A transit stop audit starts before the platform or shelter
Review the route people use to reach the stop, cross the street, wait, transfer, and leave. A well-lit shelter does not solve a missing crossing, unreadable sign, inaccessible curb, blocked view, or last connection that ends before riders arrive.
Observe the full passenger journey
| Stage | Observe | Record |
|---|---|---|
| Approach | Crossings, path condition, visibility, access, and wayfinding. | Exact route segment and affected users. |
| Wait | Service information, seating, shelter, activity, sightlines, and help. | Time, duration, and changing conditions. |
| Board | Vehicle identification, queue, lighting, and accessible boarding. | Specific operational or infrastructure failure. |
| Transfer or exit | Connection time, staffed places, alternate route, and onward transport. | What happens after a missed service. |
Include people who use the stop differently
Invite regular and occasional riders, shift workers, youth, older adults, disabled riders, nearby businesses, drivers or operators where appropriate, and people who make transfers at different times. Record strengths worth preserving, such as active storefronts, clear information, or a helpful staffed location.
Do not photograph or label riders as risks. Focus on conditions and observable conduct. The personal transit safety plan helps individual riders prepare alternatives. The CPTED walk guide supports place-level observation.
Record time as part of the condition
Repeat the audit during a representative peak, evening, and low-service period when feasible. Note scheduled and actual wait, nearby activity, visibility changes, staffing, information accuracy, and onward connections. Do not compare two visits as though time were the only difference when weather, events, construction, or service disruption also changed.
Assign issues to the right system
Separate maintenance, operations, service, and capital work
A failed lamp or obscured sign may be maintenance. Unreliable arrival information may be operational. A long service gap may require schedule review. A missing crossing or platform redesign may be capital work involving several agencies. Give each issue an owner, evidence, feasible next action, and recheck date. Then return at the same relevant time to see whether the passenger journey improved.