Public Transport 2.0 2022 by Passenger Transport Publishing Ltd

PUBLIC TRANSPORT 2.0 THE FUTURE OF TRAVEL 2022

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Transportation

Transform the way the world travels We deliver mission-critical mobility and payment solutions that automate, streamline, and optimize transportation operations, to cut congestion and create safe, seamless journeys for everyone. Together, we can transform the way the world travels, making it faster, easier, and friendlier to the planet.

Fare Collection MaaS Fleet Management Account-Based Ticketing Mobile Ticketing Open Payments Mobility Analytics

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02/05/2022 20:24

P U B L I C T R A N S P O R T 2.0 _ W E LC O M E

WELCOME TO THE 2022 EDITION OF PUBLIC TRANSPORT 2.0: THE FUTURE OF TRAVEL THIS PUBLICATION FOCUSES ON HOW PUBLIC TRANSPORT IS HARNESSING INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY TO MEET OUR EVOLVING MOBILITY NEEDS. WE HOPE YOU FIND IT AN INTERESTING READ AND WE WELCOME ALL FEEDBACK CONTENTS

5 FOREWORD Leon Daniels says transport professionals must harness technology to meet challenges

7 FIVE TRENDS Giles Bailey identifies major trends that have changed the mobility landscape

11 TICKETER Ticketer and FARA are looking to place the passenger at the heart of a travel revolution

11 15

15 CONDUENT 5

Conduent Transportation is using technology to create simple and seamless public transport

19 PASSENGER Passenger has developed new tools to support public transport users on the move

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Editor: Robert Jack / Deputy Editor: Andrew Garnett / Designer: Keith Simpson Passenger Transport Publishing Limited, PO Box 5496, Westbury, BA13 9BX, United Kingdom T: +44 (0)20 3950 8000 / E: editorial@passengertransport.co.uk / W: www.passengertransport.co.uk / twitter: @passtrans

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Tap On Tap Off Frictionless Travel with one simple tap out using a contactless card or phone. With the pole mounted Tap On / Tap Off reader paired to a Ticketer ETM, you're no longer forced to change your fare structure in order to introduce Account-Based Ticketing.

0203 195 8800 ticketer.com/TOTO info@ticketer.co.uk

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01/05/2022 09:46

P U B L I C T R A N S P O R T 2.0 _ F O R E W O R D

WE MUST SCAN THE HORIZON TRANSPORT PROFESSIONALS MUST HARNESS TECHNOLOGY TO MEET THE HUGE CHALLENGES THEY FACE hen I wrote the introduction for this publication in January 2020 no one could possibly have foreseen that nearly two and a half years later everything in our private and professional lives would have been affected so severely by Coronavirus. So much has been written about it and its effects that all audiences might well be very worn down especially as facts get mixed with speculation and predictions of the future get driven by guesswork. It does feel to me, however, that those couple of years of trauma and troubles have in fact catapulted us forward in time many more years. The general trend towards home shopping has become a huge leap; contactless payments have already become the default payment for a huge number of retail transactions. More flexible working (which in 2020 had made Fridays a softer day than the rest of the working week) is now much more established and indeed many employers are having some trouble in getting people back into their places of work at all which in turn is affecting traditional retail. In the UK, for example, the government’s attempts to restart the economy have been combined with established policies, including the phasing out of fossil fuels, a regeneration of bus networks and a whole new approach for rail. Progress in all these areas has become urgent government policy, although it seems aspirations far outstrip funding. Astute commentators and professionals remain openminded on zero emission technology. Battery electric is arriving quickly in cars, buses and vans. The well-known limitations concerning power supply,

charging times and range appear to be overcome by hydrogen but that seems to have been the case since my first experience with hydrogen buses in 2004. Operating at scale still remains ‘just around the corner’. This must surely be resolved soon as it seems very unlikely that battery electric will be the right answer for heavy truck and coach inside the timescales currently in plan. Mobility as a Service and Demand Responsive Transport are intertwined but still, postCoronavirus, financially successful examples seem hard to find. Some suspicion has crept into the MaaS market as providers are clearly using algorithms to optimise journeys - but optimise for whom? There is evidence that some algorithms are being developed so that the journey is routed so that the provider earns the best commission from the operators involved rather than provides the best service for the customer. This will do much damage to this type of product - in a market where

