Yellowknife (Mar 21/03) - The city only received 40 responses to its annual bus customer satisfaction survey but results were overwhelmingly positive.

A Yellowknife transit bus takes its passengers down Franklin Avenue. - Darren Stewart/NNSL photo

The survey was left on buses and filled out voluntarily by regular riders. City engineer Jennifer Roste admitted it wasn't the most scientific survey but said it's only intended to hear how regular users like the service.

Ninety-four per cent of the respondents said they were satisfied with the bus service and 94 per cent said they think the service is the same, or better, than previous years.

"Sure it's fair to say that people satisfied with the bus keep riding the bus," she said. "This wasn't meant to be a statistically accurate study."

"It's good to get some affirmation."

The study also asked for suggestions. A few respondents asked for better bus service on weekends and later at night.

Roste will also look at tabulated results of a stop-by-stop tally of riders. Drivers used crowd-counters to record how many people got on at certain stops.

"We're trying to make the system more responsive," said Roste. She said the city will look at the study to see if any route and schedule changes would be appropriate.

Roste said the city's biggest challenge is to get more people on the bus. Part of a random phone survey the city is conducting right now asks Yellowknifers what it would take to get them to ride the bus.

"For sure we'd like to see more riders," said Roste.

Roste said the 40 respondents represent about 20 per cent of the regular adult bus ridership. The majority of bus riders are students, she said.

The Yellowknife system provided 130,000 individual rides last year.