Railway transit services in Algiers: priority improvement actions based on users perceptions

The Algerian Government has recently promoted transportation projects such as the Algiers metro and tramway services that represent a key part of its political and financial effort to improve mobility in the country. However, public transport systems' profitability requires a thorough diagnosis of the services provided based on users' perceptions and expectations. That is, to invest money according to users' requirements. A methodological approach, which combines an Importance-Performance Analysis and a decision tree model, is proposed as means of analyzing rail services performance in Algiers and identifying the aspects that should be prioritized for improvement actions. Three railway transit services were analyzed in Algiers: the tramway, the metro and the commuter rail. More than 450 surveys were collected per mode. After applying the proposed methodology, results show that there are lines of action common to the three services, and specific strategies that may improve customer satisfaction and customer loyalty with the three railway transit services in Algiers. This is the first full experience analysis about service quality in Algiers' railways transit modes. The proposed two-step methodology is, for the first time, applied for analyzing service quality in public transport.