Reviving trams as a form of public transport in Malta : students’ perspective and willingness to pay

Abstract

Urban transportation plays a crucial role in Malta, a small island state grappling with issues of car dependency, traffic congestion, and environmental degradation. This study sought to explore Maltese tertiary students’ willingness to pay (WTP) for a proposed tram system, aimed at addressing the limitations of the current bus-based public transport (PT)system. The research focuses on four key tram attributes: travel time, frequency, reliability, and comfort. A survey based approach using the Contingent Valuation Method (CVM) and econometric models, including an ordinal mixed-effects and an ordered logit model, was employed to elicit students’ perceptions and WTP for an improved PT system. The findings reveal widespread and strong dissatisfaction with Malta’s current bus system. The CVM results show that participating students valued reliability (€2.37) and comfort (€2.35) most, followed by travel time (€2.31) and lastly frequency (€2.21). The ordinal mixed-effects model added nuance by highlighting individual variations, with some students placing more emphasis on travel time than reliability. Initially the ordered logit model was run, however, due to concerns about the proportional odds assumption, the generalised ordered logit, which is a more flexible model, was adopted. The generalised ordered logit model indicates that higher car expenses were positively associated with WTP for a tram pass, suggesting that students facing higher car costs could find PT more appealing. Additionally, students perceived trams as a modern and trendy mode of transport, which could further encourage PT adoption. Despite current free bus services in Malta, the study suggests that participating students were willing to pay for improved PT, underscoring the importance of service quality over cost-free access. The study concludes with recommendations for policymakers, advocating for investments in tram infrastructure that can improve travel time, reliability, frequency, and comfort to better meet student needs. It also proposes campaigns to raise awareness about the true costs of car ownership and highlights the potential of modernising PT aesthetics to make PT more attractive.