transit management

There are two primary components to transit management – fleet management and passenger information. The use of electronic payment techniques for fear payment can also be considered part of transit management but has been covered as part of integrated electronic payment. Involves the location of all operational vehicles in the transit fleet using automated vehicle location technologies. While this was initially achieved using short range communication techniques, beacons, these days cellular wireless technology is used to communicate to and from the vehicle. Automated passenger granting technology can also be used to determine the number of passengers on the bus and this data, along with current vehicle location is transmitted to a transit management center or back-office. In the back-office purpose built software can be used to optimize transit services in the light of current operating conditions. Changes that can be made include frequency changes the routes and the early termination of routes to improve system performance. 

The automated vehicle location system used for system performance can also be used to provide passenger information. Using either smart phone technology or variable message signs up or stops, passengers can be made aware of the current performance of buses and how many minutes we will have to wait until their bus arrives. This can also be extended to our home services and mobile services for the information regarding service performances delivered to a home computer or a smart phone device. We expect these kinds of passenger information services to be expanded and enhanced to include mobility as a service, where a smart phone device can provide a single point transit availability information, central reservation for multiple modes, single electronic payment, and information on the quality of services. 

It is also anticipated that transit service efficiency will be significantly implemented by the introduction of automated vehicle technology, although challenges will have to be overcome. For example, the vehicle operator does more than drive the bus. He or she also represents a customer facing point of information for travelers and first response in the event of an incident. They also assist customers with wheelchairs. In addition to replacing the driving function, automation will also have to address these additional functions. It is also expected that the definition of transit will be extended to include aviation and maritime services as a multi-modal holistic approach to transportation management is enable by smart mobility approaches.