DEVELOPMENT OF AN INTERACTIVE, COMPUTER-ASSISTED STATED PREFERENCE TECHNIQUE TO STUDY BUS PASSENGER PREFERENCES

The purpose of the study described in this paper was to improve on the existing stated preference methodology by using portable computers in household interviews as a means of tailoring the exercise to personal circumstances and so increase the realism and relevance of the methodology.

Abstract

A number of studies in recent years have sought to measure the relative weights which people place on journey attributes (such as alternative types of bus service) using a variety of techniques, in which respondents are asked to rate or rank packages of transport options in order of preference. The purpose of the study described in this paper was to improve on the existing stated preference methodology by using portable computers in household interviews as a means of tailoring the exercise to personal circumstances and so increase the realism and relevance of the methodology. The paper discusses some of the limitations of the stated preference state-of-the-art, using as an example a recent study of bus passengers' values of time. Then the authors discuss a number of special features of the survey instrument that the authors to develop, and describe the final version of the survey instrument that was used in a small demonstration study.