Punctuality is a critical quality aspect of public transport (PT) systems, as it significantly impacts passenger travel experiences and overall satisfaction. Traditional punctuality metrics, such as On-Time Performance (OTP), primarily focus on vehicle arrivals at their destinations, often overlooking passenger punctuality from the PT user’s perspective. In this pre-study, we aim to bridge this gap by exploring methods to measure passenger-centric punctuality, thereby offering better insights into PT reliability. The pre-study involves a review of existing metrics, an evaluation of their potential and limitations, and a quantitative comparison of select metrics in a real-world case study. 

The pre-study involves a literature review to identify commonly used vehicle-centric punctuality metrics and their applications in PT systems, including various OTP variants. We then shift focus to passenger-centric metrics, particularly those developed to make use of new data sources such as Automatic Fare Collection (AFC) and Automatic Vehicle Location (AVL) systems. These selected metrics undergo qualitative assessment based on their relevance, accuracy, and practical usability. To demonstrate these metrics, we conduct a (small-scale) case study on Stockholm's commuter rail system, analyzing data from the 2015 winter period. Using demand data from AFC and traffic data from AVL, we evaluate and compare the selected metrics.