24/7 society will pose new customer service challenges

Bus operator Brighton and Hove has responded to the 24/7 culture in the south coast city by running night services. New opportunities are expected to emerge for operators as demand for 24/7 public transport spreads to other cities over the next decade.

Bus operator Brighton and Hove has responded to the 24/7 culture in the south coast city by running night services. New opportunities are expected to emerge for operators as demand for 24/7 public transport spreads to other cities over the next decade.

The Independent Transport Commission has published a new paper showing that in the near future, bus and train operators will need to respond to a new set of customer expectations as the UK becomes a 24/7 society.

The ITC paper draws on research which shows that by 2020 the number of people shopping, visiting restaurants, going to the cinema and theatres or carrying out household business via the internet between 6pm and 9am the following morning will have almost doubled to 13 million – a...