Public transit is a key mode of transportation in megacities like NYC. The performance metrics of public transit such as journey time, service provision, station and subway environment, etc. are measured continually and provided to the public by the MTA for each month. The perception of transit service by the customer is also seen as a measure that may influence the choice of transit as a mode by the user. The perception of transit users can be affected by different factors ranging from, delay, availability of elevators, cleanliness of the station environment, and subway car facilities. In a post-COVID 19 lockdown time period, the transit service frequencies and ridership will be impacted. Also, the public perception of service may be based on completely different factors such as transit agencies’ safeguards against public health risks.
This perception of transit can be captured through the sentiment of posts made by users on social media. Performance metrics based on user perception can provide the service provider a customer-facing view of their service and help enhance their service and address the user concerns, especially from a public health standpoint in a post-COVID lockdown world, appropriately.