Conferences, Summits & Symposiums

Public Transit Conferences in 2016

Leave a comment

We’ve rounded up Public Transit conferences for all of 2016!  Make sure to register early, so you don’t miss out on all of the great information and networking opportunities.

Public Transit & Transport Conferences

FEBRUARY

What: Reducing CO2 from Road Transport Together

When: February 16, 2016

Where: Royal Museum of Art and History, Brussels, Belgium

Visit the European Automobile Manufacturer’s Association for more information.

#ReducingCO2Together

 

What: Legal Affairs Seminar

When: February 21-23, 2016

Where: Eldorado Hotel, Santa Fe, New Mexico, United States

Visit the American Public Transportation Association website for more information.

#APTAlegal16

 

What: Marketing and Communications Workshop

When: February 28 – March 2, 2016

Where: Renaissance Hotel, Phoenix Arizona, United States

Visit the American Public Transportation Association website for more information.

#APTAmarketing16

 

MARCH

What: IT-TRANS

When: March 1-3, 2016

Where: Karlsruhe Trade Fair Centre, Karlsruhe, Germany

Visit the IT TRANS website for more information.

#ITTRANS

 

What: Legislative Conference

When: March 13-15, 2016

Where: Marriott Hotel, Washington, DC, United States

Visit the American Public Transportation Association for more information.

#APTAleg16

 

APRIL

What: Fare Collection and Revenue Management Summit/ Trans ITech Conference

When: April 11-13, 2016

Where: Town and Country Hotel and Convention Center, San Diego, California, United States

Visit the American Public Transportation Association website for more information.

#APTArevenue16, #APTAtransITech16

 

What: Public Transportation and Universities Conference

When: April 16-19, 2016

Where: Amway Grand Plaza Hotel, Grand Rapids, Michigan, United States

Visit the American Public Transportation Association website for more information.

#APTAuniversity16

 

What: Transit Board Members and Board Support Seminar

When: April 30- May 3, 2016

Where: Hilton Palacio del Rio, San Antonio, Texas, United States

Visit the American Public Transportation Association website for more information.

#APTAtbm16

 

JUNE

What: Risk Management Seminar

When: June 12-15, 2016

Where: Hilton Hotel, Albany New York, United States

Visit the American Public Transporation Association website for more information.

#APTArisk16

 

What: Transports Publics

When: June 14-16, 2016

Where: Paris-Expo, Porte de Versailles, France

Visit the Transports Publics Website for more information.

 

JULY

What: Sustainability and Public Transportation Workshop

When: July 24-26, 2016

Where: Westin Austin, Austin, Texas, United States

Visit the American Public Transportation Association website for more information.

#APTAsustainability16

 

AUGUST

What: Multimodal Operations Planning Workshop

When: July 31 to August 3, 2016

Where: Hyatt Regency Hotel, Calgary, Alberta, Canada

Visit the American Public Transportation Association website for more information.

#APTAmultimodal16

 

What: State Public Transportation Partnerships/ Transit Midwest Conference

When: August 14-16, 2016

Where: Westin Crown Center, Kansas City, Missouri, United States

Visit the American Public Transportation Association website for more information.

 

SEPTEMBER

What: APTA’s Annual Meeting

When: September 11-14, 2016

Where: JW Marriott L.A. LIVE, Los Angeles, California, United States

Visit the American Public Transportation Association website for more information.

#APTAannual16

Conferences, Summits & Symposiums

Bus and Charter Bus Conferences in 2016

Leave a comment

We’ve rounded up Bus and Charter Bus Conferences for all of 2016! Make sure to register early so you don’t miss out on the great information and networking opportunities.

Public Transit Charter Bus Conferences

JANUARY

What: UMA Motorcoach EXPO

When: January 31- February 4, 2016

Where: The Hyatt Regency Hotel, Atlanta, Georgia, United States

Visit the United Motor Coach Association website for more information.

MARCH

What: Pennsylvania Bus Associations Marketplace

When: March 30, 2016

Where: Spooky Nook Sports Complex, Harrisburg, PA, United States

Visit the Pennsylvania Bus Association website for more information.

