Exploring the Impact of Urban Scale on User Perception for Identifying Public Bus Service Improvement Priorities in Morocco

Public bus services remain a cornerstone of urban mobility in Morocco, yet persistent challenges—such as uneven service coverage, low frequency, and safety concerns—undermine ridership and social inclusion. This study investigates the critical influence of urban scale on public bus service improvement priorities in Morocco, addressing a notable gap in user-centric transit research. Utilizing data from a large-scale national user survey across metropolises, large, medium, and small cities, the research employs a Revised Importance–Performance Analysis integrated with fuzzy c-means clustering. Results indicate that “Service Coverage & Frequency” emerges as a universal top priority across all urban scales, whereas other attributes—such as “Safety & Security,” “Service Punctuality,” “Vehicle Cleanliness & Maintenance”, and “Passenger Comfort & Convenience” display significant variation by urban scale. These findings reveal that user perceptions and derived improvement priorities are highly context-dependent, challenging a "one-size-fits-all" approach to urban transport planning.