A World Class Real Time Information Service for Public Transport Users in the West Midlands UK

摘要

The combination of a range of factors including technology convergence, open data initiativesand cuts to governments’ transport budget has created an enabling environment for cheaperand perhaps more efficient ways of harvesting and delivering Real Time PassengerInformation and related projects. In the light of these developments, the way public transportinformation is consumed by commuters has also evolved. Far from the days of having to visitthe nearest bus stop with on-street electronic display to get departure information, passengerscan now receive departure and planned disruption information for their journeys via theinternet and using text messaging query services. Also, it is now possible to receive up to datelocation aware disruptions information on the move via mobile apps developed for GPSenabled Smartphones. Going by this trend, it can be concluded that with the right conditionsin place, passengers’ information needs will continue to evolve and so the passengerinformation industry as well as government transport departments must continue to adapt inorder to successfully address the changes in commuter preference. This paper presents howthe West Midlands Integrated Transport Authority is responding to this emerging problem.