GMV success in public transport management in India

GMV, leader in turnkey systems for urban public-transport management, is now celebrating the first year’s successful operation of the project “Development, implementation and operation of the Intelligent Transportation Management System (ITMS) in Ahmedabad, India”. GMV, in collaboration with its local partner Vayam Technologies, has designed and installed this turnkey project for Ahmedabad’s Bus Rapid Transportation System (BRTS), working with an initial budget of 13 M€.

An integral control center has been set up, formed by an advanced fleet management system and a fare collection system, both supplied by GMV. This platform makes it possible to supervise and control fleet operations in real time, pool historical system information and generate reports that enable the passenger service to be improved continually.

The project includes the supply and integration of 248 turnstiles and gateways for access control and contactless card/token validation in 67 stations plus the supply and deployment of 120 electronic points of sale at the BRTS stations and 15 inspection handhelds as well as the necessary computing and communications infrastructure to ensure permanent real time connection with the control center.

The bilingual English-Gujarati passenger information system (PIS) is multi-channel, broadcasting onboard information through the public address system, also enabling other state-of-the-art channels like internet and cell phone access to send real time information. The system is rounded out with electronic display panels onboard the buses and at bus stops.

The on board equipment on Ahmedabad’s bus fleet includes advanced GPS tracking devices designed and manufactured by GMV, bus driver consoles and a loudspeaker and microphone system for passing on information to the driver and enabling two-way voice communication with the control center.

The integral solution provided by GMV also includes other project support systems, such as human resource management, financial management, call center, website and incident management.

GMV’s wealth of experience in developing turnkey solutions qualified it for co-leadership of a project that includes 6 year’s operation of a system employing 400 workers and catering for 150,000 passengers a day.

At the start of this year the chief minister of the state of Gujarat, Narendra Modi, inaugurated Ahmedabad’s contactless smartcard BRTS system, a trailblazing system based on contactless BRTS payment. With this historic milestone behind it, Ahmedabad Janmarg Limited (AJL, the public BRTS promoting firm) became India’s first ever bus network enabling its passengers to travel with contactless smartcard fare collection systems.

The new system has been grafted gradually onto the client’s former system, reusing existing equipment and without affecting operations or passengers during the phase-in period. After the success of the current system AJL now intends to extend the BRTS onto new routes, stations and buses over the coming months.

GMV’s system improves the management of public transport, providing the necessary technological infrastructure for monitoring, controlling and regulating the fleet, issuing and validating transport titles and processing historical information.

Ahmedabad’s BRTS has been created by Ahmedabad Janmarg Limited (AJL) – a special purpose vehicle of Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation – the Ahmedabad Urban Development Authority and the Government of Gujarat, working with the overall aim of reducing congestion, pollution and accident rates. Ahmedabad’s BRTS currently covers 45 kilometers of roads on six different routes and now has ambitious growth plans for the future.

Right from the word go Ahmedabad’s BRTS has received a continual stream of prizes and awards at both national and international level. In December 2011, AJL was judged to be the "best intelligent transportation system". The award, handed over by India’s Urban Development Minister, represented recognition of AJL’s success in "incorporating several technological initiatives like passenger information system, vehicle tracking system, electronic fare collection system […], which provide high-quality, reliable and rapid bus based mass transit system to the people of Ahmedabad. Such endeavors are capable of replication and needs to be commended”.

The city of Ahmedabad spreads over an area of 400 km2 and is home to India’s fifth biggest population, currently standing at 7.2 million and thought likely to grow to 11 million by 2035. In 2010, according to Forbes, it was the world’s third fastest growing city. According to the Times of India, it is the Indian’s favourite city to live in. Experts consider the city likely to absorb other nearby built-up areas in the near future, increasing its area to 1000 km2 by 2035.

In the words of Juan March, GMV’s General Manager of Transport and Mobility “Ahmedabad’s ITMS has become a worldwide benchmark for BRTS management systems. Representatives and delegations from other national and international transport authorities are now flocking to the Gujarati capital to study this exceptional Indian project developed by GMV”.