The transit sector is one of many areas that has benefited from technological advancement. Over the years, there have been measures and policies being implemented to help improve the sector’s efficiency. While many of these measures have turned out to be successful, there have also been limitations. Such downsides include people being slow to adapt to these changes.
However, as the demand for better services increases, so has the demand for innovations to help achieve these services. Unlike traditional modes of transportation, where routes were fixed and had many inconveniences, the modern form of transit, like microtransit, has several cost-effective and efficient flexibilities.
Here are some of the top innovations that, when fully implemented, could significantly improve the transit sector and user experience.
Microtransit
One of the significant innovations that helped shape the transit sector, for both customers and service providers, is microtransit. This is a new phenomenon that has been adopted in the transit sector. However, it could be confusing as people don’t understand it. So, what is microtransit?
Microtransit can be described as the opposite of a traditional based mode of transport. The former is demand-based, which means that vehicles can change routes and schedules regularly depending on where customers are. In the traditional model, the car had fixed routes and schedules–even when there were no users, it couldn’t change routes.
A demand-based mode of transport helps companies to go where users are. This effectively helps cut operational costs, such as fuel, and saves time.
GPS Tracking
Global Positioning System (GPS) tracking is an essential tool in fleet management in commercial vehicles as it helps fleet managers to monitor the position of the vehicles when they’re in the field.
Recently, GPS tracking has proven to be more than just a tracking device for vehicles as it has several benefits. For example, managers can use these tracking devices to make informed decisions, such as using the best route to avoid traffic. Managers can also determine which vehicle is closest to a pick-up point, hence they can make a call to significantly cut fuel cost. As a result, fleet tracking helps make commercial vehicles more effective and improves customer satisfaction.
Mobile Ticketing
Mobile ticketing is an innovation that helps people to choose a vehicle, book tickets, and pay fares online. This software is usually installed to a user’s end and accessed through a cloud-based service. The tool then processes and validates the ticket.
This helps remove the need for customers to carry money or have paper tickets while traveling, both of which can easily be lost or stolen. It also reduces congestion during peak traveling seasons as people don’t have to go to a certain location, like bus stops, to travel. This helps save time and improve customer experience as they use your vehicles.
Ridesharing
Ridesharing is the process by which a user enters an arrangement with a car owner to get a ride. It happens through a website or an app where the user indicates the pick-up point and the destination. A fee is then charged according to the company’s (app or website) guidelines, usually charged per mile.
As the demand for more personalized and comfortable travel rises, there’s been the emergence of such services recently. The use of ridesharing is cost-effective as you can cut costs while traveling as a group. This has made it popular among small groups of friends who love to move around cities.
Adoption of SaaS in the Transport Sector
Software as Service (SaaS) is a service provider where companies can use software without downloading it. SaaS has found a home in the transit sector as most companies adopt the technology to help with data collection and visualization, decision making, and advertisement.
Fleet managers who use SaaS in their companies can record high returns compared to on-premise services. In addition, the software can help predict trends in people’s travel and adjust fleet schedules accordingly. They can also store customer data in these cloud services, which can be used to extrapolate customer data points and create a journey map that increases customer experience.
Conclusion
The transit sector is among the customer-centric businesses. This means that the customer needs always come first since without customers, there’ll be no business. With this in mind, innovations are being made to ensure customer needs, such as comfort in travel and very minimal stops when traveling, are achieved.
The innovations also help commercial vehicles significantly reduce operational costs. Low operational costs mean returns on investment will be high. When these innovations are adopted and implemented, the transit sector will improve, providing convenience to everyone.
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