Siemens And Trapeze Group Team Up To Improve San Antonio, TX Bus System Travel Times

Siemens Road and City Mobility business has worked together with Trapeze Group to create a GPS-based bus rapid transit system that keeps San Antonio’s new VIA Primo bus fleet on-schedule with minimal impact on individual traffic flow. The new transit signal priority (TSP) solution is the first of its kind to use a “virtual” GPS-based detection zone for transit vehicle traffic management without the need of physical detector equipment at the intersection. This solution allows the VIA Primo fleet’s on-board computer to automatically request a green light when the bus is behind schedule and approaching a busy intersection, improving travel times and getting riders to their destinations faster.

San Antonio’s VIA Metropolitan Transit identified the need for a new bus rapid transit (BRT) system called VIA Primo, but wanted to avoid adding new hardware on the street that would require construction delays and increased costs. The “virtual” detection zones are installed digitally on city traffic servers, unlike most BRT systems that use physical detector equipment hardwired to traffic controllers. The zones can be easily adjusted in response to changes in traffic flow due to special events or construction. The flexibility also means VIA and the city can add BRT lines around the region by simply creating a new route and configuring the new detection zones accordingly. This custom solution can be easily implemented in other cities across the United States.

“This solution allows riders to get to their destination on time, and it will ultimately encourage more usage of the bus system as reliability improves, reducing congestion and greenhouse emissions as people switch from car to bus travel,” said Frank LoPresti, vice president of Siemens Road and City Mobility business. “This solution can be implemented in any U.S. city and is a perfect example of how our new technology improves the quality of life of riders while avoiding expensive construction and traffic delays associated with installation. Siemens is excited to work with San Antonio to offer such innovative infrastructure improvements.”

1 2 3 Next › Last »