“What does make life so complicated now, though, is the great uncertainty over revenue. It does feel that a significant number of passenger journeys have now been lost - for all the reasons that Coronavirus encouraged” even simple rail fare ‘deals’ are treated with suspicion. Demand responsive services remain financially fragile, and many are launched with great fanfare yet withdrawn quietly. The root cause of course is that a small bus/large taxi rather needs to be busy all day to pay all the costs of which the driver is the largest part. No wonder then that operators look forward to autonomous operation so that this cost can

be saved. There is a growing viewpoint that such services will take root first in outer suburbs and less urban places where there is not much regular public transport and where the financials with be transformed without the driver. Autonomous vehicles still remain a key technology target. The development of course is costing billions but the players are way beyond the traditional manufacturers. It is yet to be seen whether the earliest successes will come from OEMs, specialists in their supply chain or substantiallyfunded new entities altogether. What does make life so complicated now, though, is the great uncertainty over revenue. It does feel that a significant number of passenger journeys have now been lost - for all the reasons that Coronavirus encouraged. A small chink of light is that it does seem there has been a rebalancing between peak and off-peak such that expensive peak hour operations may not be needed in future leading to some economies. Most worrying though is the significant loss of hard-core passengers. Adding to the reduced reasons to travel is the car-led recovery (on the spurious grounds of infection risk). With so much new technology, an increased investment required across wide-ranging technical developments, and the huge pressure on business costs generated by the geopolitical situation, transport professionals are facing potentially their biggest challenges ever. Once again, we must be scanning the horizon for clues as to how our businesses are going to develop in the future. Leon Daniels n www.leondaniels.co.uk

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01/05/2022 09:47

P U B L I C T R A N S P O R T 2.0 _ K E Y TR E N D S

London's Waterloo station pictured during the weekday rush hour before the pandemic. Travel flows as a consequence of Covid-19 are much more continuous and fluid

WELCOME TO 2022 AND BEYOND IN MOBILITY GILES BAILEY IDENTIFIES FIVE MAJOR TRENDS DRIVEN BY COVID-19 THAT HAVE CHANGED THE MOBILITY LANDSCAPE o you really remember 2019, or 2018, and can you clearly and distinctly outline the differences in (mobility) behaviour between now and then? For that matter, do you want to identify the differences or would you rather simply package up the last two years, put them into a box and forget them?! There have been many changes in the context of mobility over the last two years. Here are five things for the future of mobility and the challenges that we, as global societies, face.

‘Work’ and where and how and in many cases why we work have all subtly or substantially changed on a global scale. Years of evolution of the workspace have been compressed into months. While, not for all – although I would argue that even the most stubborn ‘non-work from home’ roles are seeing changes occur on the margins – for many people work is now a continuum of home, remote sites, in transit and at offices. The balance can shift depending on seniority, contractual roles,

Giles K Bailey is a Director at Stratageeb, a London based consultancy assisting with strategic vision and innovation. n www.stratageeb.co.uk

company culture, workforce distribution, family needs or simply employee desires. However, for many people simply expecting to be in an office all day to work, and then to leave and not work is a disappointing concept. This shift has fundamentally changed the nature and need for mobility. Travel flows as a consequence are much more continuous and fluid. This is not to say that there is no commute, but it may be later, more dispersed or localised, be linked to seeing clients or colleagues, be combined with other social or personal

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P U B L I C T R A N S P O R T 2.0 _ K E Y TR E N D S

appointments or concentrated on certain days of the week. And critically for the transport industry, travellers in the peak will be far less willing to be made ‘cash cows’ of the industry able to be ‘peak priced’ and compressed into vehicles to maximise the potential revenue streams.

Cleanliness will continue to have a large impact on how people choose their travel choices

people will never board a crowded train – although some will not, but how crowded for how long, how refreshed will the on board ventilation be, does it seem clean or well cared for will be the context around which many will choose how to travel. This doesn’t need to be a fundamental barrier to public transport, but unless operators understand and respond to these concerns it will steadily

“The public will expect flexible, multi-modal, seamless ticketing solutions and not single mode, fixed peak season tickets”

Oliver Foerstner / Shutterstock

An important consequence of this flexibility will be that when faced with “travel stress” – industrial action, extreme weather, renewed health scares, fuel price spikes, or even very favourable weather many will simply choose to not travel and will be perfectly able and comfortable to continue with work without the need for the transport system. The system has lost its monopoly on mobility! Hygiene, cleanliness, personal space and environment will continue to have a large impact on how people choose and perceive their travel choices. It is not that

erode their market. A consequential issue will be the reaction of travellers in confined spaces to someone who appears ill. The tolerance for those who appear ill and have not taken precautions will be limited and weaken the confidence of all of those on the public systems. These factors will mean that peak revenues will decline, cleaning and maintenance costs will increase, and travel demand will be dispersed and potentially more expense to serve. The public will expect flexible, multi-modal, seamless ticketing solutions and not single mode, fixed peak season tickets. The public transport industry was never a very profitable business and its ability to self-sustain itself on ticketing revenues has become decidedly weaker! Other financial support will become more critical if these systems are to survive. Meanwhile, the basic issues that we have been facing for many years remain and in a number of cases have become much more acute.