APRIL

What: QBIC 2016 Annual Conference

When: April 1 and 2, 2016

Where: RACV Royal Pines Resort, Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia

Visit the Queensland Bus Industry Counsil website for more information.

What: BusNSW 2016 Member Conference

When: April 13 and 14, 2016

Where: Novotel Wollongong Northbeach Hotel, Australia

Visit the BusNSW website for more information.

What: Safety Passengers Conference

When: April 5 and 6, 2016

Where: Best Western Premier Hotel, Krakow, Poland
Visit the Safety Passengers website for more information

MAY

What: International Bus Roadeo

When: May 13-17, 2016

Where: Omni Hotel, Charlotte, North Carolina, United States

Visit the American Public Transportation Association website for more information.

#APTAbus16

What: BusSA State Conference

When: May 14, 2016

Where: TBA

Visit the BusSA website for more information.

What: Bus and Paratransit Conference

When: May 15-18, 2016

Where: Westin Hotel and Charlotte Convention Center, Charlotte, North Carolina, United States

Visit the American Public Transportation Association website for more information.

#APTAbus16

JUNE

What: European Bus Forum 2016

When: June 23, 2016

Where: University of Manchester, England

Visit the European Bus Forum website for more information.

AUGUST

What: NAMO Coaches Annual Conference

When: August 18-21, 2016

Where: Resorts Casino, Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States

Visit the NAMO Coaches website for more information.

OCTOBER

What: Australian Bus and Coach Expo

When: October 5 and 6, 2016

Where: Sydney Showgrounds, Australia

Visit the Australian Bus and Coach website for more information.

What: 22nd National Conference on Rural Public and Intercity Bus Transportation

When: Oct. 2-5, 2016

Where: Renaissance Hotel, Asheville, North Carolina, United States

Visit the Rural Public and Intercity Bus Transportation website for more information.

NOVEMBER

What: BIC National Annual Conference

When: November 6-9, 2016

Where: Rendezvous Hotel, Scarborough Perth.

Visit the OzeBus website for more information.

What: Euro Bus Expo

When: November 1-3, 2016

Where: NEC, Birmingham, United Kingdom

Visit the Euro Bus Expo website for more information

Did we miss one? Let us know and we’ll add it!

Transit News

Transit News Round Up (Jan 25, 2016) – Latest Industry Updates

Leave a comment

A roundup of transit news. What's happening with buses, trains, ferry and public transit.

Every day we find transit news that is relevant and useful to you. But if you missed these daily posts on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Pinterest and Linkedin, you can find them all here in one place each week!

Here’s what happened in the transit world last week:

BUSES

Urban Dwellers Aren’t Abandoning Buses; Buses are Abandoning Them

This article from News Geography takes a look at why bus ridership is declining, and they say the data points to a decrease in bus service being the reason.

Should Colfax Give Up Car Lanes for Faster Bus Service?

Specifically about Denver, Colorado, but applicable to any city. Is this a trade worth making?

Back to College for Bus Workers

Bus Drivers in the UK are getting more than satisfying work and a paycheck from their jobs. They’re learning foreign languages and other fun and useful skills right out of the First Group bus company’s garages. What a great way for a company to care for the whole employee!

Euro VI Bus and Coach Registrations in 2015 Top 50%

Over half of the buses registered in 2015 met the Euro VI standard for emissions. The article talks about the reasons for this boost in compliance, and how the companies will continue to improve their reduction of emissions.

UK Bus Operators Make Case for Contactless Travel

Five leading bus companies, Stagecoach, First Bus, Go-Ahead, Arriva and National Express, are working to make contactless travel the standard in Britain by 2022.

All Electric Bus

Metro McAllen shared their excitement about their new all electric bus with a picture on Twitter.

SCHOOL BUSES

New School Bus Law to Improve Crossing Roads

Bus drivers in North Carolina are now using hand signals to let kids know if it’s safe to cross the road or not.

When a School Bus Full of Kids was Heading for a Ditch, This Boy Saved Them in the Most Amazing Way

14 year old Cory jumped into the driver’s seat and hit the brake when the bus driver became unconscious after a car hit the bus.

School Bus Fleet Launches New Website, New Look

Their new website is looking very nice with easier navigation and better response for mobile users. Check it out!

