Bus stops, termini to have displays on arrival and departure timing

CHENNAI: Soon, passengers will be able to track the real-time location of MTC buses through passenger information displays set up at bus stops and termini, which will display the time of arrival and departure.

According to the MTC sources, Passenger Information Displays would be set up at 71 bus termini and 532 bus stops in the city as part of the Chennai Intelligent Transport System (CITS) funded by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).

The display of real-time location of buses at the stops and termini is part of the Passenger Information System. The corporation has already launched the Chennai Bus App, which helps passengers locate city buses on a real-time basis. “As many as 4.26 lakh people have downloaded the app and are utilising it for their daily commute,” the official said, adding that the display of arrival timing of the bus on a screen at the stop would help the passengers.

The information display would be of particular help for people who are not comfortable with using mobile phone-based applications to access the information, the official said.

MTC sources said that Chennai Smart City Ltd, which is implementing the CITS, has appointed a system integrator for the project that would be executed at a cost of Rs 136 crore. “The Passenger Information Display and other components of the CITS would be implemented shortly,” sources added.

The JICA-funded project focuses on Integrated Transport Management System solutions for MTC buses, including automatic vehicle location finding system and passenger information system at bus termini and bus stops. It also developing a depot management system, an operation-related solution application for vehicle planning and scheduling, vehicle despatch, crew rostering, attendance management and an exclusive app for all MTC staff.