Uncovering distinct public transport user profiles and the factors influencing the users’ intentions

Given the escalating environmental challenges, it is clear that the approach to the usage of public transport (PT) must be reconsidered. Loyal PT users help attract other travelers through positive recommendations, this drives interest in exploring the relationships between service quality, satisfaction, and loyalty. Although these relationships in the PT context have been studied, there have been limited efforts to explore the variability of their effects. Therefore, this research explores how service quality, satisfaction, involvement, and prior knowledge influence the behavioral intentions to use PT across various traveler groups. The hypotheses are tested by using multi-group analysis in the structural equation modeling framework, and three user profiles are revealed by applying the latent class cluster analysis. The results indicate that involvement strongly influences the behavioral intentions, while satisfaction impacts the intentions solely when involvement acts as a moderator. Class-specific results indicate that younger females living outside the city center put greater emphasis on service quality improvements for their satisfaction and involvement in PT services compared to males and older individuals residing in the city center. Low-income students living in the city center are more likely to use PT if they feel confident how to use the service. The results are relevant for PT operators and related stakeholders in maintaining travelers’ loyalty.