Posted on December 15th, 2021
During 2021, tm stagetec systems has completed a project with Sydney Trains at Strathfield Station in Sydney, NSW. The project offers customers that use more than one mode of transport (multi-modal) a simple, accurate way of seeing their transport services information in one place. It also allows transport operators, in this case, Sydney Trains, a simple and effective way of communicating with their customers. In addition, the concept allows multiple companies with multiple modes of transport to merge their passenger information with ease.
The project has been a proof-of-concept installation and has been working for over six months at the station. Strathfield Station is a heritage-listed railway station. The station is served by Sydney Trains T1 North Shore and Western Line, T9 Northern Line and T2 Inner West and Leppington Line suburban services as well as NSW TrainLink Intercity and regional services. The station forms a major junction for regional and suburban rail services. As Strathfield is a busy interchange station, it also has several bus companies that run services to and from the station and its surrounds.
The multi-modal system hardware and software offers the ability to integrate not only audio and visual from a single transport system, multiple transport systems can also be integrated to a unified system.
Mark Lownds, general manager at tm stagetec systems explains the multi-modal concept; “Not only is it common for passengers to use multiple modes of transport on a journey. It is common for many of these transport hubs to intersect. Previously these transport providers have grown organically to have separate systems that were not integrated. A multi-modal system offers these providers the opportunity to integrate their passenger display information.”
Multi-modal systems offer an enhanced experience for the traveller, in Sydney it is commonplace for people to need to use more than one mode of transport on their journey. Multi-modal systems also offer multiple transport providers a simple, effective, scalable way to display mixed transport information in one place.
tm stagetec systems has invested time and expertise to develop an integrated solution for this situation. The solution incorporates the Smart Pi EYE and Hyundai IT products and results in a modular, networked passenger information system that can be easily customised to the demands of transport operators.
The multi-modal system at Strathfield station includes four screens to display real time information for all bus services leaving Strathfield station including night-ride. The real-time information that is collated and displayed for customers is:
The multi-modal system at Strathfield Station also features the following;
The Smart pi ECOsystem principles support use by multiple transport providers. Smart pi EYE multi-modal passenger information systems offer the ability to have multiple General Transit Feed Specification (GTFS) and General Transit Feed Specification Realtime (GTFS-R) data feeds combined into a single system and displayed on digital screens. This technology is offered with the bonus of not having to drastically overhaul the individual systems of the different transport operators.
Smart pi EYE multi-modal also offers:
tm stagetec systems are using their experience within the field of passenger information to enable these connections between various transport providers. The combination of this real-world project experience and incorporating products from the Smart pi ECOsystem range has brought about a system which is built upon the principles of open architecture, scalability, and reliability.
“The system uses Open Control Architecture (OCA)”, explains Lownds. “OCA is not just used externally, the same protocol is used internally, even in the same device when information needs to be handed over internally. This set up means that the system can be completely open, completely standard compliant and fast to market,” he continued.
An advantage for the Smart pi ECOsystems of using the OCA, is that it enabled the second principle that the system is built upon; scalability. This is especially important in terms of the multi-modal concept as new transport feeds may be added to integrated systems over time as transport networks grow and change with the needs of society.
The final principle in the Smart pi ECOsystem was reliability. With audio technology for rail networks, the conditions are not always ideal. Therefore, the system is designed to limit the load that the technology would place on the network, especially when combining multiple transport providers.
With the basis in open architecture, scalability, and reliability, there is the potential for further uses to be integrated with the Smart pi ECOsystem, based on the needs of the individual transport operators.
“As was the case with the Strathfield Station project, it’s a nice feeling when your customer comes to you and says, ‘I’d like to be able to do this,’ and you’ve already done it or it’s really easily done because we put so much work into how all the components are going to talk to each other from the ground up,” said Lownds.
The multi-modal project at Strathfield Station continues to prove its worth and the feedback from the client, Sydney Trains, as well as the customers using the technology, the passengers, has been exceptional so far and the project has been extended into 2022.
