Skip to main content

Getting real with fleet management and passenger information

UK ticketing technology company Parkeon has partnered with information specialist Cloud Amber to develop a new way of using the in-built GPS/GPRS functionality of an electronic ticket machine to improve the scope and accuracy of real time information systems while reducing system cost, complexity and maintenance requirements. Newport Transport is to take advantage of the alliance to become one of the first bus operators in the country to take direct control of its real time information systems, using the te
September 2, 2013 Read time: 2 mins
UK ticketing technology company 251 Parkeon has partnered with information specialist Cloud Amber to develop a new way of using the in-built GPS/GPRS functionality of an electronic ticket machine to improve the scope and accuracy of real time information systems while reducing system cost, complexity and maintenance requirements.

Newport Transport is to take advantage of the alliance to become one of the first bus operators in the country to take direct control of its real time information systems, using the technology to drive its real time communication across its fleet of buses via architecture built into its newly-ordered Wayfarer200 ticketing platform.

The move to the Wayfarer200 platform enables Newport Transport to take responsibility for its own RTI performance across its 100 strong bus fleet and to deliver true real time, dual language (English and Welsh) messaging to its customers via on-street displays based on actual travel information data rather than historic journey times.

The system will enable the operators to improve fleet management and reporting in areas such as schedule adherence, including early and late running indicators and two-way digital driver messaging, while passengers benefit from an information flow that’s always up-to-date.

Scott Pearson, managing director of Newport Transport, sees the investment as key to enhancing operational performance: “We are taking advantage of technological innovation to bring a truly ground-breaking RTI system under our own control. The ability to access highly accurate data in real time will facilitate better day-to-day running, offer more flexibility in decision-making and provide much more accurate information to passengers.”

Says Gavin Trimnell, Parkeon UK head of sales: “All of this is facilitated directly through the Wayfarer200 ticketing platform, meaning there’s no need for traditional on-vehicle “black box” technologies, thereby reducing equipment and deployment complexity, and lowering maintenance costs while improving data accuracy.”

Related Content

  • July 17, 2012
    Real time active traffic management improves travel times
    Traffic management centres (TMC) have traditionally served to provide surveillance and responses to traffic incidents and recurring and non-recurring changes in road networks. Typically, a TMC collected field data from the roadway and transit infrastructure and provided the integration necessary for operators to see what was happening and then coordinate a response. Standard operating procedures (SOPs) guided operators on how to respond to a given situation. It eventually became impractical for TMC operat
  • January 27, 2012
    Integrate systems to reduce roadside infrastructure
    David Crawford reviews promising current developments. Instrumentation of the road infrastructure has grown to become one of the most dynamic sectors of the ITS industry. Drivers for its deployment include global concerns over the commercial and environmental pressures of traffic congestion, the importance of keeping drivers informed throughout their journeys, and the need to reduce accident rates and promote the safety of all road users, for example by enforcing traffic safety rules.
  • June 12, 2015
    Close shave for Brazilian project
    Signing the order to equip a new control room just 45 days before the city hosts a major sporting event is challenging - but some deadlines just cannot be moved. There is nothing like a deadline to concentrate minds and effort as Mitsubishi and the Brazilian city of Belo Horizonte discovered in the run-up to the 2014 World Cup. Although municipal authorities had been considering a new command centre for years, it was the hosting of the World Cup last summer that provided the final impetus.
  • February 28, 2013
    Flir takeover of Traficon and the role of thermal imaging
    Andy Teich, president of commercial systems at Flir, discusses the growing role of thermal technology in ITS and his company’s latest high-profile acquisition with Jason Barnes. Andy Teich, Flir’s president of commercial systems, doesn’t want to talk about infrared (IR). Instead, he’d prefer, he says, to discuss ‘thermal technology’. It is, he explains, to differentiate between the imaging technologies which his company specialises in and the LED illumination of IR cameras, an altogether different beast. Fl