Who needs the bus enquiry office these days? Operators have slowly woken up to the fact that the internet is now the most important source of their product information. But when they did, developments have been quick. In recent years, operators’ web pages have become much richer and more inviting. 
Operators have tended to be slow in recognising the mobile revolution. Now, there seems to be a none-too-soon rush. We’re seeing apps such as the ground-breaking Yellow Buses planner. And, increasingly, mobile web sites. It’s interesting that operators are beginning to join the mobile revolution by providing web pages that in parallel with swish full sites give a minimalist approach that is better suited to smartphones. Of the big three, Stagecoachbus has yet to join the party. It won’t be long.
Last month, Go South Coast launched a second mobile site, for Salisbury Reds, for its Salisbury city services. This follows the success of a similar Bluestar site. The benefits of microsites such as Salisbury Reds are that, unlike the large corporately branded groups, you needn’t drill down to the area you need. You aren’t faced with an array of timetables or places, just a simple yet good-looking interface where you can get information quickly.
With a planner, you can see the next buses. With the mobile internet, above, you get the whole timetable. Both have their place
Both Salisbury Reds & Bluestar had recently changed the way in which it presents timetable information on its full sites. It still offers those sluggish PDFs for printing but its focus is now on HTML timetable information that can both be easily maintained via content management software and is now suitable for the mobile web (PDFs just don’t do it on smartphones).
Lovers of PDFs can still download their timetable (button, top right) but otherwise both Bluestar & Salisbury Reds feature HTML timetabling via CMS. You'll need to use the slider. Salisbury timetables can fit both directions on one page
Smartphones are now so much a part of our lives. The software behind half the market—Android—is even said shortly to begin running the devices in our homes such as televisions and washing machines. But, outside the home, what better way of getting timetable information in the palm of your hand when out and about. Who needs that printed timetable that may be out of date when you can have live data?
The mobile web also allows the broadcast of timely news
20 comments:
There is a lot more than can still be done when it comes to information provision. Let's hope W&D, and everyone else for that matter, remember they also have these mobile versions when it comes to travel updates, service changes etc.
Assuming you can get a signal!!
It's good to see operators embracing this technology, but there is still not enough research on how many customers it reaches compared to all the other channels that are available.
It's three years or so since I last travelled in Gwynedd, where a comprehensive A5 timetable book is widely available, and judging by the number of times I saw one consulted by other passengers, reaches a very big audience indeed.
The key is undoubtedly availability. Too many enquiry offices have disappeared, because they are regarded as loss-making, especially since in many places, period tickets are now sold on-bus, and other "profitable" activities such as National Express ticket sales have evaporated to the web.
But this is somewhat naive. The alternatives for a human enquiry, such as tourist information centres, are very variable - some are excellent, while others are hopeless.
And fundamentally, mobile screens are still too small to display many timetables successfully. Try a longer distance route such as Brighton-Portsmouth, Hereford-Cardiff or Dundee-Aberdeen, for example.
So by all means be aware that some customers will want to receive information this way (and Smartphone penetration is only just about 50% at the moment) but there's a very large segment that wants easily-available paper timetables too.
The Salisbury Reds mobile site, along with Bluestar's use the same technology as Brighton & Hove's (m.buses.co.uk). You don't need a smartphone to use them as evidenced by my use of them on my old Nokia.
I totally agree with Invicta, and regularly encounter (potential) bus passengers at TIC's libraries etc asking for PRINTED timetables and dismayed if they can't find them (three times in the last two weeks in different towns with several operators).
By all means embrace the new technology but don't assume everyone is happy with what it offers or are happy using it. Don't please just rubbish those who take the opposite view.
Interestingly Brighton & Hove's email newsletter this month was delivered yesterday and thier lead story is about thier mobile site and apps. It aludes to the fact that as many users visit thier mobile site as thier 'primary' site.
"Our famous www.buses.co.uk web address is now accessed by as many surfers from mobile phones, taking advantage of its convenient adapted format, as from their home or office computers. We've recently added new features to the mobile site including a link to our popular On Route Radio"
[vested interest]
I work on the B&H & W&D mobile sites.
[/vested interest]
Trying to get bus information on a mobile has been something that has been nigh on impossible until quite recently. Most bus websites seem to use pdfs to display their timetables - utterly useless on all mobiles bar smartphones. First, of all operators I am likely to use, at least had timetables as basic html. Traveline wouldn't work on virtually any mobile browsers.
Things have come a long way as the OP rightly says. Now all we need is fare information so people know how much it would cost to get from A to B (train fares are readily available), and real time information across the board (again, easily available for the rail network). How feasible this is I have no idea, but from a personal perspective, I think they are important.
Unfortunately although Arriva have a funky mobile site, they've completely stuffed up by including only the PDF timetables, but not the HTML timetables they have on the main site. This is completely useless, as there is a large proportion of mobiles (including smartphones) that won't read PDFs.
This is quite a chronic problem. Around here, the operators who include HTML timetables are very much in a minority, and those that have mobile-friendly pages are even fewer. Even the official council/PTE sites almost exclusively use PDFs. Very frustrating...
