The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has shown us how much we rely on essential workers. Whether working in a hospital or supermarket, they have been providing services non-stop while putting their own health at risk. It’s become apparent how vital public transport is in enabling our modern-day heroes to travel to and from work, but means operators also face the huge challenge of supporting the safety of employees and passengers and maintaining operation of the network.

However, with more people working remotely along with growing fears among the community of catching the infection, passenger numbers have dwindled for many metro systems. Active transport – on the other hand – is on the rise, with cycling surging in densely-populated cities like New York.

How can public transport operators rebuild customer confidence in using their services in a post-pandemic world, as cities move further towards integrated, multimodal transport systems? And what can we learn from cities where lockdowns have eased, to improve the public transport passenger experience?

To answer these questions, Aurecon’s Managing Director for Transportation in Australia & New Zealand Becky Wood talks to Metro Trains Melbourne’s General Manager for Passenger Experience Tilly Loughborough.

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