USERS’ BEHAVIOURAL INTENTIONS TOWARDS PUBLIC TRANSPORT: CITY OF KUALA LUMPUR AS A CASE

Abstract

Kuala Lumpur is one of Southeast Asia’s most prominent modern cosmopolitan cities, having evolved from the federal capital. In consequence of this transformation, the population of Kuala Lumpur has expanded outward, leading to its city centre being mostly occupied by businesses and residents relocated to suburbs and more affordable areas. Increased commuting distances also facilitated the use of private automobiles which brings about the environmental issues. This research aims to determine factors influencing the behaviour and preferences of public transport passengers particularly Light Rail Transit (LRT) in Kuala Lumpur. In an effort to verify the theoretical model and the relationship between the variables, a structural equation model (SEM) was developed. Perceived Costs (PC), Attractive Alternatives (AA), Feeling towards Transit (FTT), and Service Quality’ (SQ) were considered as the parameters of the public transport services that could be the drivers for the key variables such as Perceived Benefits (PB), Satisfaction (SA), and Behavioural Intentions (BI). This model incorporates direct and indirect effects with the intention of providing insight into how the behaviour of transit passengers is influenced. The results indicate that Service Quality contributes to Satisfaction and Satisfaction contributes to Behavioural Intentions. According to the results, perceived benefits are positively related to satisfaction. The findings do not support the Service Quality and Attractive Alternatives as the significant indicators for the behavioural intentions. The reason for this outcome may have to do with the adverse impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on public transportation services, which in turn affected riders’ perception of these services.