Notice2026-11220
Request for Information on Family Friendly Transit
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
June 4, 2026
Issuing agencies
Transportation DepartmentFederal Transit Administration
Abstract
Many transit agencies have developed ways to assess and improve the quality of the public transportation service that they provide to their communities. The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) seeks input from the transit industry and the public about how to assess public transportation service quality across five areas: safety and security, cleanliness, universal accessibility, real time service data availability, and system reliability. FTA will use this information to develop tools to help the public, transit agencies, and all levels of government assess the quality of public transportation service in their communities more directly and identify actions necessary to improve family-friendly service.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 91 Issue 107 (Thursday, June 4, 2026)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 107 (Thursday, June 4, 2026)]
[Notices]
[Pages 33894-33896]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2026-11220]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Transit Administration
[Docket No. FTA-2026-0232]
Request for Information on Family Friendly Transit
AGENCY: Federal Transit Administration (FTA), U.S. Department of
Transportation (DOT).
ACTION: Request for Information (RFI).
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SUMMARY: Many transit agencies have developed ways to assess and
improve the quality of the public transportation service that they
provide to their communities. The Federal Transit Administration (FTA)
seeks input from the transit industry and the public about how to
assess public transportation service quality across five areas: safety
and security, cleanliness, universal accessibility, real time service
data availability, and system reliability. FTA will use this
information to develop tools to help the public, transit agencies, and
all levels of government assess the quality of public transportation
service in their communities more directly and identify actions
necessary to improve family-friendly service.
DATES: Comments are requested by August 3, 2026.
ADDRESSES: You may file comments identified by docket number FTA-2026-
0232 by any of the following methods:
<bullet> Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a> and follow the online instructions for submitting
comments.
<bullet> Mail: Docket Management Facility, U.S. Department of
Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Ave. SE, West Building Ground Floor,
Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590-0001.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Office of Budget and Policy, Federal
Transit Administration, <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#f1b7a5b0a19483979e839c909f9294b5908590b1959e85df969e87"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="f3b5a7b2a39681959c819e929d9096b7928792b3979c87dd949c85">[email protected]</span></a> or (202) 366-4050.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
The performance of America's public transportation systems is often
measured by the number of trips taken or miles traveled, yet these
metrics do not capture the full impact of transit systems on the well-
being of the communities and travelers they serve. FTA is considering
developing common service quality metrics grounded in the premise that
transit systems offer the most value when they can successfully answer
key questions travelers may ask themselves before making a trip, such
as: Will I feel safe and secure?, When is the next bus/train, and will
it be on time?, and Can I easily get where I need to go with my family?
These potential service quality metrics will help the public, transit
agencies, and all levels of government, to assess more directly the
quality of public transportation service in their communities and
identify actions necessary to improve family-friendly service. For the
purpose of this request for information, ``family-friendly service''
means the availability of high-quality transit service that is
welcoming to as many members of the public as possible, not just
commuters or adults traveling alone. This request for information will
focus on transit systems that serve urbanized areas with 200,000 or
more in population for two reasons. First, larger transit agencies are
more likely to have mature service
[[Page 33895]]
quality frameworks and metrics in place with established data
collection systems. Second, FTA prioritizes reducing burdens on small
and rural transit providers.
FTA encourages responses from academic institutions, industry
associations, transit rider advocacy organizations, advisory groups,
recipients of FTA funding that operate rail transit systems, transit
agencies operating bus systems in large urban areas with populations of
200,000 or more, metropolitan planning organizations, State departments
of transportation, other transit providers, industry stakeholders, and
the public.
II. Service Quality Performance Areas
FTA has identified five service quality performance areas: safety
and security; cleanliness; universal accessibility; real-time service
data availability; and system reliability. For each area, FTA (i)
proposes questions travelers may ask themselves before making a trip
and (ii) identifies existing data reported to the National Transit
Database (NTD) or collected as part of its oversight responsibilities
that it may consider for possible service quality performance metrics
(see below). FTA seeks comment regarding these proposed service quality
performance areas, the effectiveness of leveraging existing NTD and
oversight data, whether it should assess any other publicly available
data, and whether FTA should consider collecting any new data through
the NTD or other means.
Possible service quality performance metrics derived from existing
NTD data for each area include: rate of fatalities, rate of injuries
(safety and security); percentage of rail stations that are ADA-
accessible (as a metric for achieving universal accessibility); and
mean distance between mechanical failures (system reliability). FTA
seeks comments on these service quality performance metrics, as well as
other service quality performance metrics.
<bullet> Area #1: Safety and Security
Traveler Question: Will I feel safe and secure on transit?
FTA currently collects data through the NTD on safety and security
events on public transportation, such as fatalities, injuries, and
assaults. FTA also acknowledges the importance of the public's
perceptions of safety and security, in addition to event data.