Nordhavn in the docklands in Copenhagen is an example of a livable and sustainable development that aims to create create pleasant and engaging places for people

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Fundamentally, the climate! The COP process eventually arrived in Glasgow, Scotland in late 2021 in the midst of the Covid crisis and will move on to Egypt in November 2022. The consequences of uncontained climate change will get progressively worse in the coming years. It will take substantial and unprecedented global efforts to meet this challenge and Covid has in no way changed this. Decarbonisation of human life, and particularly transport, is critical and needs to happen as soon as possible. As the pandemic fades, radical action to address climate change can again be expected to become a more common reaction in public discourse. For many people this is and will become a non-negotiable issue that will define how they will expect society, business and government to operate in the future. However, we risk decarbonising transport without creating the benefits of sustainable mobility and liveable cities!

Liveable and sustainable places – whether large or small cities or towns need to start from the need to create pleasant and engaging places for people. People focussed places do not start from fast moving, large scale parking lots and expanses of roadways. This is whether these roadways are for petrol or electric vehicles as well as whether they are selfdriving or not. People centres places will be supported by robust public transport systems, have facilities for deliveries, as well as robust availability of a range of micro-mobility options. They cater for the young, but also reflect the needs of the pervasive ageing in global societies. This is an ageing population that still expects to be active and productive in society. And, yes, some parking and driving facilities will also be needed. These types of spaces are already becoming increasingly popular and attractive to civic leaders, citizens, visitors and

The COP Summit was held in Scotland in 2021. It is clear it will take unprecedented global efforts to meet the climate crisis challenge

are simply not grasping the scale of the need, as well as the opportunity of the micro-mobility revolution, while pandering to the needs of those who want inaction or the car based status quo to continue.

5 Working from home has fundamentally changed the nature and need for mobility

businesses and have the ability to deliver true low carbon lifestyles. And, to deliver cities that can respond effectively to growth. The examples are widespread and increasing such as the new Kings Cross development in London; the CityLife redevelopment of the former fairgrounds in Milan, Italy; the Nordhavn development of the docklands in Copenhagen; False Creek / Olympic Village in Vancouver, Canada amongst cities around the world but in many other smaller locations as well. The issues of scaling and retrofitting existing communities is daunting, however, if we are going to meet our climate change objectives and deliver demonstrable change to the lives of millions of residents. In many cities, leaders

“The consequences of uncontained climate change will get progressively worse in the coming years... Decarbonisation of human life, and particularly transport, is critical and needs to happen as soon as possible”

As we grapple with new mobility trends, opportunities, technology and social change as well as the lasting impacts of the pandemic what will and in fact should be the mobility trends for 2022 and beyond? It is still about the basics of delivering sustainable, livable cities! We need to undue past policies that prioritized car travel – whether fossil fuelled or now electric, and create a strong and robust base of attractive and efficient public transport supported by a variety of micro-mobility solutions that meet personal needs. We need to allow space for freight delivery, as required, enabling society to effectively operate. Digitisation will be at the centre of everything in mobility and elsewhere in society. Yet, we need to not get side-tracked by the latest trend that takes away from a strong delivery focused agenda on implementing this sustainable and liveable agenda at scale and promptly to deliver the needs of climate change. Welcome to 2022 and beyond!

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01/05/2022 09:39

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01/05/2022 10:08

P U B L I C T R A N S P O R T 2.0 _ T I C K E TE R

NEXT GENERATION TICKETING TICKETER AND FARA ARE LOOKING TO PLACE THE PASSENGER AT THE HEART OF A TRAVEL REVOLUTION ust over a decade ago, two new names appeared on the ticketing scene with the emergence of Ticketer in the UK and Ireland and FARA, a Norwegian company with a strong presence across the Nordics. Both of these innovative companies have a core philosophy of making things easier for public transport operators, local authorities and passengers, so it was perhaps inevitable that they would join forces at some point. The spark for that process occurred in 2018 when private equity company Tenzing acquired Ticketer from its founders. Ticketer subsequently went on to purchase FARA in late 2019. At around the same time, Andy Monshaw was appointed as Group Chief Executive Officer. He was tasked with exploring how these two companies which have a very similar philosophy could be brought together.

