Report: APRIL 2021
CITY OF SANTA MONICA
Title VI Survey:
Customer Readiness for
Contactless Fares
FINAL REPORTT
i
Executive Summary
Over half of BBB customers live in areas with a disproportionately high number of COVID-19 cases. In the coming months, Big Blue Bus will become the first transit agency in the United States to implement a 100% contactless fare payment system.
This change promises to minimize interactions between passengers and motor coach operators, which helps prevent the spread of pathogens like COVID-19. Contactless fares will improve on-time bus performance, reduce fuel consumption, and eliminate costs associated with collating and transporting cash fares to banks. This operational change brings forth the need for a similarly large behavioral change from passengers.
Approximately 57% of Big Blue Bus (BBB) customers will need to transition from cash to a contactless fare method. Low-Income customers and Hispanic customers may benefit from targeted outreach that educates them about Metro’s Low-Income Fare is Easy (LIFE) program, as well as how to initiate and effectively use TAP. This may include an introduction to available tools, like Metro’s TAP phone number useful to identify locations to purchase and load fares on TAP cards and check TAP card balance.
To support the transition to contactless fares, BBB should also have a broader messaging campaign that provides customers information to overcome challenges some customers experience with TAP: identifying locations to purchase fares, how to load fares, check balance, and promote confidence that the loaded value will not be lost if the TAP card is misplaced or stolen.
BBB customers may also benefit from education about discount fares. Twenty percent (20%) of Seniors are not utilizing the discounted Senior fare, and 40% of customers making interagency transfers are not receiving the $0.50 fare available with TAP.
It is anticipated that, as college campuses reopen, college students will return to BBB.
To support that transition, BBB may consider working with partner campuses to highlight the measures taken to mitigate the spread of COVID-19, and improve on-time performance, which have previously been important factors for student customers making the choice between bus and ride-share.
BBB Customer Readiness for Contactless Fares | Final Report Table of Contents
Executive Summary ................................................................................................... i Introduction.............................................................................................................. 1 Methods ................................................................................................................... 1 BBB Routes Represented by Survey ...................................................................................... 2 Results ...................................................................................................................... 3 Section Description............................................................................................................3 Demographic Profile of BBB Customers ............................................................................4 Age of BBB Customers .......................................................................................................... 5 Race/Ethnicity of BBB Customers .......................................................................................... 6 Household Size ...................................................................................................................... 6 Household Income................................................................................................................. 7 Neighborhood of BBB Customers ......................................................................................... 8 Neighborhoods of BBB Customers & Percent living below Poverty ..................................... 9 Neighborhood of BBB Customers & COVID-19 Cases ....................................................... 10 Ridership and Payment Methods .....................................................................................11 Frequency of Riding BBB..................................................................................................... 12 Frequency of Riding by Continuous vs. New BBB Customers............................................. 12 Fare Media Pre-COVID-19................................................................................................... 13 Fare Media Post-Covid-19 ................................................................................................... 14 Location to Purchase Fare Products .................................................................................... 15 Discount Fare Payers vs. Self Reported Discount Eligible ................................................... 15 Fares Category..................................................................................................................... 16 Interagency Transfers – Frequency & Fare Type ................................................................. 17 Customer Readiness for Contactless Fares ......................................................................18 Cash Use .............................................................................................................................. 19 Smartphone and Credit Card Access by Income................................................................. 20 Smartphone and Credit Card Access by Race/Ethnicity...................................................... 21 Conclusion .............................................................................................................. 22 Appendix ................................................................................................................ 23 BBB - Fare Use Survey ......................................................................................................... 24 Title VI – Low-Income Definition.......................................................................................... 29 BBB Customer Readiness for Contactless Fares | Final Report List of Figures
