Skip to main content

VTA demonstrating Smart Stop technology at ITS America San Jose

The Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) is showing conference attendees how its Smart Stop technology can tell bus drivers that someone is waiting at a particular stop, improving the rider experience while saving fuel costs. The Smart Stop demonstration is designed to highlight Vehicle to Infrastructure (V2I) and Vehicle to Vehicle (V2V) solutions using dedicated short range 5.9 GHz Wi-Fi communications. It was built in partnership with Renesas Electronics America, a semiconductor supplier, a
June 15, 2016 Read time: 2 mins
The 1791 Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) is showing conference attendees how its Smart Stop technology can tell bus drivers that someone is waiting at a particular stop, improving the rider experience while saving fuel costs.

The Smart Stop demonstration is designed to highlight Vehicle to Infrastructure (V2I) and Vehicle to Vehicle (V2V) solutions using dedicated short range 5.9 GHz Wi-Fi communications. It was built in partnership with 2266 Renesas Electronics America, a semiconductor supplier, and eTrans Systems, a developer of software for connected and automated vehicles.

According to the agency, bus stops can be crowded and confusing when serving multiple routes, and bad weather can obscure waiting passengers from the driver. Passengers can use an app on their smartphone or a touch screen at a kiosk to indicate they are waiting for a particular bus. The request is then passed to a road side unit that transmits the request to the approaching bus's on-board unit. An audible and visual alert notifies the driver, and the passenger is notified via smartphone. If a bus approaches a stop that doesn't have a passenger waiting, the driver can continue on the route without stopping--saving time and fuel. At the same time, safety is improved by minimizing the need to exit and enter traffic.

"VTA is looking for new and innovative ways to improve the customer experience when taking transit," said Gary Miskell, VTA's CIO, in a press release. "Smart Stop provides customers with a quick and simple way to keep informed on their trip."

A mock bus stop will be set up Wednesday between 10am and 3:30pm off Viola Avenue next to the convention center. Conference attendees are encouraged to stop by and hail an approaching bus.

VTA is also demonstrating a dedicated short range communications (DSRC) solution from Renesas Electronics that uses a combination of sensor fusion, 3D surround view and V2X technologies to provide driver warnings for collisions, red lights and road construction. New regulations mandate that V2X technology be integrated with existing vehicle safety features to optimize driver safety and fuel efficiency, and many auto manufacturers are already developing solutions to meet compliance.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • US ITS systems approach critical decision time
    February 3, 2012
    Connie Sorrell, chair of the ITS America Annual Meeting and Exposition, explains why ITS in America is approaching a critical crossroads. Connie Sorrell, as Chief of Systems Operations for the Virginia Department of Transportation, doesn't normally speak in hyperbole, but she can't help but be enthusiastic about this year's ITS America's annual meeting in the nation's capitol, 1-3 June, 2009. Certainly, as Chair of the 2009 ITS America Annual Meeting and Exposition, like everyone who has performed this impo
  • Developments in security for wireless communications networks
    July 20, 2012
    David Crawford looks at new developments in security for wireless communications networks. Wireless communications - including mobile phone links - are well recognised as a key transport technology. They are low-cost, easily installed, well supported by the wider IT industry and offer the protocols of choice for much metropolitan area networking on which transport applications can piggyback.
  • Social media a one-stop shop for travel information
    January 20, 2012
    Exponentially widening mobile phone ownership is opening up the field to new ways of obtaining and disseminating better travel information from and to public transport users, via for example social media and tracking riders' phones. Over 50 US transit agencies, including major actors such as TriMet, in the metropolitan area of Portland, Oregon, Dallas Area Rapid Transit in Texas, and San Francisco's Bay Area Rapid Transit District (BART), as well as smaller operators, now have Facebook and/or Twitter accoun
  • Partnership announced between Econolite and Savari
    October 10, 2016
    Econolite Group has used the ITS World Congress Melbourne to announce it has entered into negotiations with Savari to form a partnership to accelerate the deployment of connected and automated vehicle technologies and solutions. The partners will focus on vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) safety applications.