The Laeken transport survey: results.

The 'Laeken transport survey': results.

The APEEE Transport Committee carried out a survey in October 2011 to aid the planning of the bus routes to the new European school in Laeken.

Purpose
There were four main reasons to conduct the survey:

1. to evaluate the feasibility of bus transport to Laeken.
2. to establish appropriate criteria for the planning and establishment of bus routes.
3. to evaluate procedures and tools to be used in the process.
4. to investigate the possible establishment of preliminary bus routes.

It is clear that, due to the significant changes in number and addresses of pupils to be expected, the results of the survey cannot be used to determine bus stops for September 2012. Bus stops and bus routes can only be established with the final enrolment data in August 2012.

Approach
The survey was launched in the second half of October. Class representatives invited all parents to participate. The three other European schools were invited too. The survey was based on Google forms and was online for two weeks.

Results
There were 537 respondents, representing over 800 pupils to be transported. 516 usable addresses were taken into batchgeo (geolocation tool) to map them. A colour code shows the number of pupils per address. The survey results are illustrated below. [For privacy reasons, it is not possible to show a more detailed map.]

Conclusions

The conclusions of the survey:

1. The Google based forms and spreadsheets are a valid option to manage the inscription phase for the transport office.
2. The data (addresses, number of children) can be used to set up and test a planning system for bus routes and bus stops.
3. Based on the survey data, it is not possible to determine bus routes and bus stops for September 2012. There are too many unknown variables such as the number of children, address changes, number of busses, and uncertainty about the budget.