Therefore, FTA seeks to know whether transit agencies collect data from
riders regarding perceptions and experiences of transit system safety
and security, and how transit agencies analyze and use this data. In
addition, FTA is interested in knowing what additional information it
should consider collecting to enhance the public's understanding of
transit safety and security, to include fare evasion trends, given
observed correlations between fare evasion and more serious criminal
offenses.
<bullet> Area #2: Cleanliness
Traveler Question: Is the transit vehicle or facility clean?
FTA does not currently collect data from transit agencies or the
public regarding the cleanliness of transit vehicles or facilities,
such as buses, ferries, trains, and rail stations. FTA also
acknowledges the importance of passengers' perception of cleanliness,
alongside other data about cleanliness that transit agencies may track.
FTA seeks comments on what data agencies collect regarding cleanliness
of transit systems, including vehicles and facilities, as well as
methodologies used to define or assess cleanliness.
<bullet> Area #3: Universal Accessibility
Traveler Question: Can I easily use the transit system, whether I
am alone or with my family/others?
FTA currently collects some data on transit and paratransit service
compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). However,
much of this data concerns barriers to transit access for people with
mobility disabilities, such as wheelchair users. FTA is considering
assessing performance beyond the minimum requirements of the ADA to
measure how easily individuals of all ages and abilities, including
families traveling together, can utilize the system. Increasing transit
system accessibility for people with intellectual, developmental,
sensory, or mobility disabilities may help agencies to be more
inclusive of all customers, including families with small children and
strollers, as well as older adults with canes or walkers. FTA is
interested in the extent to which transit agencies collect and use data
regarding accessibility of transit systems beyond the minimum ADA
requirements.
<bullet> Area #4: Real-time Service Data Availability
Traveler Questions: Can I plan my trip easily? When is the next
bus/train? Will I know about delays, and be able to plan around
unexpected delays?
Accurate, reliable, and timely transit service data helps people
plan and take transit trips with more ease and confidence. Through the
NTD, FTA currently collects General Transit Feed Specifications (GTFS)
schedule information for fixed route modes, such as route identifiers,
stop locations, and planned stop times. FTA also collects geographic
area coverage data for demand response service through the NTD. FTA
seeks input on the extent to which agencies make real-time service data
available to customers to support trip planning, including service
disruptions. We are interested in leveraging existing data protocols
based on industry standards for geographic-based transit service
information, such as GTFS.
<bullet> Area #5: System Reliability
Traveler Question: Will I get to where I am going on time?
FTA currently collects information on scheduled service and
mechanical failures that disrupt service through the NTD, but it does
not collect data on actual delivered headways or on-time performance.
FTA seeks input on how on-time performance is assessed by transit
agencies, including methods and technology used, and how successful on-
time performance is defined. FTA is also interested in other ways
transit agencies may track and assess system reliability.
Section III. Questions to the Public
FTA requests detailed feedback on the following questions. Replies
may respond to any question and do not need to respond to all
questions. FTA looks forward to receiving feedback from all interested
parties.
Service Quality Performance Areas and Metrics
1. To what extent do transit agencies use these five FTA-identified
service quality performance areas (also referred to as `areas') to
drive customer service decision-making? What other service quality
performance areas do transit agencies track, and how do they define
them?
2. What other areas should FTA consider for assessing the quality
of public transportation service in communities or for improving
family-friendly service?
3. What performance metrics do transit agencies use to measure
service quality in each area, or other areas they may use? What other
metrics should FTA consider for assessing whether a public
transportation service is welcoming and appealing to families?
4. For performance metrics used, what thresholds define success,
and what factors are considered in determining each threshold for
success?
5. What additional or alternative existing NTD data, if any, should
FTA consider within each area?
[[Page 33896]]
6. What additional or alternative existing oversight data, if any,
should FTA consider within each area?
7. What additional or alternative new NTD or oversight data, if
any, should FTA consider within each area?
Data Availability, Limitations and Collection Methodology
8. To what extent is data that responds to the proposed traveler
questions collected by transit providers or obtainable from third
parties (e.g., applications, contractors for purchased transportation,
non-profits or other organizations)?
9. What are the limitations (e.g., reliability, frequency,
accuracy, etc.) of any current data collection methods? What resources
are needed to overcome those limitations?
10. If data is not already collected through the NTD, what data
collection methodologies exist for assessing each area (especially
cleanliness, universal accessibility, and system reliability)?
11. To what extent is customer satisfaction data collected by
transit agencies for each area? Please briefly describe methodology,
including method(s) and frequency of collection, as well as how the
information is used.
Other Considerations
12. Could standardization of operational data assist transit
agencies in streamlining NTD data collection, validation, and
reporting? What are transit agencies positive or negative experiences
using open data standards for operational data to improve and/or
streamline NTD reporting?
13. What are the differences among transit agencies (e.g., fleet
size, service type, service area, network design) that could affect how
thresholds for success are defined, and why?
Authority: 49 U.S.C. 5301, 49 CFR 1.91.
Jamie Pfister,
Acting Executive Director.
[FR Doc. 2026-11220 Filed 6-3-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-57-P
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