GPS Tracking ROI

You’ve seen me talk about the usefulness and the distinct return on investment (ROI) of tracking your city’s public transportation with GPS many times in the past. One of the principal reasons you get an ROI is the fact that it makes your system more accessible and useful to the rider … ergo … better returns in the farebox.

Aside from the cost of equipping your vehicles the really big cost of systems like this is making the data available to the public. Specialized transportation route maps are expensive to produce and, if you’ve ever looked at many of them there’s a depressing lack of standardization and user friendliness between different systems. What to do? here’s this Mr. GPS guy advocating that we spend our hard-earned tax dollar again, right?

Wrong. Mr. GPS says … Google it! See the nice little map snippet? Looks familiar, even at this scale. The gray line down the right-hand side is a test trip planning route I plugged into the system and got back a (literally) step by step route that told me when I could leave, how far I had to walk, what public transport to take for the main part of the trip, and how much it would cost me.

If you don’t recognize the mapped area, it is down town Portland, Oregon. And how much does this service cost Portland you might ask? Zero. Zip. Nada. No cost. It’s one of many cities already accommodated in Google’s Transit Trip Planner, part of the ever-growing Google labs.

I’ve already shown you numerous times how cities can put their live GPS tracking data on Google Maps, making it available to the public. Now, even if you don’t have live data, Google can make your transit system sing, for residents and visitors alike.

To test the usefulness to visitors I changed the parameters of my search and typed in PDX as my distant end. PDX is the three-letter airport designator for the Portland airport .. don’t worry you don’t have to remember it, it will be plastered all over your luggage and ticket if you fly to Portland. Why would I care about the airport designator for a tool like this? That’s easy. Quick, give me street address of your closest airport. Give me the street address for the Los Angeles International Airport? bet you don’t have it memorized (it’s LAX Airport, 7301 World Way West, Los Angeles, CA 90045 by the way) but travelers all over the world understand LAX, and so does Google. Clever.

Here’s how you would get from the original test address to Portland’s airport, the times you can leave, the costs and every thing you need to travel smartly and arrive on time, as cheaply as possible and in an environmentally sound manner. (more…)

Does this sound like your city?

“I’ve had numerous complaints with regard to buses not running according to bus schedules so I want to find out from transit just how efficiently and effectively it’s running,” he said.

“I think we should look at putting GPS systems on board to help determine whether buses are running on the correct route at the correct time.” (Alderman Andre Chabot)

And does this sound like the genuine bull puckey your transit administrators hand out when asked to justify their level of performance, keep the public (who pays their salary, after all) informed about their transit system?

Calgary Transit spokesman Ron Collins said bus routes are strictly monitored by supervisors to ensure buses are on schedule and all are in constant radio contact.  Full news item is here:

Well I’ve got news for Mr. Collins, and for Alderman Chabot, (who already knows), Calgary, you have a problem, and, like a great many cities you are just sweeping it under the rug.

Facts Of Life (like your mother never told you)

• Public transportation is a necessity in today’s energy deprived world.  A bus is about 40 times more efficient than a driver-only BMW in getting people to and from their work, shopping, doctor’s visits, etc.
• Poor people don’t have BMW’s to drive (and many handicapped people can’t drive anything).  Transportation managers typically have their own vehicles, drive when and how they please (often at city expense) and really don’t give a care about those “second class citizens” who don’t have a car.  Public transit is typically run as a necessary evil by governments and they make no secret of the fact they wish the need would go away.
• The only government officials who don’t want public transport disappear are those dedicated to waiting out their time to collect retirement from the taxpayers … at least that’s my opinion when it comes to cities like Calgary.
• Public Transport does now have to operate at a loss and it doesn’t have to be a necessary evil.  But it does have to be managed.  You can’t manage what you can’t measure and dubious statements which are just personal opinion about schedule adherence and service levels are just that … opinion.  You can’t run a bus line without knowing what your busses are doing.
• Attempting to manage driver performance by sending out supervisors to observe is not only downright dumb, it’s expensive.  Typically supervisors get paid more than drivers and the supervisor should either be performing true management level duties or s/he ought to be driving a bus.  “Spot” checks don’t accomplish much and if you keep a supervisor on the streets you are essentially paying an employee more than a driver to do a lot less work.  Logic, Jim?
• Keeping track of schedules via voice radio is dead wrong.  It costs a lot of money for equipment, it costs a lot of money in labor and the whole procedure is fraught with errors …drivers may give “optimistic” information about where they are and if a driver is lost … well then how the heck can you direct him/her via voice radio.

