Helping the West Yorkshire Combined Authority Understand Barriers and Motivations towards Bus Travel

As part of the ‘City Regional Sustainable Transport Settlement,’ West Yorkshire Combined Authority (WYCA) set an aim to promote public transport use and enable people to fully realise the benefits of the investment in local bus services and wider sustainable transport networks. Qa was commissioned to identify the key barriers and motivating factors influencing bus travel and to explore potential behaviour change initiatives that could encourage more frequent bus use in the region.

Approach

To obtain the most value out of the primary research, Qa conducted a desktop research phase using approaches from behavioural science. This allowed us to consider the context faced by residents of West Yorkshire and to assess the effectiveness of various behaviour change strategies, including understanding motivations and barriers. The insights from this desk research informed the segmentation of bus passengers, which helped in targeting behaviour change measures more effectively. Additionally, it guided the design of the quantitative research, determining who to include and what questions to ask.

Outcome

The study provided WYCA with valuable insights into which initiatives could effectively attract different audiences, revealing significant opportunities to enhance bus usage in West Yorkshire. It also identified strategies to overcome barriers by focusing on targeted messaging and initiatives.

For more information contact:

Richard Bryan  Managing Director
richard.bryan@qaresearch.co.uk
01904 632039

Photography: Ksenia Shibakova on Pexels