JOIN USBus travel in city set to go 'intelligent' this month
Buses run by the Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) are set to get the Intelligent Transport System (ITS) later this month, Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy has said. The system aims to better serve travellers and check revenue pilferage.
The BMTC is ready to instal the system and conducted trial runs. It’s just waiting for Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to inaugurate it. Reddy said the system would help the corporation plug revenue pilferage and get onto the path of profit.
The ITS promises to revolutionise bus travel in Bengaluru. Once the system is installed, travellers will be able to trace the location of buses in real time, the likeliest time of their arrival at bus stops and the number of empty seats, if any. It will reduce their waiting time by providing them real-time information on the bus movement through an online tracking system.
The BMTC too will benefit. The system will help the corporation calculate trip-wise revenue, learn about irregular trip-operation, accident or breakdown of a bus, the driving behaviour of drivers and what not. Officials will get the information on their fingertips. “We can immediately intervene and take action if a driver commits road rage,” an official said.
What is ITS?
The ITS is used across the globe by transport utilities to better supervise their fleet services, better inform commuters on the running buses and provide instant information about traffic management and revenue collection.
The ITS will have three different subsystems: Vehicle Tracking System (VTS), Electronic Ticketing System (ETS) and Passenger Information System (PIS). Under the PIS, digital signboards will be installed at major bus stations and Traffic and Transit Management Centres (TTMCs) such as Shanthinagar and Yeshwantpur to provide information to passengers.
The BMTC has installed the VTS in its entire fleet. The EVM is being used by bus conductors. Both the VTU and the ETM are GPRS-enabled and send instant information to the BMTC’s central control room about the buses and revenue collection.
What commuters say
Shailaja Shekaran, a private employee who regularly travels by BMTC bus, said the ITS would help women passengers like her, especially at night. “Instead of wasting time waiting for the bus, we can arrive at the bus stop in time by tracking the location of the bus,” she said.
Renuka, a student, said digital signboards at bus stops would help track the arrival of buses.