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Use of SmartTraveler in Improving Delivery of Customer
Service with Fewer Resources
Howard P. Benn
Montgomery County Transit –Ride On
Rockville, MD
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Use of SmartTraveler in Improving Delivery of
Customer Service with Fewer Resources
• 1995 Partnership: Montgomery County, FTA, MTA and vendors Fairchild Industries (Orbital Sciences/ACS/Xerox) and Eagle Systems
• Integrate Traffic and Transit Operations
• Develop First Generation Orbcad CAD/AVL and Colorgraphic GIS Mapping Application (CGMap)
Transit Intelligent Transportation
Systems in Montgomery County
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Use of SmartTraveler in Improving Delivery of
Customer Service with Fewer Resources
• Traffic/Transit Operations co-located in the Transportation Management Center (TMC) Under the Auspices of the Advanced Transportation Management System (ATMS)
• Integrated Computer System: Traffic/Transit Operational Functions Executed from Within Same System.
• CGMap – Traffic Signal & Bus Locations and Status Viewed and Manipulated on Integrated Workstations.
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Use of SmartTraveler in Improving Delivery of
Customer Service with Fewer Resources
Application Development was In-House or Vendor-Assisted
Route/Scheduling ‘Software’ (Excel) and R&S Data
Interface into CAD/AVL developed by Montgomery County Employees.
Traffic Signal Priority for Transit Buses: Traffic/Transit integration at system level developed by Vendor/County Partnership
Signs of the Times Project: County employee developed.
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Use of SmartTraveler in Improving Delivery of
Customer Service with Fewer Resources
Signs of the Times
• Delivery of Real Time bus arrival information on
Variable Message Signs
• First sign deployed September 14, 1998 – „EOB‟ Bus
Stop. Subsequent deployments: Lakeforest Transit
Center, Montgomery Mall, Bethesda Metro Station,
various other bus stops
• Data Formatted for LED Display sent via spread
spectrum radio to receiver at sign location
• Location Information Every 5 minutes, Schedule
Deviation at 5 Minute Threshold Late 1 Min Early
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Use of SmartTraveler in Improving Delivery of
Customer Service with Fewer Resources
CAD/AVL Communications Upgrade
System shortcomings were apparent by 2000:
Data not “Real” enough for customer information
Radio System and Communications Infrastructure not
sized for a growing transit system – One Data Channel
and Two Voice Channels
Proprietary non-industry standard hardware and
software system not suitable for integration
New features and enhancements prohibitively
expensive to engineer into system (system not built with
enhancements in mind)
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Use of SmartTraveler in Improving Delivery of
Customer Service with Fewer Resources
CAD/AVL Communication UpgradeUpgrade Process and Payoff:
Outside consultant study (Macro Corporation)
Showed old system not meeting needs.
Identified paths to the future.
Various vendors and products reviewed.
Functional Needs and Solutions Presented:
Customer Information with Real Time Update
Every 30-45 Seconds
Second Data Channel with Location/Schedule Adherence in
every data poll
Additional Dispatch Capabilities – third voice channel, two-
way text messages, pull-out pull-in monitoring, selective
route mapping, graphical headway display, etc.
Computer System Integrity – industry standard
components.
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Use of SmartTraveler in Improving Delivery of
Customer Service with Fewer Resources
CAD/AVL Communication Upgrade
• Enhancements and Integration – The New OrbCAD
Onboard Customer Information – Automatic Stop
Announcement (audio & visual)
Automatic Passenger Counter
Farebox & Destination Sign Integration
Onboard Mechanical Systems Monitoring
Enhanced Data Collection/Reporting Capabilities
Industry Standard Signal Priority Capabilities
Integration With Trapeze Scheduling Packages
Development of SmartTraveler Plus®
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Use of SmartTraveler in Improving Delivery of
Customer Service with Fewer Resources
SmartTraveler & Ride On Real Time
• SmartTravler Plus is a customer information system using data
from the OrbCAD system – branded Ride On Real Time by
Montgomery County
• Same real time data that is used by dispatchers is available with
minimal time delay on the internet
• Used by customers and 311 call takers
• Bus stop based information system – next arrival predictions
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Use of SmartTraveler in Improving Delivery of
Customer Service with Fewer Resources
RIDE ON Real Time is Transit’s name for the eight components of its ATIS –Automated Traveler Information System. ATIS will provide real time information about individual Ride On trips on its 77 routes. The eight components are:
SmartTraveler – this is an internet/web based information system developed by ACS/Xerox. Automatic notification available.
SmartTraveler Mobile (smartphone/PDA) application. Similar to #1, but tailored to hand-held screens.
