Research and strategy-building for Snohomish County, WA
Focus groups reveal true perceptions of transit safety
Client: Community Transportation Association of America Northwest
Services: Facilitation and Literature Review
May 2009
FLT Consulting Inc. partnered with Nelson/Nygaard Consulting Associates to conduct a safety perception assessment for the Snohomish County (WA) Special Needs Transportation Coalition (SNOTRAC). The purpose of the project was to provide SNOTRAC with a greater understanding of both the real and perceived safety and security concerns experienced by current and potential transit users, and to identify materials and potential strategies for addressing these concerns.
SNOTRAC is a diverse group of Snohomish County-based human service agencies, transit agencies, advocacy groups, people with special transportation needs and others. SNOTRAC strives to foster cooperation and collaboration among private and non-profit transportation brokers and providers, local public transportation agencies, local governmental agencies and transportation system consumers. The project was sponsored by the Community Transportation Association of America (CTAA) Northwest.
The project consisted of two main components: (1) focus group sessions to explore issues and perceptions of transit safety and security in Snohomish County at an in-depth level and (2) a literature review of existing research and written and electronic materials on the subject of safety on public transit.
Focus Groups
For this project, SNOTRAC and the consultant team decided to focus on the population groups considered most vulnerable to transit safety and security issues: older adults, persons with disabilities, and low-income women. FLT Consulting designed and convened three different focus groups with members from or affiliated with organizations representative of each population group of concern:
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Snohomish County Senior Services – older adults
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DisAbility Resource Connection (dRC) – persons with disabilities
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Snohomish County Community College – low-income women
Using a structured format to allow for an open discussion, participants were asked to elaborate on their attitudes, perceptions and experiences using public transit, especially with respect to their fears or safety concerns. FLT facilitators also encouraged the participants to identify possible strategies they themselves could consider to increase their sense of security, and to suggest steps that transit agencies could take. Key findings from the focus groups were summarized and reported back to SNOTRAC by Nelson/Nygaard. Recordings of the meetings and digital transcripts were also provided.
Literature Review
FLT Consulting conducted an internet-based literature review to identify and summarize relevant research studies and articles on the subject of safety on public transit. FLT was able to identify successful strategies used by other transit providers to mitigate rider fears and concerns, as well as provide SNOTRAC with examples of rider education materials designed to help transit users improve their own safety experience from door to door.