Explore Live NextBus Implementation
We now have more than 50 North American transit systems using real-time reporting on 100s of routes. Please begin with a virtual visit to the new NextBus installation at MIT in Cambridge, MA--and from there to all of our live installations. Click here to begin your exploration.
Feb
24
NextBus Adds 22 New North American Installations in Past Year
Filed Under Feature Stories, Municipal Transit, NextBus, Inc., University Transit | Leave a Comment
35% Growth Includes 7 New Municipal and 15 University Systems
Real-time passenger information systems pioneer strengthens its leadership role in the United States and Canada. Millions of passengers, thousands of buses, and hundreds of new routes now benefit from NextBus technology. Total installations approach 65 with more on the way.
Here is the list of 22 new NextBus installations
| California-Northern | Unitrans ASUCD/City of Davis |
| California-Southern | UCLA |
| District of Columbia | WMATA Washington |
| Florida | Nova Southeastern University |
| Maryland | Charm City Circulator |
| Maryland | Towson University |
| Maryland | University of Maryland |
| Maryland | University of Baltimore |
| Massachusetts | MBTA |
| New Jersey | New Jersey Transit |
| New Jersey | Rutgers Univ. Newark College Town Shuttle |
| North Carolina | East Carolina University |
| North Carolina | University of North Carolina |
| Ontario | Niagara Falls Transit |
| Ontario | Toronto Transit Commission |
| Pennsylvania | Allegheny College |
| Pennsylvania | Slippery Rock University |
| Quebec | Societe de transport de Laval |
| Texas | University of Houston |
| Texas | Texas State University |
Feb
24
Another Canadian City Adopts NextBus Technology
Filed Under Municipal Transit, Real-time Passenger Information Systems, WebTech Wireless | Leave a Comment
Welland to Install Real-time Passenger Info and Stop Annunciation System on 15 Buses
NextBus® will soon be helping bus passengers in the city of Welland, Ontario thanks to a contract won by its parent company, WebTech Wireless. The NextBus® real-time passenger information solution including the first sale of the NextBus® Stop Annunciation System, which provides riders with visual and audio information on the bus’ route and next stop.
The contract includes an initial installation of the system on 15 buses and represents an approximate value of CDN $140,000. The City of Welland, located in the Regional Municipality of Niagara, has a population of 50,000 and currently operates buses on 14 routes.
Owen Moore, COO at WebTech Wireless said, "NextBus® is also proving to be highly adaptable to customer needs, and we’re very pleased that when Welland Transit needed a very cost-effective bus stop announcement system, they chose our NextBus® suite over that of competitors."
Commenting on the sales, Scott Edmonds, WebTech Wireless’ President and CEO said, "We’re seeing that activity in the government sector for our InterFleet® and NextBus® solutions is strong and growing as more and larger government agencies are becoming aware of the technological superiority and potential for customization that our products provide. I’m very pleased with the work of our InterFleet ®and NextBus® teams as they continue to outpace our competitors in pursuit of rewarding contracts such as these and others on the horizon."
Feb
15
How Cities Like Chicago Can Do More with Less to Reduce Winter Woes In Spite of Shrunken Transit Budgets
Filed Under Uncategorized | Leave a Comment
Real-time Passenger Information from NextBus Provides the Key
Chicago typifies what’s happening to municipal transit systems across the country. Cities large and small must endure drastically reduced budgets that reflect widespread tax and revenue shortfalls. Even though ridership has been increasing, the tax revenue that is also vital to supporting those transit operations has fallen dramatically as unemployment has risen in United States. Thus, Chicago’s CTA was forced to slash costs in ways that are affecting their riders at the coldest time of the year.
The CTA cuts were implemented February 2010 on 119 bus routes and seven rail lines. In addition, 41 bus routes have reduced hours of service, and nine express bus routes have been cut. CTA President Richard Rodriguez indicated that more than 1,000 employees have also been laid off.
How Real-time Passenger Information System Benefits Can Balance the Effect of Budget Reductions
- Maximize system efficiency to get the most of available people and capital assets. A myriad of problems confront transit executives as they work to achieve on-time results both consistently and cost effectively. Intelligent transportation technologies from NextBus empower executives by showing them what is working well and what is working poorly for every vehicle and every route. In addition,
easy to generate reports point the way to facilitating changes that improve on-time performance on all routes. - Make system wide scheduling highly predictable to benefit both managers and riders. An efficient transit system requires a high degree of predictability. It is extremely difficult to provide that predictability without AVL
& APC systems that provide continuous updates—and takes into consideration random factors such as vehicle breakdowns, traffic jams, and unexpected emergencies. NextBus was designed from the ground up to provide accurate arrival times across a variety of routes. - Put accurate ridership and other operations performance data to get the most from every bus and every route. Optimal transit efficiency depends not only on getting buses and trains to each stop in time, but also on the balancing of passenger loads to prevent both overcrowding and empty vehicles. Our passenger counting capabilities smooth passenger demand spikes throughout the day and reduce demand for additional vehicles during peak periods.
- Balance the high cost of fuel by minimizing mileage. Real-time passenger information enables managers to minimize the use of expensive fuel without compromising service levels. They can improve efficiencies by making a broad range of operational changes from major to minor. Thus, you can serve more passengers and more routes while keeping bus mileage to a minimum.
Feb
5
As Winter Wallops Washington Again, NextBus Keeps Passengers Out of the Cold
Filed Under AVL Systems, Municipal Transit, Real-time Passenger Information Systems, Success Stories | Leave a Comment
As our nation’s capital and much of the East Coast prepares to be blasted by yet another storm, WMATA passengers will be able to minimize the time they spend freezing outdoors thanks for the NextBus real-time passenger information system.
Before the DC area’s WMATA agency implemented the NextBus solution, passengers were forced to rely on static schedules that did not reflect the kind of havoc a winter storm can bring. Although there are printed schedule might have shown that the bus would arrive at 10 AM, the effect of blizzard conditions would be felt all day long–and certainly disrupt normal arrival times. Even in normal conditions, buses often arrive somewhat early or late, but severe weather circumstances can create drastic delays that would leave uninformed writers stuck in frosty conditions for an uncomfortable length of time.
Because NextBus predictions are continually adjusted based on actual conditions, riders need suffer interminable waits at bus stops for snow delayed buses. Instead, they can access real-time data on their PC, on their smart phone or even by dialing in on a regular phone to get the most current arrival information.
Passengers can also watch bus progress in real-time on the NextBus Live Map or Google Maps for a further reality check.
Thanks to NextBus, riders DC area riders can stay warm even in the worst of winter storms.