Making passenger counting accessible for all

It seems simple enough. Tell me how many people are on the bus?

Transit systems want measurable data that allows them to make better informed decisions about their operations. But, too often, people think it isn’t cost-effective. Or, worse yet, they implement a solution that doesn’t even help them answer their original question.

To justify their existence, systems need hard data. In an era where budgets matter more than ever, the key is to always find the right combination of software and hardware that doesn’t break the bank.

Consider these three steps:

1. Define what are your business objectives. What information do you need to prove you are meeting your goal?
2. Identify your needs. As a part of this step, define your needs not just for today, but where you think you’ll be in a year from now.
3. Know how far your dollar will go. It’s easy to spend money, but are you sure you are spending dollars wisely? Throwing good money at bad solutions doesn’t help anyone.

Many agencies are looking for solutions that help them make informed decisions. That’s why it is so important to build in a mechanism to analyze that data and use it to make informed business decisions.

And, that often begins with understanding how many passengers utilize their service and where they use the service.

Concurrently, they are looking for a platform that can grow and adapt as their needs become more complex. Perhaps they only need a basic passenger counting solution today, but tomorrow they are likely to need to tie in with the maintenance department or offer a customer feedback loop.

Now, how do you build a system that does all that and can easily expand as your system expands? I’m glad you asked. Check back soon for that answer.