Figure 1: BBB Riders by Age.............................................................................................5 Figure 2: Race/Ethnicity of BBB Riders..............................................................................6 Figure 3: Number of People in Household .......................................................................6 Figure 4: Household Income (N=382)...............................................................................7 Figure 5: Map of BBB Customers by Home Zip Code ......................................................8 Figure 6: Map of BBB Customer’s by Home Zip Code .....................................................9 Figure 7: Map of BBB Customer Zip Codes by Poverty....................................................9 Figure 8: Map of BBB Riders by Zip Code ......................................................................10 Figure 9: COVID-19 Cases in Los Angeles County - April 2021 .....................................10 Figure 10: Frequency of BBB Ridership ..........................................................................12 Figure 11: Frequency of BBB Ridership by Continuous & New Customers ....................12 Figure 12: Fare Media & Categories – Pre-COVID-19: All vs. Continuous Customers ...13 Figure 13: Payment Type by All, Continuous Customers & New Customers..................14 Figure 14: Purchase Location ..........................................................................................15 Figure 15: Discount Fare Payers vs. Self Reported Discount Eligible .............................15 Figure 16: Fare Category by Total, Regular and Discount Fare Payers ..........................16 Figure 17: Frequency of Interagency Transfers...............................................................17 Figure 18: Fare Media by Interagency Transfers Customers...........................................17 Figure 19: Cash Fare – Income Status, Race & Ethnicity.................................................19 Figure 20: Smartphone and Credit Card Access - Higher vs. Lower Income..................20 Figure 21: Smartphone and Credit Card Access – Race/Ethnicity ..................................21 List of Tables
Table 1: Surveys Completed by Route and Routes Boarded per Week ...........................2 Table 2: Low-Income Qualified: People in Home by Household Income .........................7 Table 3: Top 10 Home Zip Codes for BBB Customers .....................................................8 Table 4: Customers with Smartphones and Credit Cards ...............................................18 Table 5: Title VI - Low-Income Qualification ...................................................................29 BBB Contactless Fares Survey | Introduction & Methods
1 Introduction
Big Blue Bus is making the transition to a 100% contactless fare payment system. The purpose of this shift is to save on operations costs, improve on-time performance, and increase the safety of passengers and motor coach operators from possible exposure to pathogens like COVID-19. In connection with this significant operational enhancement, BBB would like to know how passengers currently pay their fares, and what tools, like smartphones and credit cards, customers have available to make the transition to contactless fare payments. To answer these questions, Big Blue Bus commissioned Maroon Society to conduct customer surveys, and develop the following report on customer readiness for the transition to contactless fares.
Methods
We conducted 550 intercept surveys with BBB customers at high volume bus stops. 1 Table 1 on page 2 displays surveys conducted per BBB route. Surveys were administered to collect a representative sample of customer feedback from all 16 BBB routes by day type and time of day. This included conducting surveys between 6:00 AM and 6:00 PM over a 12-day period, March 19 to March 30, 2021. Surveyors wore personal protective gear and approached BBB customers using hand-held digital tablets to complete the survey. All surveyors were English-Spanish bilingual, and completed surveys in the preferred language of the customer. Customers were offered a $15.00 gift certificate for their participation. The gift certificates are cash value equivalent administered by the Award of Choice program, which allows customers to select from hundreds of vendors to spend the money.
1 Note: 12 surveys were conducted either over the phone or online.
BBB Contactless Fares Survey | Introduction & Methods
2 BBB Routes Represented by Survey
The following table lists surveys completed by route, and the variety of routes boarded by passengers each week. For example, a customer who conducted a survey prior to boarding the 1-Santa Monica may have listed a variety of other routes s/he rides each week. Those additional routes are collated in the column “Routes/Week.” Table 1: Surveys Completed by Route and Routes Boarded per Week BBB Route Route2 Routes/Week
1 - Santa Monica 105 204
2 - Wilshire 12 59
3 - Lincoln 115 212
5 - Olympic 11
7 - Pico 119 203
7 - Rapid Pico 26 75
8 - Ocean Park 9 31
9 - Pacific Palisades 113 143
10 - Rapid Downtown LA 1 6
12 - Westwood/UCLA 3 18
14 - Bundy 3 30
15 - Barrington 2
17 - UCLA - VA Medical 4 18
18 - UCLA - Abbot Kinney 28 63
41 - 17th St. - SMC 5
43 - 26th St/San Vicente 6
Total 538 1,086
2 In-person surveys totaled 538 and an additional 12 surveys were conducted by phone or Internet.
BBB Contactless Fares Survey | Results
3 Results
Section Description This section offers summary findings from the survey in three sections:
1. Demographic Profile of BBB Customers
2. Ridership and Payment Methods
3. Customer Readiness for Contactless Fares
BBB | Results – Demographic Profile of Customers
4 Demographic Profile of
BBB Customers
BBB customers are linguistically diverse, range in age from youth to seniors, and live in different areas of Los Angeles County:
LANGUAGE – Forty-one percent (41.5%) of customers
surveyed preferred to conduct the survey in Spanish. Fiftyeight percent (58.5%) conducted an English language survey.3
GENDER – The majority of BBB customers surveyed are
female (62.4%), 37.5% are male, and 0.4% non-binary.
