See BART's 2016 Customer Satisfaction Survey.
The other night on BART -- Richmond line, on the way from San Francisco's 24th/Mission station to Berkeley -- the young guy sitting next to me announced he'd be getting off not at the station where we were stopping just then, but the next one.
Unusual. He was giving me extra advance warning so that he'd have time to struggle through the mass of humanity jammed into the car and get out.
"You take BART often?" I asked. "Yes," he said.
"You like it?"
"No."
When I asked why, he said the trains were just way too crowded at rush hour. I pointed out that he had gotten a seat -- a real prize during peak commute times. He said that that was only because he'd gotten on at Millbrae, where the train originated.
OK -- so there's a customer satisfaction survey for you. In my sample of one, I found a 100 percent level of unhappiness, with BART overcrowding listed as a major complaint.
As it happens, BART released its actual customer-satisfaction survey (embedded below) at a board of directors workshop on Wednesday.
The good news for the agency in that survey? The percentage of people who say they're not thrilled with the agency's service is less than 100 percent.
The bad news? Customer satisfaction is at the lowest point since the agency began conducting the survey in the mid-1990s.
The breakdown on the top-line question looks like this:
Overall, how satisfied are you with the services provided by BART?
Very satisfied: 24 percent
Somewhat satisfied: 45 percent
Neutral: 17 percent
Somewhat dissatisfied: 11 percent
Very dissatisfied: 3 percent
The 69 percent of people who said they were very or somewhat satisfied with BART when the survey was conducted in September and October compares to 74 percent in 2014 and 84 percent in 2012.
The survey also found declines in the percentage of people who say they'd recommend BART to an out-of-town visitor (although 85 percent still say they would) and that BART is a good value for the money (59 percent in the latest survey said they think it is).
As to factors that might be responsible for the decline in customer dissatisfaction -- and if you've endured the seemingly daily major delays BART has experienced this month, you can think of plenty of reasons to complain -- the survey says getting a seat on the train makes a significant difference.
Among those who stand for at least part of their trip -- a common occurrence as ridership hovers near record levels -- 63 percent said they were at least somewhat satisfied with BART. The survey says 74 percent of those who got to sit said they were satisfied.
The previous low point in BART customer satisfaction came in 1998, and much of the survey presentation to the BART board on Wednesday focused on the measures the agency took then to respond.
Passengers in 1998 named a host of problems that made riding BART unpleasant, including station agent availability, fare gate reliability, personnel courtesy, lines at exit gates, escalator availability, seat availability, elevator availability, train temperature, train cleanliness, noise level, station cleanliness, public address announcements and personal security.
That's a familar-sounding list, with 2016 respondents naming many of the same complaints.
The survey notes that in 1998, the BART board responded with a $1.2 billion reinvestment program. In 2004, the district's survey found a dramatically reduced number of problem areas and recorded the system's all-time-high customer satisfaction level, 86 percent.
BART's in the midst of a huge reinvestment initiative now. The agency has begun the process of replacing and expanding its fleet of old train cars, and it's using a $3.5 billion bond measure passed in November to launch systemwide infrastructure repairs and improvements.
So, help may be on the way, BART riders. In the meantime:
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