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Personal Viewpoint Article
- 20th November 2002
Written by Peter Warman at the request of the Publisher/Editor of Transit Magazine
for publication on 29th November 2002.
Bus Stop Futures - Can it ever be the first choice for travellers?
The bus journey starts before the passenger boards the vehicle and the need to improve the status and standards of the bus stop experience is acknowledged by travellers to be important. The Quality Bus Corridor Schemes of the last ten years have made the investment not only in giving the bus priority over other traffic but attempting to meet the different needs of the passenger at the roadside - modern shelters, raised kerbs, lighting, seats - stop specific signage and information. However, comparing the evolution of the bus stop and shelter over the last fifty years with the changes that have occurred at, say, the petrol filling station, gives some indication that much more effort could be focused on making the bus stop the centre of attention. In some cities abroad, where the bus and tram have a more dominant role in serving the travel requirements of its citizens - shops, cafes, newsagents, florists want to be on sites adjacent to important bus stops or maybe even incorporated as a booth in the design of the shelter. In many UK cities, we seem grateful if the revenue gained from using the bus shelter as a means of advertising to the passing motorist is sufficient to provide the capital and on-going maintenance costs for this infrastructure. But we need to do much more than this if we are to promote the bus stop as the first choice to setting out on a local or even long distance journey.
By Easter 2003 local authorities and operators expect to have plotted the exact location (to within a meter) of all bus stops in Great Britain. My current estimate is 340,000 stops of which about 100,000 have shelters. The Department for Transport is funding this bus stop survey and the creation of the new National Public Transport Access Nodes (NaPTAN) database. ( See http://www.traveline.org.uk/NaPTAN/) In fact this database will contain similar details on the location and number of rail station entrances, air terminal entry points, tram stops and taxi ranks and the scope to develop a detailed inventory of the facilities available for passengers at each location. Using the current generation of Journey Planning Systems, the addition of this new database will enable point to point journey options for anywhere in Great Britain, to be created in a few seconds for any time of day. Initially, this will be based on public transport schedules but, where available, it can take account of travel conditions as they exist at the time of the enquiry - real time journey planning to make real choices. Where will travellers be able to access this information?
Anywhere that is convenient to them and where they have choices to make. This includes the bus stop. Prototype touchscreen systems to be incorporated in shelters or fixed to bus stop poles have been developed in the last twelve months in anticipation of the bus stop becoming the 'Virtual Travel Broker' able to advise and book services with a few clicks or touches on the screen interface. This need not only be limited to travel choices. The search can start with finding a desired location or activity and then show how to travel to it. The bus stop could become a window of opportunities for all to use.
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