PETALING JAYA: A new survey has found that the lack of punctuality in public transport services is the main complaint among commuters.

“Of the challenges the users of public transport faced, 54% stated lack of punctuality, 48% stated poor last-mile connectivity while 47% perceived the fares as too expensive,” UCSI University’s Poll Research Centre, which carried out the survey, said.

The survey, from July 10 to Aug 4, took into account feedback from 1,029 respondents on their perception toward public transport in Malaysia. Sixty-seven per cent of the respondents said they used various forms of public transport, including trains and buses.

The pollster said 21% of its respondents used public transport daily, 22% several times a week, and 24% several times a month. A third of the respondents said they did not use any form of public transport.

As for reasons to use public transportation, 39% of the respondents said it was because they do not have their own vehicle, 25% said it was due to traffic congestion, and 18% mentioned a lack of parking facilities and the costs they would have to incur using their own vehicle.

Among those who opted not to use public transport, the main reasons given were that they preferred using their own vehicle (33%) as well for convenience and safety concerns (19%).