3rd Party Mobile (smartphone/PDA) application. Similar to #2, but tailored to hand-held screens and done by 3rd parties (not ACS/Xerox, developer of SmartTraveler).
Signs of the Times – these are electronic display signs, typically to be mounted in shelters, which display real time arrival/departure information for the buses serving that particular stop.
Bus Stop Numbers—phone. Each of Ride On’s 4854 stops is identified by individual 5-digit numbers. An IVR system, reached by calling 240-777-RIDE (7433) or other phone number, will provide arrival information for forthcoming buses
Bus Stop Numbers—regular text. Riders will be able to send a text message to 2407777433 (or another number) and using the individual 5-digit number, receive a text reply with arrival information for forthcoming buses. An e-mail service rather than texting is also available.
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WWW.RideOnRealTime.com Will Get You To Our Website
Which Has Many Helpful Features
Real Time Info
Route Schedules
Trip Planning Tools
Notify Me for Email Notifications
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Use of SmartTraveler in Improving Delivery of
Customer Service with Fewer Resources
• Coincident with the changeover from the 1st
generation OrbCAD product, to ACS’ CAD/AVL SmartTraveler product, there was a major re-organization within the County government structure.
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Use of SmartTraveler in Improving Delivery of
Customer Service with Fewer Resources
The Executive decided that all County services – from Transit, to Solid Waste, to Libraries, to Human Services, etc. would use a single information number: 311.
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Use of SmartTraveler in Improving Delivery of
Customer Service with Fewer Resources
This meant more than the Ride On info number, 240-777-RIDE (7433) forwarding to 240-777-0311 (311 from inside the County),
It meant dissolution of TIC (Transit Information Center).
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Use of SmartTraveler in Improving Delivery
of Customer Service with Fewer Resources
The TIC resources – its agents and computers – were to be transferred to the new 311 call center.
The TIC employees – all former bus operators who used their ‘street’ knowledge to answer inquiries in addition to use of OrbCAD, supervisor guides, run sheets, etc.– had the right to go to a different open position, elsewhere in the division/department/County, other than 311.
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Use of SmartTraveler in Improving Delivery of
Customer Service with Fewer Resources
Of the TIC agents, only one went and stayed at 311.
This resulted in a call center, that takes over 8000 transit calls a month, with one agent out of 40, who had any intimate familiarity with Ride On.
For most the other agents, their familiarity with buses ended when they were 15 and the buses were yellow.
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Use of SmartTraveler in Improving Delivery of
Customer Service with Fewer Resources
What to do?
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Use of SmartTraveler in Improving Delivery of
Customer Service with Fewer Resources
The first few months were a real struggle. The co-incidence of time was not quite co-incident enough.
Fewer than a handful of the total 40+ computers (the 4 that were transferred over) had OrbCAD on them. Only one 311 agent was truly trained with it.
The others had to use paper materials with which they had little familiarity, i.e., timetables, maps, run books, etc. On a personal level, the vast majority were not bus riders.
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Use of SmartTraveler in Improving Delivery of
Customer Service with Fewer Resources
SmartTraveler to the rescue!
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Use of SmartTraveler in Improving Delivery of
Customer Service with Fewer Resources
The web-based portion of Ride On Real Time, SmartTraveler, was made available to 311 in a beta phase about 10 months after TIC folded.
The 311 agents took to it almost immediately, in large part because of its intuitive nature.
Because they use it constantly, their facility with it is, by-and-large, excellent.
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Use of SmartTraveler in Improving Delivery of
Customer Service with Fewer Resources
Net result:
• There were never more than 3 TIC agents on duty at one time. Customers often waited 10-15 minutes (sometimes more) to get an agent.
• With 311, calls are answered within minutes, if not seconds.
• 311 call duration is short, too, because the SmartTraveler screen shot has most of the inquiry’s answers on display.
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Use of SmartTraveler in Improving Delivery of
Customer Service with Fewer Resources
In sum, we the County (not just Transit Services) have gone from 4 dedicated agents to 1, but the delivery of response to the customer, has significantly improved.
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Use of SmartTraveler in Improving Delivery of
Customer Service with Fewer Resources
As the other features of RideOnRealTime become generally available: signs, texting, IVR, etc., we expect calls to go down at 311 as well.
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Use of SmartTraveler in Improving Delivery of
Customer Service with Fewer Resources
Thank you
Howard Benn, Assistant General Manager/Section Chief Customer & Operations Support/Div. of Transit Services --
RIDE ONMontgomery County Department of Transportation101 Monroe Street, 5th FloorRockville, MD 20850[ph] 240-777-5820[fax] 240-777-5801[cell] [email protected]
