Kerala’s public transport sector is waking up to the times, with Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) planning to roll out a slew of measures in the second half of the year to reach out to commuters.

The agency and its subsidiary Kerala Urban Road Transport Corporation (KURTC), which operates its fleet of high-value low-floor buses, often came under attack for not rising to commuter expectations and for not providing timely feedback on bus services.

Information system

Prominent among the technological innovations that the agencies intend to implement to increase passenger patronage and to impart information to passengers is a public information system (PIS). “This will be similar to information available at airports and railway stations on services and trips during the next few hours. It will provide details like location of a bus, expected time and arrival, number of vacant seats, etc. The software for the mobile app has been put through trials. It will be implemented after polls,” KSRTC sources said.

The PIS will help spot booking through the mobile app. It will also have a trigger option to alert passengers of the bus of their choice through a specific route. Currently, passengers and even station masters are in the dark about the location of a bus, since they only have data on time of arrival and departure. Aimed at tracking buses, global positioning system (GPS) has been fitted in 530 buses and it will be extended to 4,000 buses.

Low-floor and super-class buses will shortly have LED displays to provide information to passengers and to stream visual advertisements. This will be implemented with private partnership on a revenue-sharing basis. The agencies will not have to bear any expenses for installing and maintaining LED screens.

Wi-Fi

Another value addition in the offing is Wi-Fi connectivity in low-floor and super-class buses. Two low- floor and two multi-axle buses already have this. Browsing is free for first 15 minutes.

The agencies have also held discussions with SBI and Federal Bank to introduce fare collection using multi-purpose smart card. The expression of interest will be published post polls.

By introducing these measures, they plan to maximise fleet utility and increase fare collection.

Public Information System to provide details like location of a bus, expected time and number of vacant seats

News : The Hindu

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