AGE – The age of BBB customers skews older as a result of the loss of most college pass holders aged 18-24 years old.
RACE/ETHNICITY – Hispanic/LatinX are the largest ethnic group (60%) of BBB customers.
HOUSEHOLD INCOME – Nearly half (48.6%) of BBB customers live in households with one to two people, and 78% of have an annual household income less than $40,000.
TITLE VI – 84% of BBB customers qualify as racial minorities, and 86.6%% qualify as Low-Income.
COVID-19 – It is estimated over half of BBB customers live in communities with a disproportionately high number of
COVID-19 cases based on the poverty-COVID-19 nexus.
3 “Language” is based on the language in which the survey was completed. The default language was English. Surveys were conducted in Spanish when customers indicated a desire to participate in Spanish.
BBB | Results – Demographic Profile of Customers
5 Age of BBB Customers
In May 2017, 27% of Big Blue Bus customers were aged 18-24 years old. A year after the onset of COVID-19, only 9% of BBB customers are 18-24 years old. This 67% drop in 18-24 year olds can be explained by the closure of college campuses in response to the pandemic. One month prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, 23% of customers paid their fare with a college pass. As of April 2021, none of the BBB customers surveyed used college passes.4 The loss of 18-24 year olds has resulted in a customer base that skews older. In the months ahead, as college campuses reopen, it is anticipated the age distribution of customers will normalize with the return of student pass customers.
Figure 1: BBB Riders by Age
(N=550)
4 This result is consistent with actual fare product use, which verifies only 3% of customers use college passes. This within the 5% margin of error of the survey results. 2%
27%
20%
15%
14%
9%
12%
1%
9%
19% 19%
21%
16% 15%
16-17 18-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55-61 62+
May 2017 March 2021
BBB | Results – Demographic Profile of Customers
6 Race/Ethnicity of BBB Customers
The majority of BBB customers (60%) identify as Hispanic/LatinX. Among these customers, 69% conducted the survey in Spanish (N=227) and, 1/3 spoke “Little to No English.” Eighty-four percent of BBB customers surveyed qualify as racial minorities under Title VI. Figure 2 shows the race/ethnicity of BBB customers.
Figure 2: Race/Ethnicity of BBB Riders
(N=550)
Household Size
Nearly 1/3 of BBB customers live in a house with four or more people (31%). Figure 4 illustrates the number of people in the household.
Figure 3: Number of People in Household
(N=550)
2%
5%
17%
20%
60%
Native American
Asian
Black
White
Hispanic
26%
22%
20%
17%
14%
One Two Three Four Five or More
BBB | Results – Demographic Profile of Customers
7 Household Income
Ninety-three percent (93%) of BBB customers live in a household below the median household income ($68,093) of Los Angeles County. Eighty-six percent (86.6%) qualify as Low-Income under Title VI (See definition in Appendix, Table 5 page 29). Table 2 shows the number of people in BBB customer households and the corresponding household income. Shaded cells qualify as “Low-Income” households.5 Figure 4: Household Income
(N=382)
Table 2: Low-Income Qualified: People in Home by Household Income People
in
Home
Household Income – Number of BBB Customers/Income Category Total
Less than
$20,000
$20,000-
$39,999
$40,000-
$59,999
$60,000-
$79,999
$80,000-
$99,999
$100,000
or More
1 62 22 12 4 2 1 103
2 25 36 12 4 2 3 82
3 23 36 11 6 0 0 76
4 27 22 15 1 0 0 65
5 14 18 4 4 0 0 40
6 3 6 1 0 0 0 10
7 2 2 1 0 0 0 5
10 0 0 0 1 0 0 1
LowIncome 156 142 32 1 0 0 331
% 40.8% 37.2% 8.4% 0.3% 0.0% 0.0% 86.6%
Total 156 142 56 20 4 4 382
5 Note, 165 (30.2%) of BBB customers declined to answer the household income question. 2%
5%
15%
37%
41%
$80,000-or More
$60,000-$79,999
$40,000-$59,999
$20,000-$39,999
Less than $20,000
BBB | Results – Demographic Profile of Customers
8 Neighborhood of BBB Customers
BBB customers travel from various regions of the County, often corresponding with Metro’s Blue line, Expo, and Gold line rail. Figure 5 illustrates the zip codes where BBB customers live. Darker shaded areas represent larger concentrations of riders. Table 3 lists the Zip codes with the greatest concentration of customers.
