Skip to main content

Hertfordshire deploys real-time public transport information system

UK transport consultants WYG have successfully collaborated with Hertfordshire County Council in the UK to provide technical expertise for the county’s real-time public transport system. The roll-out of real time passenger information (RTPI) systems across Hertfordshire over the coming weeks is the first milestone in the project and is a key part of a wider transport improvement programme. The project presented numerous challenges, not least the need to deliver the project in partnership with private secto
October 8, 2012 Read time: 3 mins
UK transport consultants 6676 WYG have successfully collaborated with Hertfordshire County Council in the UK to provide technical expertise for the county’s real-time public transport system.

The roll-out of real time passenger information (RTPI) systems across Hertfordshire over the coming weeks is the first milestone in the project and is a key part of a wider transport improvement programme.  The project presented numerous challenges, not least the need to deliver the project in partnership with private sector bus operators with potentially conflicting requirements.

Although passengers are already able to access bus timetables online which show when a bus is due to arrive, they will now be able to view real-time information on departure screens, at bus stations and stops, through the Council’s Intalink website and on their own mobile phones. This new real-time information will show the actual arrival time, taking into account problems such as delays.

WYG provided technical expertise in the specification of an automatic vehicle location system (AVL) and associated real-time passenger information. The project also included smart-card ticketing which has successfully been implemented and launched earlier in 2012.

WYG also designed the integrated traffic control centre and wrote the specification for the urban traffic management and control (UTMC) system that underpins Hertfordshire County Council’s intelligent transport systems strategy.

The system will be further developed to assist Hertfordshire County Council and other stakeholders to deliver environmentally sustainable changes in transport behaviour through integrated ticketing and real-time passenger information delivered to on-street signs and smart phones.

Iain Bisset, Managing Director, WYG said: “Crucially, the system will deliver to bus operators the tools to improve the reliability and punctuality of bus services throughout the county. Detailed information on delay points will enable Hertfordshire County Council to reduce delays to buses, including delivering bus priority at signalised junctions.”

Stuart Pile, Cabinet Member for Highways and Transport for the Council, said: "Real-time passenger information will help make public transport more attractive to use, as well as helping us to deliver more reliable and punctual buses. This is vital if we are to persuade residents to leave their cars at home and take the bus instead.  The real-time information project is part of a wave of traffic and travel technologies which form part of the county council’s larger intelligent transport systems programme to improve the way Hertfordshire's transport network is managed.”

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • System predicts train delays and informs response
    February 25, 2016
    David Crawford looks into the near-term future for Stockholm’s rail commuters. Swedish rail operator Stockholmståg, which runs commuter services in and around the country’s capital, is claiming a world first with the introduction of its automated Pendelprognosen (commuter prognosis) service. Developed to enable the prediction of delays as much as two hours before they are likely to occur, this offers the operator the scope for much earlier remedial action than previously - for example by filling in the expe
  • Multimodal simulation helps to improve the airport experience
    December 15, 2022
    The vision of the IMHOTEP project is a multimodal European transport system, where different modes of travel are seamlessly integrated to give passengers a great door-to-gate and gate-to-door experience. Marcel Sala, scientific researcher at Aimsun, explains how this works at airports
  • Changing perceptions and going green with ITS
    May 26, 2022
    Entrants to the ITS (UK) Essay Award were asked to write about innovative application of ITS solutions to achieve decarbonisation goals. First-year apprentice Leora Wilson, who studies at Leeds College of Building as part of her apprenticeship with Mott MacDonald, won the competition with this entry…
  • Why integrated traffic management needs a cohesive approach
    April 10, 2012
    Traffic control is increasingly being viewed as one essential element of a wider ‘system of systems’ – the smart city. Jason Barnes, Jon Masters and David Crawford report on latest ideas and efforts for making cities ‘smarter’ Virtually every element of the fabric and utilitarian operations that make urban areas tick can now be found somewhere in the mix that is the ‘smart city’ agenda. Ideas have expanded and projects pursued in different directions as the rhetoric on making cities ‘smarter’ has grown. App