Occupational health and job satisfaction assessment of bus rapid transit (BRT) drivers

Abstract

Several studies have focused on the ergonomics of commercial and urban bus drivers; however, there exists a dearth of research on bus rapid transit (BRT) drivers. This study was conducted to investigate the factors affecting BRT drivers' mental health and satisfaction, focusing on 171 BRT drivers in Tehran, Iran. The required data were collected through two questionnaires. The classification and regression tree (CART) algorithm and hierarchical clustering (HC) were used to extract factors affecting the mental health and satisfaction of BRT drivers. The important factors affecting driver mental health included disputes with passengers, depression, body mass index, criminal behaviors of passengers, driver's retirement conditions, driver's family conditions, fatigue, and the rostering. In addition, the most important factors affecting driver satisfaction included bus repairs, the driver's seat, and the sound inside the cabin. The study offers possible practical applications for creating a counseling and psychotherapy unit and improving bus quality and repairment.