This study examined the TravInfo system in San Francisco, California. TravInfo has provided dynamic real-time traffic and transit information to Bay area travelers since September 1996. In April of 1997, a two week customer satisfaction survey was conducted to evaluate the demographics and call-making characteristics of TravInfo users.

RESULTS

• 511 randomly selected callers agreed to fill out customer satisfaction questionnaires.
• Overall, the TravInfo telephone service had a high level of customer satisfaction. On a scale of one to five, with five being very satisfied, the two highest ranking aspects of TravInfo were convenience (average score = 4.2) and ease of comprehension (average score = 4.3). The lowest marks were given for the amount of time required to obtain information, the coverage area, and the up to the minute accuracy of the information. These ratings were still quite high at around 4.
• TravInfo information was considered better than television or radio traffic information reports, but users were not willing to pay much for the information. If users were required to pay 25 cents per call the number of users would drop by 20 percent, if users had to pay 50 cents per call the number of users would drop by 60 percent, and if users had to pay 1 dollar per call the number of users would drop by 80 percent. Overall, users were willing to pay 2 dollars per month for traffic and $1 per month for transit information.
• The TravInfo call center reported that during the month of April, 80 percent of the calls received were for transit information (33,200 calls), and 20 percent of calls were for traffic information (6,870 calls). In addition, caller preference varied by area code. 90.7 percent east-Bay area callers (510 area code) wanted transit information, and 50 percent of the calls from other area codes (north-707, south-408, and pennensula-414) wanted traffic information.
• On average, traffic information users were more satisfied than transit information users. Traffic information was rated as very reliable and accurate. Transit information provided less satisfaction due to the inefficiency of information delivery.

The author noted that the survey sample size was limited, and to improve the statistics of the report, a larger sample size is necessary.