Statewide Approaches to the Development of Comprehensive Transit Information Systems (2023)
Chapter: Appendix A - Survey Questionnaire
APPENDIX A
Survey Questionnaire
Transit Information Systems Survey
This survey is part of Transit Cooperative Research Program J-07/SA-57: Statewide Approaches to the Development of Comprehensive Transit Information Systems, a synthesis project researching how agencies foster the development of standardized transit service data. Thanks for your participation!
* Required
- Your Full Name *
- Your E-mail *
- Your Phone
- Your Agency Organization’s Name *
- Your Agency/Organization’s State
- What type of organization do you work at? *
Mark only one oval.
State Department of Transportation (DOT) Skip to question 24 Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) Skip to question 24 Transit Agency or Other Transportation Service Provider Skip to question 7 Consultancy Skip to question 43 Academic Skip to question 43 Other: ________________________
Skip to question 44
Transit Agencies and Other Transportation Providers, General
- What is the best description of your agency’s engagement with producing and providing GTFS feeds? *
Mark only one oval. We publish or produce a GTFS feed for most or all of the services we provide Skip to question 8 We publish or produce a GTFS feed for some but not all of the services we provide Skip to question 9 We are in the process of developing (or are considering developing) a GTFS feed Skip to question 11 We don’t have any plans to provide a GTFS feed Skip to question 20 I don’t know Skip to question 44 Other: ________________________
Skip to question 11
Agencies Publishing GTFS for All Services
- What services do you publish a GTFS feed for? Select all that apply.
Check all that apply.
Heavy rail/subway/commuter rail Transit bus/Intra-city bus/commuter bus Light rail/trolley/streetcar Intercity bus (regional buses) Demand-response (as GTFS-Flex) Other: ________________________
Skip to question 13
Agencies Publishing GFTS for Not All Services
- What services do you already publish a GTFS feed for? Select all that apply.
Check all that apply. Heavy rail/subway/commuter rail Transit bus/Intra-city bus/commuter bus Light rail/trolley/streetcar Intercity bus (regional buses) Demand-response (as GTFS-Flex) Other: ________________________
- What services or classes of service don’t you provide a GTFS feed for? In brief, can you explain why?
Skip to question 13
Agencies Not Yet Publishing GTFS
- What services are you planning to publish a GTFS feed for? Select all that apply.
Check all that apply. Heavy rail/subway/commuter rail Transit bus/Intra-city bus/commuter bus Light rail/trolley/streetcar Intercity bus (regional buses) Demand-response (as GTFS-Flex) Other: ________________________ - If you are not planning on publishing a feed for all your services, can you briefly explain why?
Skip to question 13
Details on Producing GTFS
- If your agency provides demand-response services...
Mark only one oval. We already provide a GTFS-Flex feed We are considering or developing a GTFS-Flex feed Our agency doesn’t provide demand-response services I don’t know whether we provide a demand-response service
- How was development of GTFS funded or how are you considering funding your efforts?
Mark only one oval. Our agency’s own funds Federal grant (outside of regular funds) State grant (outside of regular funds) I don’t know Other: - What system do you use (or plan to use) to produce your GTFS feed or other transit data?
Mark only one oval. From scheduling software From CAD/AVL software From a system designed to produce the GTFS From vendor staff (please provide detail in subsequent questions) From a DOT or MPO (please provide detail in subsequent questions) From spreadsheets I don’t know Other: ________________________ - Can you describe any challenges with the upkeep or validation of GTFS feeds?
- What other agencies, organizations, or vendors have given you support or guidance in producing GTFS feeds? For each, please specify what sort of support they provided.
- If you listed any agencies or organizations above, please say whether that support or guidance was helpful. Can you explain why or why not?
- Some agencies or organizations (typically DOTs or MPOs) collect, combine, or integrate multiple GTFS feeds for a single state or region. What best describes your agency’s situation? *
Mark only one oval. Information or feeds about our services aren’t used this way to our knowledge Skip to question 44 We provide a GTFS feed to a regional/statewide agency that does this (or are planning to) Skip to question 21 We do this ourselves (or plan to do this ourselves) Skip to question 24 I don’t know Skip to question 44 Other: ________________________
Agencies Not Publishing GTFS
- Some agencies or organizations (typically DOTs or MPOs) collect, combine, or integrate transit schedule information for a single state or region. What best describes your agency’s situation?*
Mark only one oval. Information or feeds about our services aren’t used this way to our knowledge Skip to question 44 We provide schedule data to a regional/statewide agency that does this (or are planning to) Skip to question 21 We do this ourselves (or plan to do this ourselves) Skip to question 27 I don’t know Skip to question 44 Other: ________________________
Skip to question 44
Other Agencies or Tools Using Your Schedule Information
- What other agencies or tools are using your GTFS feed or schedule information?
