Skip to main content

Innovative transportation award for New York’s MTA BusTime

Transportation consultants Cambridge Systematics have been presented with the 2012 Innovative Transportation Solution of the Year for MTA Bus Time, New York City’s real-time bus customer information system. The award, presented by the Women’s Transportation Seminar (WTS) Greater New York Chapter, recognises organisations for their efforts in enhancing the transportation industry in their community through innovation and creativity, and providing value. Cambridge Systematics and partner OpenPlans Transporta
February 6, 2013 Read time: 2 mins
Transportation consultants 5673 Cambridge Systematics have been presented with the 2012 Innovative Transportation Solution of the Year for MTA Bus Time, New York City’s real-time bus customer information system.  The award, presented by the Women’s Transportation Seminar (WTS) Greater New York Chapter, recognises organisations for their efforts in enhancing the transportation industry in their community through innovation and creativity, and providing value.

Cambridge Systematics and partner 5675 OpenPlans Transportation developed and currently manage the MTA Bus Time software that takes real-time data feeds from over 3,000 buses and manages and delivers bus location information to riders via smart phones, text messages, and web sites. The initial deployment in Staten Island was completed in only five months, and the system is rapidly expanding citywide.

“Delivering real-time bus information to MTA customers across New York City presented a tremendous opportunity,” said Jennifer Strasser, Cambridge Systematics’ New York office director and WTS member. “We’re excited to contribute to an improved experience for millions of bus riders, and honored to have our efforts recognised with this award.” Eric Ziering, director of software at Cambridge Systematics, said, “The success of this project results from an outstanding collaboration among MTA, Cambridge Systematics, and OpenPlans staff.”

MTA Bus Time is an open-source project, and the underlying software platform includes open interfaces that make real-time bus data available to third-party application developers. The data feeds from MTA Bus Time also enable the agency to improve operational efficiency, scheduling, service management, and emergency response.

Related Content

  • August 28, 2015
    Siemens to automate New York’s Queens Boulevard subway
    Siemens has been awarded a US$156 million contract by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) to install communications-based train control (CBTC) on the Queens Boulevard Line, one of the busiest subway lines on the New York City transit system. Siemens is supplying the onboard equipment for a total of 305 trains and installing the wayside signalling technology at seven of eight field locations.
  • May 23, 2022
    WTS International names Woman of the Year
    Inez Evans, boss of IndyGo, was awarded the prestigious title at a ceremony in Seattle
  • February 28, 2013
    New York's award-winning traffic control system
    A comprehensive ITS strategy in New York built on a system of key building blocks has been crowned with an IRF award for the city’s Midtown in Motion adaptive control system. Jon Masters reviews New York’s ITS modernisation plan as the city looks to the next phase of expansion. In January this year the International Road Federation (IRF) presented TransCore and the New York City Department of Transportation (NYCDOT) with the IRF Global Road Achievement Award. This was for deployment of New York’s Midtown in
  • October 5, 2015
    New York’s MTA tests new safety technology on buses
    As part of the MTA’s ongoing commitment to improving safety across all agencies and in coordination with New York City’s Vision Zero plan, MTA New York City Transit has begun to test new technologies aimed at improving safety for drivers, bus customers and pedestrians. The 60-day tests of pedestrian turn warning and collision avoidance systems will determine if a full pilot of one or both systems can proceed in 2016. NYC Transit’s Department of Buses is testing two systems on six buses: a pedestrian turn