Figure 5: Map of BBB Customers by Home Zip Code
Table 3: Top 10 Home Zip Codes for BBB Customers
Rank Neighborhood Zip Code Frequency (N) Percent (%)
1 Santa Monica 90405 48 8.7%
2 South Central LA 90011 32 5.8%
3 Santa Monica 90401 28 5.1%
4 Mid Wilshire 90019 24 4.4%
5 Santa Monica 90404 23 4.2%
6 South LA 90003 21 3.8%
7 Pico Union 90006 20 3.6%
8 West Adams 90016 18 3.3%
9 Venice 90291 16 2.9%
10 Westwood 90025 15 2.7%
BBB | Results – Demographic Profile of Customers
9 Neighborhoods of BBB Customers & Percent living below Poverty Over half (51.5%) of BBB customers live in communities with medium to high rates of poverty.6 Figure 7 shows concentration of poverty across LA County and Figure 6 shows the proportion of BBB customers living in each zip code. 6 LA County has a poverty rate of 13.4%. Low poverty is defined as communities with 0%-14% living below the poverty line, medium is 14.1%-23.99%, and high poverty is 25%-50%.
Figure 6: Map of BBB Customer’s by Home Zip Code
Figure 7: Map of BBB Customer Zip Codes by Poverty
BBB | Results – Demographic Profile of Customers
10 Neighborhood of BBB Customers & COVID-19 Cases
COVID-19 cases are more abundant in areas with higher poverty. Given that over half of customers reside in communities with greater rates of poverty, these customers experience a higher risk for acquiring and transmitting COVID-19. Figure 9 shows the distribution of COVID-19 cases across LA County as of April 23, 2021.
Figure 8: Map of BBB Riders by Zip Code
Figure 9: COVID-19 Cases in Los Angeles County - April 2021 Map generated by the LA County COVID-19 Surveillance Dashboard 4/22/2021 BBB | Results – Ridership and Payment Methods
11 Ridership and Payment
Methods
This section details how customers travel on BBB, pre COVID-19 pandemic and currently. This includes frequency of use and payment methods.
FREQUENCY USE – Fifty percent (50%) of customers ride BBB at least 4 days per week; and, 79% started riding BBB prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.
PAYMENT TYPE – Fifty-seven percent (56.9%) pay their fare with cash. This increase in cash use is driven primarily by the loss of college student pass users and the introduction of new customers, among whom 74% pay with cash.
OPPORTUNITY – Seniors and Interagency Transfer customers are not taking full advantage of the discounts available to them. BBB has an opportunity to increase the proportion of customers benefiting from available discount fares via
targeted messaging to educate customers how to apply for relevant discounts and use TAP for Interagency transfers.
BBB | Results – Ridership and Payment Methods
12 Frequency of Riding BBB
Fifty percent (50%) of customers ride BBB 4 or more days each week. Among these high frequency riders, 89.7% started riding before the COVID-19 Pandemic. Overall, 21% of all BBB customers started riding after the pandemic.
Figure 10: Frequency of BBB Ridership
(N=550)
Frequency of Riding by Continuous vs. New BBB Customers New customers ride BBB less frequently than Continuous Customers (i.e., those who rode BBB before COVID-19 and continue riding BBB) - 76.9% ride less than 1 day/week to 3 days/week versus 43.5% of Continuous Customers.
Figure 11: Frequency of BBB Ridership by Continuous & New Customers (N=550)
15%
36%
29%
21%
Less than 1 day/week 1 to 3 days 4 to 5 days 6 days or more 10%
33% 33%
24%
32%
44%
13% 11%
Less than 1 day/week 1 to 3 days 4 to 5 days 6 days or more Continuous New
BBB | Results – Ridership and Payment Methods
13 Fare Media Pre-COVID-19
Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, cash, as a fare media, comprised 32.8% of all fares.
With the onset of COVID-19, BBB witnessed an exodus of college pass holders.
Among Continuous Customers, 50.7% (n=220) paid their fare with cash before the pandemic. Figure 12 shows the distribution of fares by All vs. Continuous customers before the pandemic. As can be seen, Continuous customers were much more likely to pay their fare with cash Pre-COVID-19 compared to the average BBB customer; and, most (184/220) of these cash paying customers continue to pay their fare with cash.
UCLA and SMC passes are almost non-existent among Continuous customers.
