Running public transportation using the Swiss watch approach

SAN FRANCISCO — Rail experts explain how Switzerland created a spectacular rail system by focusing on "the service" and and the fact "that the product is something to be used by the public,” Streetsblog SF reported.

During a talk hosted by San Francisco Bay Area-based nonprofit, SPUR, Ulrich Leister a railroad consultant, explained that transportation agencies get too focused on vehicle types and moving trains and forget that the customer just wants to get where they want to go, easily, consistently, and quickly, according to the report. “It’s hard to make public transportation as flexible and easy to use as the private car, but on reliability, time and money…public transportation can outperform,” he said.

Agencies need to design infrastructure according to customer needs, the report said. Because it is nearly impossible to give anyone a direct ride on one vehicle type from point A to B, transfers have to be fast and simple. Zurich facilitates seamless transfers throughout the system through a “hub-pulse” approach, Streetsblog SF reported.

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