Here’s a sample of how Calgary Transit “cares” for their riders:

The complete map is here:

Pick a corner, any corner, and tell me how you would get to another location in the city?  The damn routes aren’t even shown … you have to look at what line passes a corner and then look in the little tags to see what other corners that bus route passes.  I mean, we could make a decent map but who cares, my BMW already has on-board GPS navigation.

Here’s a sample of what a city who gives a care could do:

Notice anything different?  yeah they not only show the routes they show the busses and rider’s, those woeful souls who aren’t clogging the freeways in their BMW’s can even see where the busses are.  And they can even tell when they should go out and wait for the bus.  What a concept.  See it live here:

So what will you accept from your city?  More sit on their hands, do it like we’ve always done?  Or visible, publicly accessible proof that your transit management is doing their part to earn their salaries?  As say here in the Philippines, ” ’sup to you”

Greyhound Australia, the only national coach operator in the country, has successfully implemented a SiemensVDO Fleet Management solution, designed and developed by Control Instruments (CI) OmniBridge. This strategic decision was taken to fulfill the Engineering Standard requirement, tracking and communicating in a cost saving way. The FM Locator, developed by CI OmniBridge and sold by SiemensVDO world-wide, is an on-board computer that includes an internally mounted GPS engine to record GPS positions along with trip information and when combined with a GSM/GPRS module allows remote communication between the office and vehicle for active tracking and exception reporting.
The FM Locator is reasonably priced for the initial set up and installation costs. There’s excellent benefits from this solution especially tracking and tracing vehicles traveling long distances.
This solution has great benefits, for instance, in a critical event the FM Locator transmits data via GPRS or issues SMS alerts which allow Greyhound to manage its fleet in real-time. The FM Locator captures vehicle performance and monitors driver performance like overspeeding and excessive idling. This also tracks stops; records planned time of start and planned duration of each stop, and measures deviations to ensure the best possible arrival and departure planning for Greyhound’s passengers. Full Text Here:

Now if you were responsible for this network, would you be comfortable sending out employees, expensive vehicles and passengers without knowing where they are?

I surely wouldn’t, and Greyhound Australia wasn’t either.  They chose a product that really will give an ROI (Return On Investment) as well.  This decision will not cost Greyhound Australia, it will pay, and pay off big.

For years the chosen provider, Siemens VDO supplied systems known in the trade as “tachographs”.  These devices tracked all sorts of important parameters of vehicle and driver performance but steadfastly ignored one of the most important … location.  Knowing a driver has been speeding is one thing, knowing he is speeding and where and when is a totally different level of management info.

Kudos to Greyhound Australia for modernizing and kudos yo Siemens for at last recognizing the “Power of Place”

 

New GPS system wise investment

We are excited to see that the Student Association is making an effort to put student funding in an area that will directly benefit the student body.

As discussed at the SA meeting Sunday, plans are in the works to implement a GPS system for the Huskie Bus Line, at an estimated cost of about $11,000 for the entire project.

Many students are familiar with the frustrations that can come with waiting for a bus to get to class. Once the cold temperatures and freezing winds of DeKalb hit, it’s rather unpleasant to wait outside for a bus only to find it pass you by because it’s filled to capacity.

The GPS system would help cut back on this irritation by allowing students to track where the buses are on their respective routes. By accessing an interactive map on NIU’s Web site, students could figure out what time they need to leave their apartment or residence hall room in order to catch the next bus… Full Article Here:

Not exactly earth-shattering news here today, but perhaps it is worth reading even for the experts.  Every day we hear more and more about global warming and about our limited fossil fuel resources.  However, we all to seldom hear anything positive that we can do about these problems we’re leaving to out children and grandchildren.

I hate to let in in on a secret that is so mundane, but one of the real mitigating actions for both problems if public transpo.  Yes I know, you’re college-educated, rich, got investments in the stock market, drive a Beemer and only poor people ride busses. (more…)

 

5 drivers guilty of falsifying logbooks

Federal ‘Safe Roads’ probe escalated in ‘03 after fatal accident

By JOHN ELLIS THE FRESNO BEE

Last Updated: October 13, 2006, 05:43:46 AM PDT

FRESNO — Five truckers pleaded guilty Wednesday to falsifying their driver’s logs, bringing to an end a major federal investigation of the practice in the commercial-trucking industry.

