Flexible vs exclusive passengers: Who shows greater loyalty to public transport, and which attributes matter?

Public transportation (PT) in developing countries, such as Indonesia, faces significant challenges due to both the growing number of private vehicles and the increasing popularity of ride-hailing services. This study aims to assess PT passengers’ loyalty propensity by first classifying them according to their daily use of different travel modes and examining how PT service attributes and sociodemographic factors are associated with their loyalty propensity. Through an on-bus survey of passengers in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, and using latent class cluster analysis, two distinct groups were identified: 251 respondents classed as flexible passengers, that is, those who supplement their PT use with other travel modes, and 206 respondents classed as exclusive passengers, that is, those who are more dependent on PT and rarely use alternative modes. Meanwhile, Rasch model analysis reveals that, for both passenger groups, affordable ticket pricing, headway and punctuality, and in-bus travel time have the highest association with passengers’ loyalty propensity, while cleanliness and comfort and public perceptions show weaker associations. In addition, exclusive passengers exhibited higher loyalty propensity than flexible passengers, with sociodemographic factors including age, income, occupation, and family size playing a significant role in shaping loyalty propensity among exclusive passengers. In contrast, for flexible passengers, sociodemographic factors do not play a significant role in influencing their loyalty propensity. Based on these findings, targeted policy recommendations are proposed to retain both flexible and exclusive passengers by addressing their distinct needs and expectations.