Connecticut District May Cut School Bus Aides

This school district wants to cut aides from its buses to save money, but some parents are in opposition. What do you think? Should all school buses have aides?

TRAINS

Transit Officials Unmask New CTrain Car

Check out Calgary Transit’s sleek new car! It’s “more reliable, more spacious, more accessible with a variety of new features.”

Hyperloop Transportation Technologies Breaks Ground to Make Elon Musk’s Hyperloop a Reality

The Hyperloop is a vacuum tube that will be able to transport passengers at 800 MPH from one major city to another at a fraction of the cost of high speed rail.

Gothard Base Tunnel Freight Tests Begin

Switzerland is testing the world’s longest railway tunnel, which will have regular service by the end of the year.

Lyon to Torino TBM Completed

France is working on tunnels for a high speed railway.

First Metrolink F125 Completed

Metrolink in Los Angeles, California will have it’s first F125 Spirit diesel locomotive.

London Suburban Metro and Local Input to Franchising Proposed

The Department for Transport and Transport for London are working together to potentially create a London Suburban Metro.

Bus, train, ferry and public transport news.

STEAM TRAINS

Visitors Enjoy Steam Town on MLK Day, First of Several Free Admission Days Planned for 2016

The National Historic Site offered free admission on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, so families could come learn about the history of steam trains.

PUBLIC TRANSPORT

County to Provide Free Bus Passes for Those Registering to Vote

Milwaukee County will spend up to $20,000 to provide free bus passes for voters.

DOT Secretary Foxx Outlines Infrastructure Vision

US Department of Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx discussed the infrastructure deficit and ways to improve planning for transportation dollars.

Top 10 Reasons to Thank Congress

The American Public Transportation Association lists 10 reasons to thank the US Congress for passing the FAST Act, the first long term transportation bill in 10 years.

A Good Transport Plan for Bristol

SusTrans lays out a plan that’s greener, cheaper and more efficient than reliance on fossil fuels.

TOUR OPERATORS

Polk County Orange Juice Being Flown to Iceland to Promote Polk Country Tourism at International Travel Tradeshow

Orange juice is being flown in to the 2016 Icelandair Mid-Atlantic Trade Show to show off one of Florida’s best features.

We’d love to hear from you!  Let us know what you think about any of these topics.

Google Maps

Add Google Maps Public Transport directions to Your Event/Website

Leave a comment

Here’s the three steps to add Google Maps Public Transport directions to your website.

1. Check if Google Maps has Public Transport directions for your location

Click on the following link to find out if Google Maps has public transport information for your event’s location:

https://maps.google.com/landing/transit/cities/ 

If Google has public transport for your event’s location.. Great!!  Then go to the Example (step 2) below.

If they don’t have public transport for your event’s location. It might be because your public transport provider has not yet provided Google the data in the correct format.  We suggest you contact your public transport provider and suggest they get their data on Google Maps.  If they don’t know how or need help, tell them about AddTransit or send them a link (https://addtransit.com) and we can help get their public transport (ferries, buses, trams and trains) onto Maps.

2. An Example: Public Transport Directions Using Google Maps

Here’s an example of it could look. We’ve used “Times Square, New York” as the event destination.

Try entering Boston, MA as the starting address…..

 

3. Add this code

Here’s the code that you will need to add to your website.  You’ll need to modify the “Times Square, New York, USA” to be the address of your event.

<form action=”https://maps.google.com/maps” method=”get” target=”_blank”>
<label for =”saddr”>Enter your starting address: </label>
<input type=”text” name=”saddr” />
<input type=”hidden” name=”daddr” value=”Times Square, New York, USA” />
<input type=”hidden” name=”dirflg” value=”r” />
<input type=”submit” value=”Show Journey” />
</form>

Publish the updated webpage and that’s it!  Done!

Hope that helps and let us know if you have any questions.

Have a great day!

GTFS

Create GTFS Data Feeds with our GTFS Tool

Leave a comment

Getting your company’s data appearing on Google Maps, Bing Maps,  Transit Apps and other transport software is mandatory these days.  Your passengers and customers expect to be informed all the time and when you don’t meet their expectations they become disgruntled, interact negatively with your front-line staff and drag down the reputation of your company.