The deal between prosecutors and the five defendants came on the day their trial was to begin. Each of the defendants faces up to five years in prison and a possible $250,000 fine. They will be sentenced Dec. 18.

In all, six companies and more than two dozen defendants faced criminal charges in U.S. District Court as a result of the investigation, which was known as “Operation Safe Roads.” The investigation began in 2003 but intensified after a fatal accident in September of that year that decapitated a man and his son on an Arizona highway…. Full Article Is Here: 

Just a little short note in here to point up a problem I have identified for you many, many times in the past.  HOS, Hours Of Service for commercial drivers.  Now admittedly using GPS tracking wouldn’t have helped this company much, since the president and the safety officer have both been shown to be guilty, but what would happen to your company tomorrow if the federal investigators came knocking at your door?

Could you prove that your driver’s logbooks (often known as “swindle sheets” for obvious reasons) were accurate?  Would you be able to prove that as a company officer you had been monitoring your trucks and had a method in place to prove which driver was at the wheel and that you had been doing your job as manager to follow the law and keep your drivers and the highway public safe?

Well for about the cost of one big rig tire you could have, and unlike a tire the “silent witness” GPS would last for millions of miles.  When it comes to cost benefit or outright rate of return there is just absolutely no reason not to safeguard yourself and the rest of us.

You know it has occurred to me that some folks may back away from known benefits of GPS tracking because they just don’t realize they have the right to use it, the system is fully paid for by our taxes and unlike radios there is no licensing or government regulation to trouble a business owner.

GPS tracking saves lives, saves fuel, makes profit.  No license required, climb on board.

London tests satellite tracking

TfL could use satellite technology for more flexible road-use charge

Dave Friedlos, Computing 05 Oct 2006

Transport for London (TfL) has completed a London-wide test of satellite tracking technology with a view to establishing more flexible congestion charge pricing.

Computing has learned that TfL tested a number of devices, including custom-built in-vehicle units and PDAs, to track cars accurately through London streets.

The trials were staged to gather route data and overcome common problems such as loss of signal when a vehicle enters a tunnel, or passes through a dense block of tall buildings… Full Article Here:

Lately I seem to be running heavily to British subject matter, but I can’t help it, I only report the news as it happens. I wrote about Transport for London earlier. TfL will be installing GPS tracking on buses, reporting back both to dispatch centers and public information kiosks to improve transport efficiency and increase ridership (as in profit and more profit).

As you ca see from the quoted article there also a lot going on regarding Pay As You Drive (PAYD) toll, taxation and cutting down city traffic by offering incentives for off-peak traffic use. It all sounds great to me, except for one thing.

The dreaded urban canyon effect. When a GPS receiver can view a large part of the sky … on the order of half the sky or more, it will work great. There are virtually always 12 satellites in view from anywhere on earth and a receiver needs on four satellites to get a decent “fix”. However, when you are down between tall buildings in a big city … the so-called “urban canyon”, GPS can come up with wildly inaccurate readings or just shut down altogether until more ’sky’ becomes visible.

This is well known, long known and, in my view, is a black eye on the face of many GPS manufacturers. They just ignore the problem instead of bringing out receivers that could cure the problem.

The best solution is a dual-mode GPS chip that takes positron from the sky when available and runs in a self-contained inertial mode when not enough satellites are in view. Inertial navigation is a much older science than GPS. It involves sensing the movement and direction of a vehicle and then calculating the vehicle’s position from where it was last know, Many years ago this was an expensive, mechanically complex undertaking. Today there are inertial navigator self-contained chips that are roughly the size of pure GPS internal chips. There is an added cost but most of that cost would go away rapidly if manufacturers just realized they were in the navigation business and not the GPS business. GPS receivers today are a fifth the cost that they were 2 years ago and the price continues in free fall. Add on inertial capability would fall just as rapidly if anyone decided to live up to their responsibilities.

I don’t often cover much in the way of general business tools here, but a new business resource web site opened today that I consider to be a good value:

http://www.work.com/fleet-management-for-small-bus…

The site is loaded with free resources that seem to have a lot of value for small businesses … and they found and recommended the GPS Tracking Blog, so how can they go wrong?  *smile*  The site just opened for public business and I am finding that there’s a wealth of information there, recommended.