The bigger picture Although part of the same group, they are still operating as Ticketer in the UK and FARA across the Nordics. “As well established and respected individual brands, we have no plans to merge the entities”, explains Andy. “We are though finding significant leverage between the two businesses, which is pretty exciting. Both provide similar ticketing solutions and a sophisticated data offering that is operationally invaluable to our customers. The buyer population in the UK is predominantly the operator, but we also work with local authorities across the country. In the Nordics it’s a little different - the buyer is largely the local authority, who

There are huge opportunities from the digitisation of systems and processes in the sector

mostly specify what the solution should look like and then it’s up to the operator to run. It is two very different approaches.” The solutions that Ticketer and FARA offer are fit for purpose for those two very distinct markets, but there is also great opportunity to leverage on the solutions and technology. The Nordic market has an emphasis on information consolidation or, simplicity and standards - a plug and play solution that allows different technology to be easily integrated into vehicles and operator systems - for example, one common SIM card in vehicles that all systems can use. “That is something we are very keen to bring to the UK. We are uniquely positioned in that we can demonstrate we already have thousands of buses in the Nordics operating with these kind of systems in place.” As the pandemic wanes, Andy believes there’s an opportunity to bring these fresh approaches to new markets. “The approach we were taking, and it comes out of

some very simple things we were doing in both territories, is that we are putting the pedal down on partnerships,” he reveals. “Not only does an operator operate a bus, there’s a whole ecosystem on the bus that can make public transport better.” Demand responsive transport (DRT), mobile apps, vehicle monitoring devices and reservations systems are all examples of solutions provided by third-party organisations, many of them small businesses, where Ticketer and FARA can play a role in integrating their systems. As

Ticketer Group CEO Andy Monshaw

Andy notes: “This is about making it super simple for operators and authorities alike to drive increased revenues and customer-centric improvements.” A game-changer for public transport? Andy and his colleagues clearly see that there are huge opportunities for the sector from the digitisation of systems and processes. Antonio Carmona, Ticketer’s International General Manager, believes it means operators and authorities now have access to a huge amount of data that allows them to not only understand their networks better but also paint a better picture about the people that they serve. “What this means is they will be better placed to deliver and run much more efficient services,” he says. “Passengers will benefit as well - for the last 10 to 15 years they’ve essentially had a computer in their pockets, one that is permanently connected to the internet. Accessing things like real-time information, which is extremely convenient and useful, is no longer an issue. They can determine instantly what mobility options are around them at any given moment and it can act as a payment instrument too. That creates an opportunity to develop a passenger experience that can take things to the next level.” Passengers can explore the mobility options that surround them at any given moment. That may not just include buses; this ecosystem could consist of other forms of public transport, cycle or scooter hire, and even ridesharing. Those options also come with predictability - how long does each option take to complete the journey? What disruption is happening? As Antonio notes, it maximises convenience and that’s a fantastic opportunity to make the passenger experience of public transport superior to the alternatives in the next few years. Josef Salpeter is VP of Business Development at FARA and he says the Nordic region has been striving towards digitisation through the use of mobile devices in recent years. “When you combine that with all the

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P U B L I C T R A N S P O R T 2.0 _ T I C K E TE R

capabilities we have in our joint organisation, we can have a full package for the passenger that combines real-time information with easy payment options,” he says. “It makes travel seamless and if we think about the ‘new normal’ post-Covid, of inconsistent travel and maybe even changing your plans at very short notice, this sort of environment empowers the passenger by giving them all the information they need to make an informed decision and pay the very best price without having to plan too far ahead.” Making MaaS simple Antonio believes that the Mobility as a Service (MaaS) concept is nothing but an extended interoperable public transport network where the new modes enabled by digitalisation complement and expand the reach of sustainable mobility where traditional public transport is not viable. Although the concept has been around for some years, payment and ticketing are the main barriers for a wider adoption. Ticketer Group is working together with partners in the MaaS space to enable seamless payments across different operators and modes, and hence enable real MaaS. “We want the Ticketer Group technology to be a platform that our partners can use and bring more value to our customers,” he says. “By removing barriers to access data and ticketing, we can help break the silos within which different forms of transport usually operate, with a vision to bring together traditional fixed-

route public transport and new forms of mobility.” Josef says FARA’s platform was designed to accommodate these challenges, after all, many public transport journeys in the Nordics can incorporate not only multiple transport modes but also travel through multiple transport authority areas too. “Our ticketing solution effectively takes into account the requirements of MaaS,” he adds. “The passenger wants one single interface where they can plan their journey and examine all the different travel options available to them. So taking into account the need for seamless ticketing, well then you suddenly have a MaaS platform without the need for deep integration between a lot of different players.”

single interface where they can plan their journey and examine all the different travel options available to them” Josef Salpeter

