01139018

Component

Inappropriate passenger behavior causes disorder on buses or trains. This can result in driver irritability, damage to equipment and resources, and perhaps most importantly, can traumatize and cause injury to passengers and drivers. In smaller and medium-sized transit systems, in particular, disruptive or criminal activity on buses and in passenger facilities can negatively influence community perception of the transit system and the service it provides, reducing ridership and eroding political and funding support. Transit agencies have responded by creating rules, tips, and etiquette guides regulating passenger behavior, sometimes backed up with enforcement by drivers or security personnel. These rules range from the common-sensical and pragmatic to the excessive to the unnervingly specific—such as the prohibition on lawn mowers referenced in the title. The authors surveyed a number of smaller and medium-sized transit agencies to illustrate the passenger behavior issues that face those communities, which often lack the funding for the security and legal personnel necessary to enforce the rules. The paper describes the rules and regulations that have been adopted in many areas and how they have affected passenger behavior on these transit systems. To conclude, we will discuss programs developed by several transit agencies aimed at modifying the behavior of youth, who have been identified as problematic initiators of inappropriate behavior. Using these creative programs as examples, the authors will recommend that transit agencies continue to enforce proper behavior while using innovative methods to inform and educate young people, the future passengers, on safety and appropriate behavior while riding public transit

01138544

English

12p

2008

11th National Conference on Transportation Planning for Small and Medium-Sized Communities

CD-ROM

Figures (2)

Behavior; Bus transit; Bus transportation; Injury causes; Passenger comfort; Passenger transportation; Public transit; Regulations; Travel behavior

Behavior disorders

Passenger Transportation; Planning and Forecasting; Public Transportation; Safety and Human Factors; I83: Accidents and the Human Factor

TRIS, TRB

Aug 21 2009 3:27PM