Figure 12: Fare Media & Categories – Pre-COVID-19: All vs. Continuous Customers
0.5%
0.5%
0.5%
1.4%
1.6%
6.9%
38.0%
50.7%
12.2%
6.3%
1.5%
14.3%
1.3%
5.1%
44.8%
32.8%
SMC Pass
UCLA Pass
Smartphone App
BBB Paper Pass
7-Day BBB Paper Pass
Access TAP Card
TAP Card
Cash on Bus
All
(Farebox Count,
Pre-COVID-19)
Continuous
(Survey Count,
N=434)
BBB | Results – Ridership and Payment Methods
14 Fare Media Post-Covid-19
Cash is the most frequently used fare type among customers. 7 The increase of cash
fares Pre-to-Post COVID-19 outbreak resulted from the loss of college pass customers and the addition of new customers who primarily use cash (74.1%) to pay their fare.8 Figure 13: Payment Type by All, Continuous Customers & New Customers 7 The survey results are consistent with the fare categories obtained from fare box data in April 2021. 8 New customers are those who started riding BBB after March 20, 2020 – onset of COVID-19 pandemic.
0.0%
1.7%
24.1%
74.1%
1.8%
6.9%
38.9%
52.3%
1.5%
5.8%
35.8%
56.9%
Smartphone App
Access
TAP
Cash
All - Surveyed
(N=550)
Continuous Customers
(N=434)
New Customers
(N=116)
BBB | Results – Ridership and Payment Methods
15 Location to Purchase Fare Products
Most non-cash paying customers purchase fare products at Ticket Vending Machines (41%). Thirty percent receive their fare products from Access or a Social Services Agency (91% Access TAP, 9% TAP); and, 14% purchase fares at the BBB Transit store.
Figure 14: Purchase Location
(N=237)9
Discount Fare Payers vs. Self Reported Discount Eligible Twenty-one percent of BBB customers (N=117) report paying their fare with a discount.
However, slightly more (25%; N=137) report being eligible for a discount. Eighty percent (80.5%) of Seniors (62 years +; N=83) pay with one of the discount categories listed in Figure 15, while an additional 20.5% of eligible seniors report paying full price.
Figure 15 compares BBB customers who self-report eligibility for a discount and those who report paying with discount (Actual).
9 The percent of usage was imputed based on reports from 116 participants. This resulted from a lack of responses from other respondents who otherwise could, but did not, respond to this question. 41%
30%
14%
9% 6% 5% 3%
Ticket
Vending
Machine
Access or
Social
Service
Agency
BBB Transit
Store
TAP Website
or Call
Center
TAP app Smartphone
app
TAP retail
location
Figure 15: Discount Fare Payers vs. Self Reported Discount Eligible (N=137)
62%
19%
2% 0%
83.9%
24.8%
2.9% 0.7%
Senior Disability Medicare Youth
Actual Self-Reported Eligible
BBB | Results – Ridership and Payment Methods
16 0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.9%
0.0%
19.7%
4.3%
23.1%
15.4%
15.4%
46.2%
0.2%
0.2%
0.2%
0.5%
0.7%
1.6%
1.6%
7.2%
2.1%
7.2%
4.4%
7.2%
13.9%
59.8%
0.2%
0.2%
0.2%
0.4%
0.5%
1.3%
1.5%
5.6%
5.8%
6.5%
8.4%
8.9%
14.2%
56.9%
TAP U-Pass
TAP Interagency Transfer
BBB Annual Pass
TAP E-Pass
Youth 30-Day Pass
UCLA Pass
13-Rides Pass
7-Day Pass
Access TAP Card
Day Pass
EZ Pass
30-Day Pass
TAP - Single Ride
Cash - Single Ride
Total
(N=550)
Regular
(N=433)
Discount
(N=117)
Fares Category
Prior to COVID-19, cash use was at 32.8%. After the COVID-19 Pandemic, college pass use nearly vanished. As a result, cash is now the most frequently used fare media.
Figure 16 compares fare categories by total, discount, and regular fare payers.
Figure 16: Fare Category by Total, Regular and Discount Fare Payers BBB | Results – Ridership and Payment Methods
17 Interagency Transfers – Frequency & Fare Type
Fifty one percent (51%) of customers transfer between BBB and other agencies. Onethird (33.6%) transfer Rarely or Sometimes, and 16.9% transfer Usually or Always.
Twenty-two percent (21.9%, 61/278) making interagency transfers report receiving the discounted fare with TAP.
10 However, the proportion of customers making interagency transfers who receive a discount is likely 62% (61+111/278). As Figure 18 highlights, among customers who report “not” receiving an interagency discount, a combined 51% (n=111) use TAP or Access to pay their fare on BBB; and, each of these fare categories automatically provide the discounted $0.50 transfer fare.
