This paper presents the results of a survey undertaken to ascertain the opinion of passengers and bus operators about the new low floor buses. Opinion polls were conducted in five cities: Bremen, Erlangen, Herten, München and Wilhelmshaven. About 1000 passengers were surveyed in each city over a period of one week. Respondents were asked to assess various design aspects of the buses on a 1 to 5 scale. The results show that the low floor buses are very popular and provide much greater accessibility than do normal buses. The "kneeling effect" was especially useful for wheelchair users. A detailed questionnaire was sent to about 500 bus drivers, maintenance and operations management personnel. The results of this survey indicated that bus drivers are happy with them, as are administrative staff. Maintenance however is more difficult, and is required more often. Some diagrams giving dimensions of bus interiors and bus stops are provided.
Abstract