Integrating DRT Last year Ticketer announced partnerships with both VIA Padam Mobility offering costeffective DRT solutions and helping solve some of the problems associated with more marginal rural bus services. There are three broad components to these partnerships - integration between Ticketer and VIA and Padam Mobility’s mobile apps for booking trips; deploying DRT driver features on Ticketer’s range of Electric Ticket Machines (ETMs) and offering so-called ‘Connection Protection’ to provide assurance to passengers that connecting services will be available. Antonio’s vision is to use technology to stress-proof any of the problems that may occur

LOOKING TO THE FUTURE t has been a decade of growth and great innovation for both Ticketer and FARA. So what changes can we expect to see in the years to come? Josef believes there will be a growing demand for seamless journeys that integrate information and payment systems, meaning passengers no longer have to worry about whether they have the correct means of payment or ticket - they will be able to travel without planning ahead and know for sure they are being ultimately charged the very best fare for their journey. Antonio believes there will be increasing moves to tailoring the travelling experience to individual passengers. “To me, account-based

“The passenger wants a

Antonio Carmona, Ticketer's General Manager and Head of UK Sales

Josef Salpeter, FARA's Vice President Business Development

ticketing (ABT) is about moving the focus away from what the passenger has, to who he is,” he says. “To make that happen you need to be able to identify who the passenger is and where they will travel, and add a payment mechanism that allows you to charge them the correct fare for their journey or journeys. As the fare calculation is undertaken in the back end, the possibilities for implementing new and different fare modes are virtually unlimited. This is even more important as we see adoption of new modes growing, modes that bring new ways of charging for the fare – like distance or time-based fares.” A move to a broader form of ABT will therefore also help to underpin bringing other forms of transport, like scooters or cycle hire or even car clubs, into the mobility ecosystem. “To me, that’s what MaaS is all about,” he adds.

during a journey. For example, if a guaranteed connection is offered using a traditional fixed form of public transport, and if there is unexpected disruption, meaning the passenger risks missing their connection, then the system would automatically provide a DRT-based service to get things back on track. Alternatively, the driver could be informed to wait for the late-running connecting passenger. In this scenario, it could help to reduce cost while also improving the customer experience. He also believes the partnership will help cut the costs of providing a DRT service by applying Ticketer’s expertise. “DRT is not dissimilar to a traditional fixed-route bus service,” he says. “You need a critical mass of passengers to make it sustainable and you also need to streamline things to reduce costs, so instead of a separate tablet device for routing information or passenger manifests, we can place all of that information on our Electronic Ticket Machines (ETMs). This also means that every vehicle in the fleet can be used on a DRT service, dispensing with the need for the operator to maintain a dedicated fleet of vehicles. “Meanwhile, that ETM can also offer far greater payment options than a standalone DRT app, so whether payment happens using a traditional EMV card, smartcards like ITSO, or cash it all starts to feel like each mode of transport is part of a wider and far bigger network that can help bring more people into the core system.”

That ABT model could be expanded beyond the tokens of smartcards or contactless EMV cards we traditionally associate it with. Andy points to a recent experience he had flying in North America where some airlines are introducing facial-recognition systems that allow airline passengers to move from check-in to the gate without even showing their passport. There are also trials testing ticketless travel. “We already introduced account-based ticketing on bus, and if you extend that to consider your taxi journey, scooter ride, or train trip, it starts to get exciting,” he adds. “We see plenty of growth opportunities and new innovation to be had for our industry, and we will strive to be at the forefront of technological advances to continuously help our customers operate better.”

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01/05/2022 09:42

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01/05/2022 09:49

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02/05/2022 18:11

P U B L I C T R A N S P O R T 2.0 _ C O N D U E N T

Conduent Transportation’s 3D detection solution for ticket gates at Gare Saint-Lazare, Paris

CHANGING AN INTEGRATED THE WAY FUTURE THE WORLD FOR TRANSPORT TRAVELS CONDUENT TRANSPORTATION'S CUTTING EDGE SOLUTIONS SIMPLIFY THE TRAVEL EXPERIENCE onduent Transportation is a leading provider of automated and analytics-based transportation solutions for government agencies. These solutions, spanning roadway charging and management, parking and kerbside management, and advanced transit and public safety systems, enable streamlined and personalized services for citizens and travellers who use them. The company has been helping transportation clients for more than 50 years and operates in more than 20 countries. Conduent Business Solutions

