From crime-scene investigations on television to home-buyer guides on the Web, using digital maps to communicate information is becoming a household concept. Now paratransit operators and other demand-responsive transportation agencies can tap into this useful technology, too. As noted at the recent Community Transportation Association of America Expo in Orlando, Fla., many companies are offering map-based software solutions for smaller-scale, demand-responsive transportation agencies. That's good news for paratransit operators who want to reduce costs, improve safety and increase customer satisfaction.

Digital maps that include detailed information about transportation infrastructure have made it possible for a myriad of support systems to offer improved routing and scheduling applications, vehicle tracking applications, in-vehicle navigation terminals and distance calculators. The many applications are based on geographic information system (GIS) technology and provide real benefits for the agencies, drivers and, ultimately, the riders and the community.

Through the use of GIS technology, agencies and community transportation organizations offering paratransit services can save money, improve their on-time performance, and know exactly where their vehicles are at all times. Some applications contribute to improved driver and rider safety. Others give managers tools to better collect and understand performance metrics for feedback and reporting.

"Map-based technology is being fine-tuned to the point where it makes financial sense for any paratransit operation to use the technology," says Brett Lim, marketing director for Radio Satellite Integrators Inc. (RSI). RSI is a Torrance, Calif., company specializing in automatic vehicle location utilizing global positioning system (GPS) and GIS technology. "The fact that GPS and wireless technology are a lot more prevalent in the everyday world is also helping operations like these assimilate the technology," adds Lim.

A few key technical trends have made transportation applications more effective. Commercial street databases are increasingly available and are less expensive. Growth in "Intelligent Transportation Systems" technologies has also improved access to local traffic, weather and emergency services data. Communication and coordination abilities have improved, thanks to technology that allows information sharing among loosely coupled systems using common data models.

Routing and Scheduling Technology

Each day, paratransit schedulers spend hours shuffling options and requirements to come up with a workable schedule. A last-minute cancellation or request, however, can throw a monkey wrench into a smooth schedule. In the past, transportation schedulers probably viewed computerized routing and scheduling systems with skepticism because of the complex parameters involved. However, today, map-based software uses complex, definable algorithms that take into account realistic rules for both riders and vehicles. The new technology turns what used to be daunting routing problems into easily manageable exercises that lead to more efficient service.

Demand response routing performed all day "on the fly" is incorporating geographic data to improve automated decision making. "The greatest challenge is making GIS and the related schedule and dispatch tools easy to use for everyday users," says Tim Quinn, executive vice president at RouteMatch Software, an Atlanta, Ga., transportation and logistics software engineering firm focused on the paratransit and demand-response industry. A modular architecture approach allows customers to start small with basic data management and grow into fully automated scheduling, dispatching, vehicle tracking and mobile data systems. RouteMatch applications address everything from planning a system to providing scheduling, billing and reporting solutions.