But for many companies getting onto such sites is a technological challenge that is beyond them or a cost that is not factored into the budgets.  AddTransit aims to make it easy and affordable to get your transport business appearing online.

So how do you do it?

Create GTFS Data Feeds - GTFS Tool

You need to create a GTFS Data Feed and the easiest way to create a GTFS data feed is with a GTFS Tool.

GTFS Data Feed

A GTFS Data Feed is a special computer file that contains data about your route, schedule and stops/stations. GTFS is an acronym for General Transit Feed Specification.  This specification was originally developed in partnership between a public transport operator and Google.  Since then the specification has become the defacto standard for all the major internet companies (e.g. Bing, Yahoo, etc.) and also for all the smartphone, mobile and cell phone public transport and transit Apps.

The GTFS Data Feed allows you provide your transit data in single feed to all these companies; a single update that becomes accessible to all your passengers, everywhere, all the time.

GTFS Tool

When you want to create GTFS data feeds, the easiest way is using a GTFS Tool.  The GTFS tool ensures that the data is in the correct format and enforces consistencies and GTFS validations.  The tool should provide an intuitive user interface, the ability to verify geographic data on maps and where possible, prevent user errors.

The GTFS tool should allow you to easily export your first schedule and make changes to your schedule, route or stops a simple maintenance function.  We also recommend an online tool, so that if the standard changes, you will automatically get the updated software.

What Next?

Well, if you’d like to get your schedule, routes, stops onto Maps.  If you’d like to make it easier for your passengers and customers to access your timetables and plan their journeys.  Or if you’d like passengers to self serve and reduce questions and queries to front line staff, then we recommend you Join AddTransit and get started.

Have a great day!

 

Bus Safety

Bus Driving Safety Round Up (Tips and Checklists)

Leave a comment

Whether you drive a charter bus, shuttle bus, school bus, tour bus or city bus, you know that the lives of your passengers are in your hands every day, and we want to help keep everyone safe, including you.  We’ve rounded up some of the best driving tips and pre-trip inspection checklists on the web for you to browse through.

Bus Driving Safety Tips and Checklists

We’ll start off with some inspiration from the NYC bus driver who never had an accident in 23 years of driving.  Driver Michael Sanua says, “The most important thing isn’t to win a beef with another driver, criticize someone who doesn’t drive well, or get where you’re going at the speed of light. The most important thing is to be conscious of driving at all times, and get where you’re going safely. It may sound boring, but that’s the secret, if there is one.” Read more of his story and his 5 driving tips here:

How NYC’s Best Bus Driver Stayed Crash Free for 23 Years

 

The US Department of Transportation reminds bus drivers to take care of themselves first.  Get enough sleep, eat well and stay fit to be at your peak performance behind the wheel.  Read more here:

Safe Tips for Truck and Bus Drivers

 

The Bus and Coach Smart Move Campaign offers a series of illustrated printouts to help drivers maintain their vehicles, drive safely in tunnels, and look at the whole system- from the driver’s personal well being, to the passengers behavior, to the bus itself- to ensure that everything is functioning well.

The Coach Driver’s Checklist

Safe Driving in Road Tunnels for Professionals

 

The West Carroll Parish School Board shared the School Bus Pre-Trip Inspection Checklist they use.  This checklist is printable, and has space for the driver to mark off each task as it is completed.  This checklist could easily be modified or used as-is for any type of bus.  You can view it here:

School Bus Pre-Trip Inspection Checklist

 

This Walk Around Checklist from the Health and Safety Authority of Ireland is also printable and provides space for the driver to mark off each item as they check its condition.  View it here:

Bus/PSV Driver Walk Around Check Sheet

 

We hope this bus driving safety roundup was useful to you, and we’d love to hear from you!  Please share with us how you stay safe on the road.

 

 

 

 

Miscellaneous

Get Fit with Public Transit

Leave a comment

It’s New Year’s Resolution time, and one of the most popular resolutions is getting in shape.

But what if we told you that you don’t need to get a gym membership, buy a treadmill, or start an implementing an elaborate workout plan?  You just need to implement simple, consistent habits, and public transit can help.

You already have a way to get to and from work, the grocery store, and your kid’s karate class.  Your mode of transportation is a habit, whether you walk, drive or take the bus.

