“Public transport in urban Pakistan is mostly left to an unregulated private sector. The current offer is either inefficient, has limited coverage and does not guarantee equal access to potential users or it is not affordable for a broad swathe of the population. As a result, commuting is slow, time consuming, and tedious process which undermines the productivity of urban population, and thereby cities’ contribution to economic growth. Hence, a more efficient, accessible, and affordable public transport system is an urgent need of the masses residing in urban areas of Pakistan. This could improve labor force participation, access to opportunities, and more productive use of time in addition to reducing gender, income, and class inequalities. However, the first step in designing an efficient public transport system is to understand commuters’ preferences for the key attributes of public transport such as travel mode, travel time, coverage, and their willingness to pay for transport services, among others.

For this purpose, this research proposes to use discrete choice modelling approach and a stated preference survey of commuters in three urban locations (Karachi, Lahore, and Islamabad). The analysis will uncover commuters’ choices and their monetary valuation of different features of the public transport system such as fare and travel times, coverage, and comfort which will inform the optimal design of public transport systems in urban Pakistan.”