France, based in Valence, is the global competence centre for Transit and Intelligent Mobility Solutions worldwide. Alongside their clients they have been at the forefront of innovation when it comes to Contactless Fare Collection, Mobility as a Service, integration, and interoperability. While they work directly with transport authorities and operators, all solutions and technology they offer is developed considering the travellers’ needs which are interconnected. Travellers want options. They expect convenient travel and a world of insight at their fingertips. The challenges transportation

agencies face are far-reaching and one-time infrastructure modernisation initiatives and investments will only go so far. Therefore, municipal leaders are rethinking the entire transportation ecosystem, from project prioritisation, to planning, to maintenance - all with the goal of improving resilience and enabling cities and communities to recover and thrive, stronger than before. Travellers are driving mobility forward When driven by consumer demand, cost and accessibility will determine the volume and

types of transportation services likely to succeed in the years ahead. Traveller behaviour has demonstrated the need to have variety in the types of fare media available on a public transit network. “What travellers really want is options: some prefer to use cash, some prefer to pay with their contactless card, some prefer a mobile app,” according to Geraldine Lievre, VP of innovation at Conduent Transportation. This means that most modernising efforts from authorities and operators are driven by the expectations of travellers, by their changing

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P U B L I C T R A N S P O R T 2.0 _ C O N D U E N T

traveling behaviours and the way they use technology at every step of the journey: n When planning the journey, travellers are looking for accurate and real time information. A trip planner that provides options for the shortest, most affordable, or environmentally friendly trip adds value to their traveling experience. n When purchasing a ticket, some prefer to buy it in the same app they planned their trip, some would rather use their contactless card and some prefer traditional ticketing. Conduent Transportation’s solutions are created to be able to provide a network with as many options as possible. n Convenience is considered even for boarding and validation, with CAD/AVL solutions that provide an array of information, including passenger count, to universal validators that can identify various fare media. n And the experience does not need to finish when the traveller disembarks. With account-based ticketing, travellers can receive insight about their traveling habits, they can benefit from capped fares post consumption and they can interact directly with operators to signal issues that

need to be solved in stations or on board the vehicles. Considering all aspects of the journeys and providing options for more convenient and safer travel is also connected to the security aspect of public transportation. Accurate, real-time information helps build trust. Passengers who can look at their app and see when their bus arrives can shorten the time they spend in the station, either for safety reasons or weatherrelated reasons when temperatures are too high or too low. The protection of information is also important, especially sensitive information like credit card details, and Conduent Transportation prides itself in its ability to provide secure transactions. Its cutting-edge solutions include the ATLAS® Ops Fare Collection system, the SimpliGo mobile app and a 3D detection solution for ticket gates.

“With the ATLAS® Ops Fare Collection from Conduent Transportation, cities can offer “increased intelligent mobility services” to their citizens, revolutionising transit networks and operations. Every traveller has a centralised and secure mobility account”

ATLAS® Ops Fare Collection With the ATLAS® Ops Fare Collection from Conduent Transportation, cities can offer “increased intelligent mobility services” to their citizens, revolutionising transit networks and operations. Every traveller has a centralised and secure

Passengers who can look at their app and see when their bus arrives can shorten the time they spend in the station

mobility account. Online or from a smartphone, travellers can access accounts to prepare their itinerary, buy tickets or subscriptions, or receive real-time travel updates. Trip planning becomes easy now that travellers have singlepoint access to all their mobility services, no longer needing to juggle between different systems to organise a multi-modal trip. And travellers’ accounts are billed automatically, further simplifying the travel experience. With the ATLAS® Ops Fare Collection cities can offer “increased intelligent mobility services” to their citizens, revolutionising transit networks and operations. The platform is deployed in more than 400 public transport networks of all sizes around the world. ATLAS® Ops is a hybridticketing solution that combines two modes fare media options: Media Based Ticketing and Account-Based Ticketing. Thanks to ATLAS® Ops add-ons, operators are expanding and improving their transit offer to provide more data and passenger information: n ATLAS® Fleet & Info ensures a centralised and efficient management of the fleet and passenger information for superior quality of service. n ATLAS® Mobility Analytics Platform makes it possible to analyse big data to better understand the uses of services to optimise the functioning of transportation networks (schedules, lines, frequencies, quality of service). n ATLAS® Mobility Companion Platform aggregates multiple mobility service providers. It has a powerful real-time route calculator to accompany the traveller throughout their journey. ATLAS® Ops enables cities to offer transit ticketing payment methods that are in sync with users’ digital tools – including smartphones, contactless bankcards, and smartcards - and modernise their distribution channels for a better customer experience. With Account Based Ticketing, travellers can have a centralised and secure mobility account.