Unfortunately most planning apps do require a certain geographical knowledge and are the equivalent of the tourist office experience e.g "Do you have a local bus timetable please?" to which the inevitable reply is, "Where is it you wish to go?". What most people want is a map and timetable to enable them to explore all the options. Last year in the Lake District, I observed many people using the buses and carrying the excellent colourful and informative 'Getting Around' book. No doubt they, like me, had checked websites on the net before leaving home but that book gave an instantly accessible and portable overview of the transport network. For a single journey, a check of nextbus or a planning app is ideal, subject to signal availability. For a passenger, reinforcement is the key. Technology complements printed information, which must include roadside displays, but should not be the only way to access information. Oh, almost forgot, the information, whether by wireless or paper, MUST be accurate!
Great blog- really enjoyed reading it. Have bookmarked you and will check back regular. Please feel free to take a look at my blog...
Self Moving
One Way Truck Rental
One Way Van Rental
Major Moving Companies
Florida Moving Companies
Auto Shipping Companies
New York Moving Companies
Moving Companies
Truck Rental
Orlando Movers
Laminate Flooring
Moving Company
@Bob B-W
Another complication is that people are increasingly using their mobiles as their main/sole way of accessing the internet. This means that bus companies do need to make sure that the full content of their website works on mobiles, even if they have a mobile site that they direct mobile users to in the first instance.
The best kind of mobile app would be one that uses your geo-location to find the nearest bus stops to you, and offered you the routes available from them. While nextbuses.mobi goes some way towards this, I think it still falls a long way short of the holy grail, for three key reasons:
1 - you have to select each stop one by one to see what routes are available to you, rather than being presented with a list of options to start with.
2 - there's no ongoing timetable information. I would like the option to go into a particular departure and see subsequent calling points along the route.
3 - it doesn't appear to support geo-location.
Here's a thought. While advancement in technology is great and can only be of benefit to the industry, who does it attract? Those who are looking for information.
So, the question must be, how can the bus industry utilise technology (or any other methods) to attract new passengers?
Much of the information still remains incomplete or out of date
or not even available. FRequently revised timetables dont appear untill weeks after the changes occur
A more fundermental issue is with the Real Time systems. This are nearly always inaccurate in that all routes are not shown. Information displayed is frequently incorrect. Sometimes they show Real Time , sometimes they just sho the timetable time and frequently buses just dispare
The reds timetable displayed doesn't seem too helpful, with three entries for the hospital and the presumably central timing point 'Salisbury, bus shelter'!?
The question posed was do we still need enquiry offices?In my opinion yes.I feel its a case of best practice.Passengers feel more assured when they can receive on the spot info. Its a PR thing.You often ask how do we attract more passengers.Well retaining enquiry offices helps retain those you already have.The TIC is not a viable alternative as the skills of the staff are somewhat lacking. So yes keep the office open.
Another thought regarding timetable booklets. Why do so few operators publish them online?
Anonymous @10:48 said...
"Much of the information still remains incomplete or out of date
or not even available. FRequently revised timetables dont appear untill weeks after the changes occur
A more fundermental issue is with the Real Time systems. This are nearly always inaccurate in that all routes are not shown. Information displayed is frequently incorrect. Sometimes they show Real Time , sometimes they just sho the timetable time and frequently buses just dispare"
Oh poor Mr Glum, you really are unfortunate to live wherever do. Have you thought about moving? I don't recognise any of what you complain about here. You'll be glad to know that most of the country doesn't have these problems. Have a good day :-)
Eric said: "Things have come a long way as the OP rightly says. Now all we need is fare information so people know how much it would cost to get from A to B (train fares are readily available), and real time information across the board (again, easily available for the rail network). How feasible this is I have no idea, but from a personal perspective, I think they are important."
For some reason, though, very few bus operators are candid enough to reveal fares ahead of purchase, at least for ad-hoc singles and returns. They'll happily announce day and season ticket prices on websites and on-bus adverts etc but I agree, it's frustrating not to be able to easily find out in advance. I guess the problem is that these sort of fares are those that are often expensive and I suspect that the lack of information helps to reinforce this idea. Would showing fares on the web or at bus stops (high maintenance costs to do so for the latter, I accept) really put people off from travelling whereas you're unlikely to walk away once standing on the platform. Has anyone tried it?
Anonymous @ 09:53 "I guess the problem is that these sort of fares are those that are often expensive and I suspect that the lack of information helps to reinforce this idea."
I suspect this is part of the reason. Another might be an operator not wishing to show their fares are higher than a competitor's.
Back to single and return fares though, I've found that all-day tickets are often cheaper than purchasing a return, depending of course on distance. Some drivers will advise that an all-day ticket is the better option, some don't. I suspect operators make a good few quid out of this, which is why they have this ploy. Stagecoach in South Wales have routes where single tickets cost more than their all-day explorer. This catches out the unwitting passenger who doesn't know better, who then ends up paying much more than they needed to.
First bus had a campaign of "think car second, bus First for short journeys", yet it's these journeys that are most costly if looked at in terms of miles per £. Those people that I encounter who grizzle about bus fares are those who use buses infrequently and just make the odd journey - I tend to find that those who use them reguarly and have weekly/monthly etc tickets rarely complain about the cost. First in Wales seem to have given up trying to get fare-payers on board, judging by their latest promotion to give away free 40" TVs to concessionary pass holders for collecting tickets.
Kudos then to Metrobus who offer full faretables for their service on the revamped website
Post a Comment