Figure 17: Frequency of Interagency Transfers
(N=550)
Figure 18: Fare Media by Interagency Transfers Customers who Report Not Receiving the Discount Fare
(N=217)
10 This is consistent with those who transfer “Usually or Always,” among whom 17% report receiving a discount.
49%
15% 19%
9% 8%
Never Rarely Sometimes Usually Always
2.3%
8.3%
42.9%
46.5%
Smartphone App
Access
TAP
Cash
BBB | Results – Customer Readiness for Contactless Fares 18 Customer Readiness for
Contactless Fares
Over half of BBB customers (56.9%) pay their fare with cash. During the next few months, BBB will support customers as they transition from cash to the most convenient fare media for them. This includes a thoughtful examination of how the shift toward contactless fare payments may impact groups protected by Title VI – Low-Income and racial minority customers.
This section details customer readiness for transitioning to contactless fares. “Readiness” is explored by examining customers who currently pay their fare with cash, identifying those who have access to smartphones with Internet access and credit cards, and those who do not. Table 4 shows customers with a smartphone by customers with credit cards. An estimated 37% of customers fall into the groups with possibly greater support needs (i.e., those who have a phone but no credit card, a credit card but no phone, or neither a phone nor credit card).
Low-Income customers and Hispanic customers may need more support making the transition from cash to contactless fares.
Table 4: Customers with Smartphones and Credit Cards
Have Credit Card
Yes No Total
Have Smartphone
with Data or WiFi Yes 63% 22% 85%
348 119 467
No
4% 11% 15%
23 60 83
Total 371 179 550
BBB | Results – Customer Readiness for Contactless Fares 19 Cash Use
Cash is most heavily used by two communities protected by Title VI: Low-Income customers and Hispanic/LatinX customers. Over half (55.5%) of Low-Income customers use cash to pay their fare, compared to 41.2% of higher income customers.
Additionally, 62.5% of Hispanic customers use cash to pay their fare. Each of these results are statistically significant. Black and Asian customers use cash slightly more than their White counterparts; however, the differences are no statistically significant.
Native American customers use cash less than all other groups. BBB can help LowIncome customers and Hispanic customers transition to contactless fares by introducing them to the Low-Income Fare is Easy (LIFE) program. This may include working with an agency that conducts customer outreach, and possibly support customers to navigate the LIFE application. In addition, Low-Income and Hispanic customers may benefit from an introduction to available tools, like Metro’s TAP phone number, they can use to identify locations to purchase and load fares on TAP cards.
This outreach requires bilingual content and navigation support to be most effective.
Figure 19: Cash Fare – Income Status, Race & Ethnicity
(N=381)
41.2%
55.5%
48.1%
62.5%
56.2% 53.6%
0.0%
High Low Income White Hispanic Black Asian Native
Indicates difference is statistically significant.
BBB | Results – Customer Readiness for Contactless Fares 20 Smartphone and Credit Card Access by Income
The majority of customers (88.5%) have smartphones. Eighty-four percent have a smartphone with a data plan; and, an additional 0.9%, who do not have a data plan, report using WiFi on their phone to access the Internet. Among all customers, 67.5% have a credit card, check card or pre-paid visa card. There is an unmistakable digital divide in both smartphone Internet access and digital payment methods by customer income levels. Lower-Income customers are less likely than Higher-Income customers to posses both a smartphone with Internet access and a credit card. Customers with Low-Income are also more likely than customers with Higher-Income to have an Internet accessible smartphone without a credit card, or have neither a credit card or Internet accessible smartphone.
Figure 20: Smartphone and Credit Card Access - Higher vs. Lower Income (N=550)
82.4%
15.7%
2.0% 0.0%
54.8%
30.3%
3.3%
11.5%
Phone & Card Phone & No Card Card & No Phone No Card & No Phone High-Income Low-Income
Indicates difference is statistically significant.
BBB | Results – Customer Readiness for Contactless Fares 21 Smartphone and Credit Card Access by Race/Ethnicity
Asian customers are much more likely than all other race/ethnic groups to have a smartphone with Internet access and a credit card. Differences between other racial groups, related to possessing phones and credit cards are not statistically significant. This means no racial group is more or less likely to have the combined access gap to phones and credit cards, which might necessitate a mitigation strategy. Instead, all race/ethnic groups have relatively equal access to credit cards and phones, except for Asian customers who have greater access than all other groups.