According to the book The Slight Edge, “There are two kinds of habits: those that serve you, and those that don’t.”

You can make your mode of transportation serve you by also making it part of your workout routine.

In many decent sized cities, most people live about ¼ mile away from a public transit stop.  If you walk to the bus stop, then from the bus stop to your place of work, and reverse the trip on the way home, you’ll achieve a mile of walking per day.  According to livestrong.com, while walking one mile “a 135-pound  (61kg) person burns about 78 calories per mile, while a 165-pound (75kg) person burns about 96 calories during a walk of the same speed and length.”

If 96 calories doesn’t sound like much to you, you can do a few things to increase that number. Walking faster, walking up hills, and adding light hand weights are all ways to burn more calories.

Of course, getting fit isn’t just about burning calories.  Increasing flexibility improves circulation and posture, and reduces stress and risk of injury.  You can do cat-cow poses, tree poses, and shoulder shrugs right on the bus or train.

That walk to and from the public transit stop will also get you outside in the fresh air and sunshine, which can be especially hard if you work during all of the winter daylight hours.  Sunshine is thought to cause your brain to release a hormone called serotonin, which can help ward off depression.  Sunshine also causes your body to create vitamin D, which is important for bone health.

While using your public transit trip as your workout routine might not prepare you for the Olympics or give you the physique of a body builder, it does have the benefits of being easy to implement.  Often our elaborate plans sound great on paper, but our motivation quickly fades.  Implementing small steps, consistently, as part of a larger habit, is key to making lifestyle changes that actually stick long term.

If you’re already taking public transit, that’s a great start!  If not, get your local bus or light rail schedule and start getting healthier today.

 

 

 

 

Holidays, Seasonal Celebrations and Special Occasions

National Have Fun at Work Day

Leave a comment

National Fun at Work Day is an unofficial American holiday on January 28th, but we’re proposing that it be celebrated world wide!

Have Fun At Work Day

If you think your company is too busy to have fun, consider this:

Forbes magazine says, “Beyond salary, psychological and social fulfilment can determine which employees are motivated to stay, perform, and contribute to organization success.”

Paul Dolan, Phd, author of Happiness by Design says, “Studies suggest that if you’re not happy at work, you’re less productive, more likely to take days off sick and a poor problem solver.” (Source)

Having happy employees is not only better for them, it’s better for your bottom line.

Of course, creating a company culture that contributes to happy, engaged employees is a year round effort, but if you’re looking for a way to kick off the New Year with fun, try some of these tips for National Fun at Work Day.

  • Put small basketball hoops in the office or the break room over the trash. You can even get your riders involved in the fun, and you just might find that you end up cleaning up less trash at the end of the day.
  • Start a box of silly toys and trinkets, and keep adding to it throughout the year. A whoopie cushion, a toy sword, masks…  Don’t hog all the fun for your employees!  Consider how you can brighten your riders’ days too.
  • During the morning meeting, have the person speaking wear a funny hat. Anyone who wants a turn talking must wear the hat.
  • Do you already have an especially fun employee on your team? Create an award for the Funnest* Employee of the Year and give an award like an enormous beach ball.  Get the team revved up about who will win the award for 2016 and the types of ideas that will work within your business.

*Funnest isn’t a word, but it will drive the grammar police in your company crazy.

  • Give everyone a “page a day” calendar with jokes or funny quotes to brighten their whole year.
  • Start a new routine of doing stretches, deep breathing or a joke at the morning meetings.
  • Ask each employee for interesting trivia about themselves, create a puzzle with the information, and pass it out on Fun at Work Day. Give a prize to the employee who matches the most bits of trivia with the correct employees.
  • Take suggestions for names for each one of your transit vehicles. On Fun at Work Day, put up pictures of each one and the name suggestions.  Employees can vote by writing the number that correspondences to the name on a bite sized candy bar with a permanent marker.  The person who suggested the winning name gets to keep the candy.
  • Have a white elephant auction and potluck to celebrate FUN!
  • Fill the break room with balloons and beach balls.

These ideas were taken from or inspired by Workplace Fun Ideas by David Koutsoukis and 52 Ways to Have Fun at Work by Baudville.

And finally remember, that Have Fun at Work Day should be an attitude that lasts the whole year!

