Buses equipped so that passengers know when their ride will arrive are about to be wheeled out around the province, including in Greater Victoria.
NextRide “automatic vehicle location” technology is coming to seven communities, beginning next month in Nanaimo.
The Comox Valley will follow in June, Squamish and Whistler are next with summer starts, Kamloops and Kelowna welcome the technology in the fall, and Greater Victoria in winter 2018-19.
NextRide will supply customers with real-time data that tells them where their bus is and when it is predicted to arrive at a particular stop. It will allow people to make use of a website that lets them plan a bus trip with a mobile device or desktop computer that is Internet-connected.
People will have access to the information through a web browser and all of the data will be open source, meaning it can be integrated into other systems.
Both video and GPS tracking will be used, and arrival times will be calculated based on the speed and location of buses.
Passenger-counting devices are also being installed to help with planning of routes and schedules. The counts will be shared with riders as part of the NextRide display of information, to give an indication of how full the next bus will be.
The system will provide alerts about detours, traffic incidents and other delays, helping B.C. Transit to adjust how it deploys buses, and to keep riders informed.
Next-bus information will be displayed on signs at major bus exchanges. On board buses, the next stop will be shown on an electronic board and also announced by an automated voice.
The technology will be added to all conventional buses, with only handyDART buses not equipped.
B.C. Transit president and chief executive Manuel Achadinha said in a statement that the incoming technology “will help to improve the efficiency of our services and our customers’ overall transit experience.”
B.C. Transportation Minister Claire Trevena said NextRide will be helpful for current riders and an incentive for others to begin taking the bus.
Funding for the $11.8-million provincewide project has come from the Public Transit Infrastructure Fund, a joint effort involving the federal and provincial governments.
Similar real-time systems are already in place in a number of cities, including Vancouver, Calgary and Brampton, Ont.
