LTA's S$68m Intelligent Bus Management System
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LTA Press Relase: http://app.lta.gov.sg/apps/news/page.aspx?c=2&id=ab1a34e0-b97d-4bdc-8259-6641d4ca6e5d
Trapeze Press Release: http://www.trapezegroup.se/nyheter/artikel/trapeze-supplies-operations-management-system-to-singapore
Related article: http://mypaper.sg/top-stories/taking-guesswork-out-bus-travel-20140410
What is publicly known from these articles?
- SBS Transit and SMRT Buses Operation Control Centres (OCCs) will be using the same set of software to manage their buses.
- SMRT Buses is already using some form of solution from Trapeze.
- New workstations will replace the existing systems in their respective OCCs.
- Most of the solution deals with the back-end and may utilise existing hardware and equipment. If so, passengers might not observe any visible changes.
What is open to interpretation?
1. New driver device?
A similar system has been recently installed in Canberra, Australia by Trapeze. It may provide clues as to what might be implemented in Singapore buses. However, their next bus prediction is not in full operation yet (testing stage).
The touch-screen units installed in ACTION buses are capable of displaying maps, and the map shifts along with the position of the bus (similar to taxis, the small device below the blue sticker in the photo). They use another Parkeon Wayfarer machine to issue tickets.
The existing DDU used by SBS Transit is certain to be replaced. However, there is the possibility of using the existing On-board Bus Equipment (OBE) as part of this implemenation.
2. New PIS?
Again, Canberra has a complete PIS solution (known as RTPIS and NXTBUS) installed by Trapeze. There are two possibilities to this aspect:
a) Buses with existing PIS may get to keep it
SMRT Buses has an existing passenger information system. It might be wasteful to dipose of the system completely (and the newer LECIP equipment is relatively young), so one possibility is for the new system to feed real-time information through existing hardware if integration is a more cost-effective option.
b) Install new PIS
If this option is chosen, passengers may be in for a treat. These are PIS displays installed by Trapeze in ACTION buses and they make audio announcements as well. They were installed in almost all buses, new or old.
For SBS Transit, this prospect might be promising as none of their buses currently have PIS displays and they may be installed as part of this system.
3. How much control?
Having a unified system under LTA means that the authority effectively decides how much control it wants to take on or give to the operators, which previously was fully at the mercy of operators which essentially developed and own the existing technologies. It can decide to take over certain responsibilities from operators, or to stick to the status quo.
Such a system can be observed in London, which uses a competitive tender system. In London's iBus, Transport for London's CentreCom handles incident management while the depots focus solely on service recovery and monitoring.
4. Still a duopoly?
This development might also translate to lowering the barriers to entry by new operators. If an existing operator exits the business, a new or another existing operator can simply take over without too much hassle. The time is about right to kick off the competitive tender system for public bus routes.
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SMRT PIS info is quite good now... Just that SMRT don't maintain the PIS systems well on some buses, that's why spoil and useless... No need replacement, because is waste of money... Just upgrade the current system if need be and give PROPER MAINTENANCE...
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Originally posted by 23ispolo:
SMRT PIS info is quite good now... Just that SMRT don't maintain the PIS systems well on some buses, that's why spoil and useless... No need replacement, because is waste of money... Just upgrade the current system if need be and give PROPER MAINTENANCE...
You clearly did not read what TS posted.
Well....that's not at all surprising judging from many comments posted here
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In comparison, the contract to install a similar system for ACTION Buses of Canberra is AUD$12.5 million, which works out to be roughly S$35,000 per bus!
There is one thing the critics do have a point, though. Any new system takes time to implement, including this S$68m project. A similiar system implemented in Canberra for ACTION buses was awarded in 2011, and yet their real-time information system (NXTBUS) is still under testing. -
