BART Ridership Steady; Satisfaction Drops
OAKLAND (KCBS/AP) – A pair of studies show mixed signs from BART riders: ridership hasn't dropped despite the economy, but rider satisfaction has dropped.
The numbers from the latest Quarterly Service Performance Review show that ridership was barely better than flat, which some officials consider to be good news.
"The bottom line is it's not going down," said BART spokesman Linton Johnson. "In general, our ridership is a good indicator of what the economy is about to be."
KCBS' Janice Wright Reports:
Another good indicator for BART is that it gets a little under half its revenue from sales taxes, with those increasing by 7.6 percent.
"If you were to talk to me a year ago at this time, we were talking major losses," Johnson said.
On the other hand, a new BART survey shows a decline in riders' satisfication.
Overall, 82 percent of riders surveyed still said they were very or somewhat satisfied with the train system. But that's down two percent from 2008.
Sixty-four percent of riders rated BART a good value compared with 71 percent two years earlier.
Customers were particularly critical of BART's cleanliness. Satisfaction with the condition and cleanliness of seats dropped by 5.6 percentage points and train floors by 4.1 points.
Johnson says the agency approved a deep-cleaning effort for trains after the survey was conducted. It is also trying to replace seat cushions more often.
The poll was conducted last year by BART was released on Thursday and comes as the agency has raised fares and cut back on service because of budget problems.
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