Figure 21: Smartphone and Credit Card Access – Race/Ethnicity (N=550)
66%
21%
6% 7%
62%
24%
3%
11%
59%
21%
4%
16%
89%
4%
7%
0%
54%
15% 15% 15%
Phone & Card Phone & No Card Card & No Phone No Card & No Phone White Hispanic Black Asian Native
Indicates difference is statistically significant.
BBB | Conclusion
22 Conclusion
In the months to come, Big Blue Bus will transition to a 100% contactless fare payment system to help mitigate the spread of COVID-19 and other infectious diseases, improve on-time performance, and improve motor coach operator and customer safety. Over half of BBB customers will need to adopt a contactless fare media.
Customers who have smartphones with a data plan and a credit card can transition by adopting an electronic payment method, if they are not already using one. Customers who have an Internet accessible smartphone but no credit card, a credit card but no smartphone, or neither credit card nor smartphone can initiate TAP. Our analysis demonstrated no statistically significant differences when it comes to the combination of smartphone and credit card access and fare media used. This suggests that with clear and targeted messaging, all customer segments, regardless of phone and credit card access, can successfully transition to contactless fare payments.
Low-Income customers and Hispanic/LatinX customers may benefit from a strategy unique to each group. Low-income customers lack access to both smartphone based Internet and credit cards. Low-Income customers and LatinX customers are also most likely to pay with cash. There is a nexus between these two groups – 69% of LowIncome customers are Hispanic (228/330) and 93% of Hispanics are Low-Income (228/244). These groups should be encouraged to adopt TAP cards, and apply for the LIFE program. This will likely require a bilingual English/Spanish campaign that provides in-person education. The in-person outreach is critical, especially for Spanish speaking Latinos. Many of these customers experience a digital divide related to Internet access, webpage navigation, and comprehension given the ubiquity of English language websites and resources in comparison to the often difficult to locate and comprehend Spanish language options. Messaging targeted at Low-income and Hispanic customers should highlight the benefits and security of TAP, the ability to check on fare balances, and the variety of community retail locations to load fares.
BBB may also consider informing customers about their eligibility for discounts.
Approximately 20% of Seniors who are eligible for a discount do not take advantage of it. Additionally, approximately 40% of customers who make interagency transfers do not use TAP to receive the discounted fare. An outreach campaign with customerspecific education about contactless fare payment options and discounts will promote the Big Blue Bus brand as a transportation leader that fulfills its commitment to serve the needs of all its customers, especially in critical times of transition.
BBB | Appendix
23 Appendix
24 BBB - Fare Use Survey
1. Enter Survey Invitation Code____________
2. Are you at least 14 years old?
a. Yes
b. No ! TERMINATE SURVEY
3. How many days a week do you ride on BBB buses?
a. Don’t ride BBB ! TERMINATE SURVEY
b. Less than 1 day/week
c. 1 to 3 days
d. 4 to 5 days
e. 6 days or more
4. BBB route(s) you ride on a weekly basis
(SELECT ALL THAT APPLY)
a. 1 Santa Monica Blvd.
b. 2 Wilshire Blvd.
c. 3 Lincoln Blvd.
d. 5 Olympic Blvd.
e. 7 Pico Blvd.
f. 7 Rapid Pico Blvd.
g. 8 Ocean Park
h. 9 Pacific Palisades
i. 10 Rapid Downtown LA
j. 12 Westwood/UCLA/Culver City
k. 14 Bundy Dr.
l. 15 Barrington Ave.
m. 17 UCLA - VA Medical – Palms
n. 18 UCLA - Abbot Kinney
o. 41 - 17th St. - SMC – Montana
p. 43 - 26th St. & San Vicente Blvd.
5. Did you ride BBB before the COVID-19 pandemic?
a. Yes, started riding before March 20th, 2020.
b. No, started riding after March 20th, 2020. ! SKIP TO Q.8
6. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, How did you USUALLY pay for your BBB fare? a. Cash on the bus
b. BBB Paper Pass (magnetic)
c. TAP card
d. Access TAP card
e. 7-Day BBB Paper Pass
f. Santa Monica College Pass
g. UCLA Pass
h. Smartphone app (Transit app, Token Transit app)
i. BBB employee/retiree/dependent pas
25 IF “PAPER DAY PASS” OR “PAPER 7-DAY PASS” IS SELECTED, CONTINUE TO Q.7, OTHERWISE SKIP TO Q.8
7. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, Where did you usually purchase your Paper Pass?
a. On the bus
b. BBB Transit Store
c. Santa Monica public library
8. How do you usually pay for your BBB fare now?
a. Cash on the bus ! SKIP TO Q.11
b. TAP card
c. Smartphone app (Tap, Transit app, Token Transit app) d. Access TAP card
e. BBB employee/retiree/dependent pass
f. Paper pass that I had left over.
