Client satisfaction with the De Lijn transport company fell again last year, according to a survey carried out by the company.
Satisfaction with De Lijn’s services has been steadily dropping for the last three years in a row, mainly due to the punctuality of buses and trams, the survey shows, according to De Tijd.
The numbers for 2018 show that 62% of respondents gave De Lijn a score of 7 out of 10, which the company views as “satisfied”. 10% gave a 5 out of 10, or less. In 2017, 64% was marked as “satisfied”, in 2016 it was 71%.
The biggest issue for a lot of travellers is punctuality. Buses or trams are often late, or sometimes do not show up at all. “Travellers find punctuality more and more important, which of course has an impact on overall satisfaction,” spokesperson of De Lijn Sonja Loos said to VRT NWS. “The more traffic jams and crowds, the less punctual we can be. We have already pointed this out before and we will continue to do so,” she added.
De Lijn is cooperating with the Flemish Region and the local authorities to deal with the problem of traffic flow. “We are going to monitor and list bottleneck points per region, so we can start finding solutions,” Loos said. “We also want to offer better information. A major frustration is that travellers do not always know whether or not their bus is still passing by. New information screens and a renewed app will be installed to follow the buses and trams in real time,” she added.
The survey also shows positive points. Travellers are happy with the drivers. “72% are satisfied with the friendliness and the driving skills of the drivers. 74% are satisfied with the safety in our vehicles. These are all things we find very important,” she added.
Maïthé Chini
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