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From a single point of access, online or a smartphone, travellers can plan their multi modal trip easily, buy tickets or subscriptions, or receive real-time travel updates. Travellers’ accounts are billed automatically, further simplifying the travel experience The transit networks can begin their transition to Account-Based Ticketing at their own pace, enriching their services and considering a gradual changeover while maintaining the two modes of management in parallel. This mobility solution can be extended to incorporate new public transit networks or alternative modes of travel such as sharing services (e.g. car-pooling, car-sharing and self-service bikesharing). The open architecture of the ATLAS® Ops solution easily allows transit agencies to facilitate the exchange of information and integration between partners. “People want choice,” explains Geraldine Lievre, head of Innovation at the Transit Division of Conduent Transportation. “To cover the spectrum of people, you can’t have one technology or one media. You need to have everything.” A complete range of equipment is supported, covering all needs: gates, platform and on-board validators, ticketing vending machines, control equipment. These devices are connected to the back office, allowing remote and centralised supervision as well as easy maintenance. Mobile Ticketing - SimpliGo Conduent Transportation’s proven mobile app for transit agencies of all sizes offers a cost-effective and easy-to-implement solution that provides public transport users with the superior contactless experience they expect. Downloaded over one million times from the Apple Store and Google Play, the Conduent Transportation mobile ticketing app is one of the most successful mobile apps in the USA, with an average of 4.8 stars from over 72,000 reviews. One transit department’s app provides its largest single source of revenue (40%). Passenger benefits of Mobile

CASE STUDY: DE LIJN’S TICKETING REVOLUTION e Lijn - the local public transport authority in Flanders - carries nearly 500 million passengers a year on its fleet of 2,250 buses and 400 trams. In 2017, De Lijn began looking at solutions with the objective of removing barriers to public transport use and simplifying the payment experience by offering a single point-of-sale solution for all public transport options. Conduent Transportation presented a two-pillar solution to De Lijn designed to deliver a new traveller experience that: Offered occasional passengers a direct payment option by 1 contactless bank card. Enabled real time, account-based ticketing across Flanders to allow 2 commuters to link different payment media to their account. In 2018, De Lijn chose Conduent Transportation to roll out a new ticketing system compatible with “tap & go” uses. The solution, ATLAS® Ops, includes all field (front-office) equipment and central system operations (back-office processing). Features included an interoperable and integrated open ticketing platform which processes transactions generated by contactless bank cards. This allows the ability to manage customer accounts, identify passengers from a variety of ID media, and issue bills to provide true Account-Based Ticketing management. The system also includes the VPE 430 validator - a uniquely designed single point-of-sale technology capable of reading a wide array of media, including contactless cards (EMV credit cards, multiservice cards, and other forms of identification), and smartphone apps, at the front-end. De Lijn’s new fare collection system makes public transport easier to access for its commuters and occasional passengers by allowing them to pay for and validate their trips using media that they already use for other purchases or services. Furthermore, drawing on the openness of Conduent Transportation’s solutions, the Flanders region has laid the groundwork for integrating other regional mobility players into their strategy, including taxis, car sharing and bike sharing.

Ticketing solution SimpliGo include: n Contactless account-based ticket purchases for multimodal travel; n Arrival and travel times, delays, and alternate routes; n Ability to plan and pay for one trip or many, directly from their smartphone using a variety of payment methods including Credit card, PayPal, Apple Pay, Google Pay, split payments, flash ticket display, and push courtesy tickets; n Barcode payment options for those without credit cards, making public transit more equitable for all; n Two-way communication so riders can alert your agency of emergencies, incidents, and outages. By providing services to travellers, Lievre says the company has had to evolve from its traditional B2B model to a B2B2C model. And by putting all

“The counting accuracy of the 3D detector is 25 times higher than that of the 2D detectors. And by replacing the infrared sensor strips with a single stereoscopic camera, the reliability and maintenance of the system are greatly improved”

of the information about different transport modes in one place, alongside the ability to purchase a ticket, Mobile Ticketing applications are helping to create a Mobility as a Service proposition. “That’s a real innovation,” says Lievre, adding that it’s all about creating a tool that makes users feel secure and confident about making journeys. She believes that making people feel secure is even more important in the post-Covid recovery period. 3D Access Control Ticketing Gates Conduent Transportation’s 3D detection solution for ticket gates makes it possible to discover cases previously impossible to detect, such as a person with a stroller, a small or a big item of luggage, a child or a person in a wheelchair. Already installed in Île-deFrance SNCF stations, the system is very adaptable, and new situations can be characterised to enhance the different types of crossing. Therefore, the opening cycle can be adapted on a case-bycase basis. Cases of fraud with people going through under or above the doors, people close behind each other, side-by-side or in the opposite direction are detected. The information is reported in real time and a visual and audible alert can be issued by the equipment itself. The field of view of the cameras makes it possible to detect the people approaching the gate. If there is high traffic, depending on the number of people crossing the gate and the number of travellers detected in the approach area, the gate can automatically switch from an anti-fraud mode to a permissive mode, to ease the passage of travellers. The counting accuracy of the 3D detector is 25 times higher than that of the 2D detectors. And by replacing the infrared sensor strips with a single stereoscopic camera, the reliability and maintenance of the system are greatly improved. n Contact Conduent Transportation www.ConduentTransportation.com transportation@conduent.com

