Enhancing Public Transport Accessibility Using Human Mobility Data: London as a Case Study

Enhancing public transport accessibility (PTA) is an effective strategy for creating sustainable and liveable urban environments. However, calculating the access index from predefined values for walking and waiting times requires further investigation to assess whether available public transport services sufficiently meet traveller needs. This study evaluates PTA to examine additional walking times from home, work, and other locations to various transport modes (bus, train, underground, and tram), and waiting times during different peak periods (morning, inter, evening, and night) as a case study in London. The findings reveal that walking times from home locations exceed PTAL thresholds, with median values surpassing 8 minutes at bus stops and 12 minutes at rail stations, while evening peaks result in higher waiting times than morning periods used in PTAL calculations. The data-driven access index from mobile app data, with reference data from TFL, is further examined for spatial patterns of over- and underestimation areas and to demonstrate how incorporating dynamic spatial and temporal attributes into PTAL offers valuable insights for improving public transport accessibility in urban environments.