Helsinki City Transport shows off telematics solutions to congress visitors

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One of the reasons why you cannot find a hotel in Helsinki this week for love or money (see other article) is the 57th UITP World Congress and Mobility&City Transport Exhibition.
      Among the partners for the public transport gathering are Helsinki City Transport (HKL), and on Monday they demonstrated to delegates some new telematics solutions that will soon be available to Helsinki commuters on the city's buses and trams.
     
The smart transportation solutions are accessible for free by anyone with a Wi-Fi connection on their laptop, PDA, or via smartphones such as the Nokia N800 Internet Tablets or Communicators. The ideas are to reduce journey times by accessing real-time information on the whereabouts of the bus or tram (using GPS technology), to improve passenger service, and reduce costs.
      HKL and the Helsinki Metropolitan Area Council (YTV) have been pathfinders in taking advantage of the new technologies available, seizing the opportunities offered by the country's advanced mobile networks and telecoms and IT expertise.
      Passengers benefit by knowing more about their optimum routes and onward connections in real-time, while the buses and trams themselves can take advantage of traffic light priorities to reduce travel times and overall costs.
     
At present WLAN links have been installed in six HKL trams and around thirty of the buses in the city's traffic. In August a new bus line, the 52V, will be added to the system.
      The intention is to expand the scheme rapidly such that by 2008 around 80 HKL trams will be equipped with Wi-Fi, and by 2009 the WLAN applications should spread even further, perhaps to encompass the entire traffic in the Greater Helsinki area.


Links:
  Helsinki: Maps and Transport
  UITP

Helsingin Sanomat