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THE DEFINITIVE EXHIBITION FOR BUS & COACH PROFESSIONALS

“Euro Bus Expo is the one stop shop for seeing and evaluating developments in vehicles, technology, emerging products and innovation. An absolute must for anyone involved in the bus and coach industry.” IAN WARR, ENGINEERING DIRECTOR, FIRST UK BUS

#EuroBusExpo @EuroBusExpo

Organised by

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Show Partner

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P U B L I C T R A N S P O R T 2.0 _ PA S S E N G E R

SUPPORTING OPERATORS AMID DRIVER SHORTAGES PASSENGER HAS DEVELOPED NEW TOOLS TO KEEP CUSTOMERS ON THE MOVE Passenger's journey planning apps now provide users with live journey times

s the Coronavirus crisis has eased, bus operators have focussed on rebuilding their customer base, but there have been a number of pivotal challenges to negotiate. Since the first lockdowns in March 2020, many have struggled with issues related to staff shortages as a result of either sickness or ‘Track & Trace’ isolation requests. The sudden appearance of the Omicron Covid-19 variant late last year has only exacerbated the issue. But the pandemic has also seen bus operators and the supplier ecosystem at their most nimble, developing new products, technology and ways of working that aim to ensure customers, and particularly the key worker community, can trust their bus service to get them where they need to go.

Keeping the customer informed Since the crisis emerged, UKbased public transport app and website provider Passenger has worked closely with bus operators to enhance their communications with customers. The aim has been to not only improve the travel experience but to inspire longlasting trust in public transport overall. With staff sickness a growing problem, Passenger realised that new technology could be harnessed to play a key role in keeping customers informed about the reliability of their journey. As a result of those staff sickness and isolation problems, Passenger introduced the Journey Cancellations feature in August 2021. It allowed operators using the Passenger Cloud platform to manually cancel an individual journey so that it did not appear

Xplore Dundee customers benefit from information provided by Passenger's new features

on departure boards or individual journey planning results on apps or the web. The service has been subsequently strengthened by further new developments. These have included giving operators the tools to remove individual stop cancellations where previously there was only the option to remove whole journeys. Meanwhile, journey planners now provide end-users with expected arrival times for each segment of their journey. When users request a journey, Passenger Cloud uses real-time information to display the results of the journey as either ‘early’, ‘on-time’ or ‘delayed’. This also warns the users that other elements of their journey or arrival time may be impacted, allowing to end-user to make an informed decision. Those departure boards are also now more accurate too. Last December, Passenger introduced new data sources to feed into its real-time information feature. At the same time the operator-facing platform was also enhanced with

new visual styling to help improve the management of cancelled journeys. Real-world results The Journey Cancellations tool has become something of a ‘must have’ for users of Passenger Cloud with 92% of operators who have access to the tool using it on a regular basis. There are also customer service benefits too with data for over 70,000 cancelled journeys removed from departure boards and journey planners since the service was introduced. Operators clearly see the

benefits of providing the most accurate information possible to their customers. To date, 15% of all Passenger’s operator partners have had more than half of their services affected by cancellations - with one as much as 95%. This significant volume of cancellations demonstrates how vital the tool has been in keeping customers fully informed. In Scotland, Xplore Dundee submitted more than 700 individual journey cancellations between November 2021 and February 2022. Meanwhile, sister company McGill’s Buses also reported a similar volume of service cancellations. Marc Winsland, Xplore Dundee’s Commercial Manager says the tool is “crucial for upholding exceptional customer service standards”. “The ability to cancel blocks of stops is game-changing,” he adds. “It’s now quick and simple to cancel journeys that we are even using it for short-term disruptions - something we didn’t feel we were able to do before. It is a revolutionary piece of communications technology that makes bus travel easier for customers to navigate, even when times are hard.”

TAKING IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL ecent developments have included additional tools that allow operators to quickly cancel multiple stops within either single or multiple journeys all in one go. Meanwhile, initial support has also been given to automate this process through the use of dedicated SIRI-SM feeds. It’s a move that not only aims to take the pressure off operator staff by reducing the volume of manual interventions but also provides more accurate departure data to customers too. And there are likely to be further developments too - with a wealth of data captured by Passenger Cloud about journey cancellations, this will allow further tools to be developed that will support operators in proactively managing and communicating disruption to their customers.

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