Smart bus is a technology that allows ETS buses to send, receive and broadcast real-time information. With the addition of enhanced technology, trip information can be provided to customers in real-time. The technology also allows for improvements to accessibility, safety, and collection of data that assists transit planners when designing how transit service is delivered to citizens.
There are many ways that these tools will assist riders. These include:
Access to real-time bus departure information for each bus stop in the city, which will tell riders if their bus is running early, on-time, or late. That way, they will know exactly when to be at the bus stop.
automated stop announcements to notify riders of approaching stop locations.
Smart Bus enables operators to communicate with Transit Control in a number of ways:
Activated discrete alarms to ETS control if they believe they need immediate emergency assistance.
Integrated Smart Bus security cameras provide transit security with a live look-in view of activities on the bus, allowing Transit Control to better assess the situation and muster appropriate resources.
The automated vehicle location (AVL) provides the current bus location (including the speed and direction of travel) so the appropriate resources can be dispatched to the correct location.
The Smart Bus is known as a proven technology. Similar technology has been in use in other cities and service providers for at least five years. For example, ETS’ Disabled Adult Transit Service (DATS) began using this technology in 2005. DATS has improved its efficiency and effectiveness using Mobile Digital Terminals (MDTs), automated scheduling and computer-aided dispatch.
The specific capabilities benefiting persons with disabilities include: Automated Stop Announcements - internal audio-visual announcements of an approaching bus stop, audio announcements of a bus arrival at a bus stop. Additional Smart Bus capabilities include web-based and mobile device tools that can be used by persons with disabilities to provide real-time bus arrival information.