Skip to main content

Real-time bus arrivals delivered via scan code

Quick Response codes, or QR codes, are being introduced on a trial basis at some local bus stops in Shanghai to allow passengers to check the whereabouts of buses and the expected arrival time of the next bus. Passengers can obtain real-time information on buses by scanning the QR code using their smartphones, allowing them to adjust commuting plans. The service was first launched in Shanghai during late 2012. Almost 90 bus routes serving Pudong New Area can be checked using a smartphone application. People
March 6, 2013 Read time: 2 mins
Quick Response codes, or QR codes, are being introduced on a trial basis at some local bus stops in Shanghai to allow passengers to check the whereabouts of buses and the expected arrival time of the next bus.

Passengers can obtain real-time information on buses by scanning the QR code using their smartphones, allowing them to adjust commuting plans.

The service was first launched in Shanghai during late 2012. Almost 90 bus routes serving Pudong New Area can be checked using a smartphone application. People in Shanghai can expect to see it being offered citywide in June 2013 following the completion of the test.

Major bus operator Shanghai Bashi Group said information may not be right during the test. In some cases, passengers can't access their routes. But the operator said in June, after the test is over, locals can expect to see the service citywide.

Despite some problems, several bus passengers welcomed the idea.  "Passengers can be prepared while they wait once they check the real-time status," said one. "If it takes too long, maybe we can choose other means of transportation."

Related Content

  • Electronic toll collection: Change is in the air
    November 7, 2024
    Trends in technology plus users’ comfort in adopting new advances indicate that the environment for a new electronic toll collection architecture is evolving. Hal Worrall considers what this might look like
  • Data holds the key to combating VRU casualties
    May 8, 2015
    Accident analysis software can help authorities identify common causes and make best use of their budgets, as Will Baron explains. More than 1.2 million people die on the world’s roads each year and according to the World Health Organisation, half of these are pedestrians and vulnerable road users (those whose vehicle does not have a protective shell, such as motorcyclists and cyclists). While much has been done to improve road safety and cut the number of deaths and serious injuries on our roads, a great d
  • Best laid plans
    March 22, 2012
    Colossal is not too bold a word to describe the scale of ITS developments currently under way in Europe. The European Commission’s ITS Action Plan has six areas of focus, each of which expands out into numerous projects involving a lot of leg work by various committees, working groups or consultants. Add to that the supporting work and research efforts of the many parts of Ertico (ITS Europe); plus each of the 27 European Union member states is working on ‘transition’ of the EU’s ITS Directive into their ow
  • Success of Transport for London’s real time bus information service
    October 18, 2012
    Since its launch a year ago, the UK’s Transport for London (TfL) Countdown real time bus information service has dealt with more than 620 million requests and, according to TfL, the service has made millions of journeys easier, dealing with an average of 1.6 million requests via the internet and smart phones and 36,000 requests via text each day. TfL has also recently completed the installation of 2,500 new and improved bus information roadside signs across the capital. These provide clearer amber text on