Level of Satisfaction among University Students Using Various Transport Modes

Abstract

The level of satisfaction arising from a person’s transportation is an important factor, surely, for the provider of transport services, but its calculation is a rather complex case. Each attempt towards this objective has to be well designed and organized, thus requiring in most cases a significant amount of resources and time. The present paper presents the key findings of a questionnaire-based survey addressed to students at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (AUTH) regarding their level of satisfaction on the usage of the available transport modes in the Thessaloniki Metropolitan Area, Greece, and primarily public transport, which was conducted in the framework of the EN.I.R.I.S.S.T. project (a collaboration of 16 research teams representing 11 universities and research centers in Greece). Based on the collected data, a descriptive as well as in-depth statistical analyses were conducted identifying the attributes of the participants’ transportation. Furthermore, by using an algorithm developed in the framework of European research activities, the levels of satisfaction among the university students concerning various transport modes were calculated, emphasizing that a private car is more preferable than public transport, revealing the “weaknesses” of each mode in relation to their provided services, and out of which arises the necessity for measures to deal with them and a need to promote sustainable mobility by policy makers.