST survey

Helsinki region maintained its second place in the 2017 BEST survey comparing public transport systems of some European cities. Geneve came out on top. The other cities included in the survey were Stockholm, Copenhagen, Oslo, Rotterdam and Bergen. Satisfaction with public transport in the HSL area had increased by two percentage points in two years.

BEST-kuvitus 2018

HSL area ranked above the BEST average in public transport loyalty (HSL 76%, BEST average 61%) and value for money (HSL 50%, BEST 40%). In addition, satisfaction with the reliability of public transport (HSL 78%, BEST 69%) and the availability of seats ((HSL 85%, BEST 66%) stand out in the comparison.

In many respects, HSL’s results show a positive trend from the previous year. Satisfaction with value for money among the respondents had increased by four percentage points. In addition, satisfaction with the reliability of services and travel comfort as well as loyalty to public transport had slightly increased from the previous year, and respondents considered public transport to be socially significant.

 “We believe that the reforms introduced last year such as the further development of the popular mobile ticket and the new tram network have improved public transport user experience and people’s image of public transport,” says Marko Vihervuori from HSL.

The HSL area ranked below the average of the BEST cities in staff behavior (HSL 64%, BEST 69%). In addition, people were less satisfied than before with the availability of information. Satisfaction with disruption information fell particularly among bus passengers. This was probably due to disruptions during the installation of the new ticketing and information system devices and discontinuation of ticket sales on commuter trains.

BEST survey (Benchmarking in European Service of Public Transport)

The BEST survey was conducted in all HSL’s member municipalities. A total of 2,014 residents responded to the survey. Thirty per cent of the respondents use HSL area public transport services every day or almost every day, 26 per cent a few times a week, 26 per cent a few times a month and 17 per cent less than once a month or never. The results have been extrapolated to represent the broader population of the region.