ROAD TRANSPORT SERVICE QUALITY AND CUSTOMER SATISFACTION IN TRACAS AND EASTERN MASS TRANSIT FIRMS IN ANAMBRA STATE
ABSTRACT
The study examined the effect of service quality on customer satisfaction of road transport service firms. The study focused on TRACAS and Eastern Mass Transit Ltd. firms who are major operators in the mass transit industry in Anambra State, Nigeria. The general objective of the study is to examine the effect of service quality of road transport service providers’ on customer satisfaction in Anambra State. The study adopted a survey design. To this end a Likert scale questionnaire containing 20 item statements was constructed and used to collect data from the respondents of the study for analysis. The area of study is Anambra State with particular interest in the three major cities of the State: Awka, Nnewi and Onitsha South. The sample size of the study is 300. Based on the 300 copies of the questionnaire that were distributed to the respondents, only 297 usable copies were used in the analyses. The Chi-square test was used to test the hypotheses of the study. The findings of the study showed among others that the competence of road transport service providers (drivers) has positive significant effect on customers’ satisfaction for service quality of road transport service providers in Anambra State and that the price (fare) charge by road transport service provider has positive significant effect on customer satisfaction for service quality of road transport service providers’ in Anambra State. The study therefore, recommended among others that transport service providers should employ personnel with requisite competence, charge moderate price for their services, be responsive to needs of commuters as well as ensure that their tangible assets are kept in functional and serviceable conditions to engender customer satisfaction.
