As I Have Said Before, GPS Increases Ridership
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March 6th, 2008
Here’s some nice confirmation from the Silicon Valley area that riders, and therefore profits in public transportation appreciate the technology of GPS tracking:
Q When will VTA’s bus No. 522 begin using transponders that are supposed to turn traffic lights green as the bus approaches?
A The buses already do, but it will get better. Bus No. 522 - an express bus that makes fewer stops than the regular No. 22 line - already has a signal priority that extends the green or reduces the red light when a bus approaches one of 55 intersections from El Camino Real in Palo Alto to Race Street in San Jose.
This system relies on trip loops in the pavement to make the light change. But loops can be troublesome when not working properly, something that happens due to potholes, the pounding of traffic, repaving etc. So the Valley Transportation Authority is moving to GPS to trip lights using a radio signal. This technology will be installed at 30-plus intersections this spring. The other 55 intersections will get GPS next year.
Weekday ridership on lines 22 and 522 is 23,000, the best-used in the county, carrying 22 percent of VTA’s bus riders.
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