Have a great day.

RealTime Transit Status, Vehicle Positioning

Are you ready for New Years?

Leave a comment

The New Year is coming right up, and along with the fun and festivities come some challenges like dealing with intoxicated or unruly passengers.  We want your transit company to have a safe New Year’s Eve, so we’ve compiled some ideas to help the night go smoothly.

Happy New Year from AddTransit

Review records of incidents in prior years to identify locations that were hot spots for trouble.  You can use this information to co-ordinate with authorities and see if extra patrols would be advisable, and to schedule your security services if you employ them.

Make sure your security cameras are in proper working order, so you can record any incidents if they do occur.  This is also a good time to test panic buttons.

Schedule a meeting with your operators this week for a review of safety procedures.  They should have training on how to recognize intoxication or drug use, how to defuse potentially volatile situations and how to handle unruly passengers.  Encourage your operators to be professional and firm in enforcing fares and rules, but not to the point of escalating conflict or risking personal harm.

The Transit Cooperative Research Program recommends courses in verbal judo, which can teach operators de-stressing techniques, how to “calm a hostile customer and diffuse a potentially violent situation.”  If you have provided your operators with self-defense training, this is a good time to brush up on those techniques.  If not, consider offering this instruction as soon as possible in the coming year.

Also, keep in mind that this is a difficult time of year for many people, and your operators may have just had a hard holiday season themselves.  It will be hard for them to smooth the ruffled feathers of passengers if they are dealing with stress or grief themselves.  Take some time to check in with each employee and see if there are any steps you can take to boost morale.

Combining Vehicle Tracking  that shows the location of the transit vehicle at all times with Real Time Status Updates to notify your passengers of delays or route changes can be beneficial, will allow you to keep riders informed of changes or delays.

Have a great New Years and stay safe.

RealTime Transit Status

Tips for Driving Buses Safely in the Winter

Leave a comment

Winter is here, and snow storms are hitting hard all across the Northern Hemisphere. Whether you own a shuttle bus company, or manage school buses or city buses, you know how important it is for your drivers to stay safe, and keep your precious cargo safe. We have some tips to help your bus drivers be careful on the icy roads.

Safe Driving Buses during Winter

Training is not just for new drivers. We could all use a reminder now and then about how to drive safely, and when we are in emergency situations, we tend to fall back on those skills we’ve practiced. Set up a training area where drivers can work with instructors and practice increasing their following distance, and techniques for braking on ice and using anti lock brakes (ABS) properly (steady, constant pressure).

Consider telling your bus drivers to take alternate routes, and make sure they know routes that avoid large hills or particularly icy areas, so they can make those decisions on the road if necessary.

Make a discussion of the day’s weather forecast part of your morning meeting, if you have one. If not, consider implementing this habit so everyone in your company starts out the day with the information they need to stay safe and be productive.

Give your bus drivers a pre-trip inspection checklist, and make sure you’re giving them permission to be on the clock early enough to get it done.

Pre-trip Inspection Checklist

  • Do the heaters work?
  • Are the wiper blades in good condition?
  • Is the widow washer solvent full?
  • Do I have a can of de-icing spray?
  • Are the headlights working and clear of snow?
  • Are all of the windows and mirrors clear of snow?

10 Tips for Driving Safely in Winter Weather

  1. Slow down.
  2. If you start to slide, don’t overcompensate or jerk the wheel. Use slow, steady movements.
  3. Apply steady, constant pressure to the brakes, especially if you start to slide.
  4. Don’t use cruise control.
  5. Use your low beam headlights at night or in the fog
  6. Wear sunglasses to reduce glare during the day.
  7. Increase your following distance.
  8. Use your air-conditioning or if not available, crack a window in the front and back of the bus to keep your wind shield from fogging up.
  9. Maintain a constant speed on hills. If hills are especially icy, consider taking an alternate route
  10. Use extra caution on bridges and overpasses, which may have ice before other parts of the road.

Finally, winter weather can cause buses to sometimes be late to their destinations. We can help you alert your riders about delays with Real Time Status Updates and inform them of route changes with Vehicle Tracking Software. They can receive these updates on their phones. Contact us today to find out how to provide this valuable service to your customers.