ANSWER Q.9 IF “C.” SELECTED ABOVE, OTHERWISE SKIP TO Q.10 .
9. Which Smartphone App do you usually use to pay your BBB fare? a. TAP app
b. Transit app
c. Token Transit App
d. Other
IF CASH SELECTED AT Q.8, SKIP TO Q11.
10.Where do you typically get your BBB fare products (tickets/passes)? ( Select All That Apply)
a. A ticket vending machine (TAP Stored Value)
b. TAP website
c. TAP call center
d. TAP retail location (Ralph’s, 7-Eleven, etc.)
e. TAP app
f. BBB Transit Store
g. Smartphone app (Token Transit app, Transit app)
h. Pass is provided by Employer or School
i. Pass is provided by Access or Social Service Agency
11.Do you usually pay your fare with a Senior, Disabled or Medicare discount? a. Yes
b. No ! SKIP TO Q. 13
26 IF CASH SELECTED AT Q.8, SKIP TO Q14.
12.Which fare(s) do you normally choose now? (choose one or two) a. TAP (Value) Single Ride
b. Day Pass
c. 13-Rides Pass
d. 30-Day Pass
e. EZ Pass
ANSWER Q.13 ONLY IF “NO” SELECTED AT Q.11, OTHERWISE SKIP TO Q.14.
13.Which fare(s) do you normally choose now? (choose one or two)? (choose one or two)
a. TAP (Value) Single Ride
b. Day Pass
c. 7-Day Pass
d. 13-Rides Pass
e. 30-Day Pass
f. EZ Pass
g. Youth 30-Day Pass
h. BBB Annual Pass
i. Blue to Business Pass
j. Access TAP Card
k. TAP Interagency Transfer
l. UCLA Pass
m. SMC Pass
n. TAP U-Pass
o. TAP E-Pass
14.Thinking about 1-way trips on the Big Blue Bus, how often do you transfer to or from Big Blue Bus from or to another bus or rail provider? a. Never !SKIP TO Q.16
b. Rarely
c. Sometimes
d. Usually
e. Always
15.When you transfer to other transit providers (not BBB), do you use TAP Stored Value to purchase the discounted $0.50 Interagency Transfer? a. Yes
b. No
27 16.Do you have a smartphone?
a. Yes
b. No ! SKIP TO Q.19
17.Does your phone have a data plan to access the internet? a. Yes ! SKIP TO Q.19
b. No
18.Do you access the Internet on your phone using Wi-Fi? a. Yes
b. No
19.Do you have a credit card, bank debit card, or pre-paid card to make purchases? a. Yes
b. No
20.Are you eligible for reduced bus fares under any of the categories below? (Select all that apply)
a. Senior
b. Disabled
c. Medicare recipient
d. Youth (5 to 18 years of age)
e. No – Not Eligible for discounts
28 DEMOGRAPHICS
21.What is your gender?
a. Female
b. Male
c. Non-binary
22.In which age category do you belong?
a. 16-17 years
b. 18-24
c. 25-34
d. 35-44
e. 45-54
f. 55-61
g. 62 and Older
23.Select the group(s) that best describe you.
(Select all that apply)
a. Hispanic/Latino/Latinx
b. White
c. Black/African American
d. Asian/Pacific Islander
e. Native American
f. Other: ____________________
24.How many people currently live in your home (including you)? _____________
25.Thinking about all the people who earn money in your home – If their annual incomes were combined, approximately how much money is earned per year (i.e., annual household income)?
a. Less than $20,000
b. $20,000 – $39,999
c. $40,000 – $59,999
d. $60,000 – $79,999
e. $80,000 – $99,999
f. More than $100,000
26.How proficient are you in English?
a. I speak little to no English
b. I speak some English
c. I speak English very well
27.What is your home zip code? __________________
29 Title VI – Low-Income Definition
BBB uses Metro’s LIFE program to qualify customer’s as low-income based on household size and annual income, as shown in Table 5.
Table 5: Title VI - Low-Income Qualification
Household Size Annual Income
1 $39,450 or less
2 $45,050 or less
3 $50,700 or less
4 $56,300 or less
5 $60,850 or less
6 $65,350 or less