- Is there someone we could contact there to learn more about the tool or program doing this? If so, please provide their name, agency, and their email address:
- Please indicate anything you know about the agency or the tool. Does it have a URL? Who is the primary audience?
Skip to question 44
Your Role in Supporting GTFS Development
- What best describes how your agency supports transit agencies with the development of GTFS feeds?
Mark only one oval. We do not currently and have no active plans to We informally support GTFS development on an ad-hoc basis We have an established program, resources, or personnel to do this I don’t know - Does your agency participate in any efforts to support the development of GTFS-flex feeds for demand-response services?
Mark only one oval. Yes No I don’t know
- If you do support the development of GTFS feeds among regional transit agencies, what strategies or methods do you use?
Skip to question 27
Providing Regional Integration Tools
Some agencies have developed websites or tools that collect, combine, or integrate transit information from multiple regional agencies, sometimes in the form of a trip planner, a search tool, or a list of regional schedules or GTFS feeds.
- What best describes how your agency integrates regional schedule information for transit services and makes it available to software developers, planners and the public?*
Mark only one oval. We do not currently and have no active plans to Skip to question 44 We are currently developing a way to do this but don’t have an established site or portal Skip to question 28 We have an established site or portal for this Skip to question 35 I don’t know Skip to question 44
Skip to question 44
Details on Your Plans for a Tool/Website
- What best describes the tool or website you are planning to build? Select all that apply.
Check all that apply. A list of regional GTFS feeds A search tool for finding services in a region An automated trip planning tool Other: ________________________ - What kinds of schedule information will you be collecting from transit or service providers? Select all that apply.
Check all that apply. GTFS GTFS-Flex Schedule Information in another format Other: ________________________ - What services are you planning to publish or provide schedule information for? Select all that apply.
Check all that apply. Heavy rail/subway/commuter rail Transit bus/intra-city bus/commuter bus Light rail/trolley/streetcar Intercity bus/regional bus Demand-response (possibly as GTFS-Flex) Other: ________________________
- Are there are any data sets or types of services, agency, or geographic area you aren’t planning to include? Why?
- How are you planning to fund the system or tool?
Mark only one oval. Our agency’s own funds Federal grant (outside of regular funds) State grant (outside of regular funds) I don’t know Other: ________________________ - Are you planning on getting outside help to gather data and publish it?
Mark only one oval. A vendor will provide the system or tool Multiple vendors will provide the system or tool We will have agreements with agencies and do the work ourselves I don’t know Other: ________________________
- Who are the intended users of the feeds or tool? Check all that apply.
Check all that apply. The general public State DOT staff MPO staff Transit agency staff Other: ________________________
Skip to question 44
Details on Your Existing Tool/Website
- What best describes your tool or website? Select all that apply.
Check all that apply. A list of regional GTFS feeds A search tool for finding services in a region An automated trip planning tool Other: ________________________ - What kinds of schedule information do you collect from transit or service providers?
Check all that apply. GTFS GTFS-Flex Schedule Information in another format Other: ________________________
- What types of services are incorporated in your tool or website? Select all that apply.
Check all that apply. Heavy rail/subway/commuter rail Transit bus/intra-city bus/commuter bus Light rail/trolley/streetcar Intercity bus/regional bus Demand-response (as GTFS-Flex) Other: ________________________ - Are there are any data sets or types of services, agency, or geographic area you don’t include? Why?
- How is the system or tool funded?
Mark only one oval. Our agency’s own funds Federal grant (outside of regular funds) State grant (outside of regular funds) I don’t know Other: ________________________
- Do you work with one or more vendors on this, or do you base it on agreements with agencies?
Mark only one oval. A vendor provides the system or tool Multiple vendors provide the system or tool We have agreements with agencies and do the work ourselves Other: ________________________ - If applicable please provide the link to the website or portal.
- Who are the intended users of the feeds or tool? Check all that apply.
Check all that apply. The general public State DOT staff MPO staff Transit agency staff Other: ________________________
Skip to question 44
Questions for Vendors, Academics, and Others
- Can you describe your role in supporting GTFS feeds, making them available to other stakeholders, or other activities surrounding this?
Wrapping Up
- Are there other people who may like to provide input on the topics addressed in this survey, specifically on collecting or combining data on regional services? If so, please provide their name, agency, and their email address:
