Nottingham City Council is spending £550,000 to ensure its ‘real-time’ public transport information signs continue to provide the largest network outside of London.
The real-time passenger information screens, which appear at bus stops, tell people when a service is arriving and if it’s on time.
The council says it provides “a number of services to enhance the public transport offer within the city” and is the largest real-time passenger information system outside of London.
The service is described as a “vital tool in the recovery of public transport in Nottingham following the pandemic”.
The council’s Executive Board decided to proceed with a tender process for a new system in June 2020.
The Labour-run authority has gone out to tender for a new contract to be signed to provide the technology.
The new contract was due to be signed this March, but a delegated decision, which took place outside of a council meeting, does not say whether this has happened yet.
Further interim spend is however needed to pay the current system providers to ensure a continuity of service for bus passengers and to facilitate the change from using one system to a new system.
The council said: “The services highly benefit residents and visitors that use the public transport system as clear, accurate and up to date travel information is made available to the passenger via various mediums, including the passenger information screens.
“Such information includes a countdown to when you can expect your bus to arrive or to provide disruption to service updates.
“The benefits and highly regarded reputation that comes with them offer a firm base to encourage modal shift from car to bus or tram and lead to Nottingham having nation leading satisfaction rates with regards to public transport provision.
“The newly tendered services will bring even greater value for money, but it will take until March 2023 to feasibly implement the new system.
“£165,000 of capital is required and £385,000 revenue. The capital budget is available via Transforming Cities Fund, where this spend is allocated to.
“Not approving this spend would mean a loss of important live journey time and disruption information for public transport using residents and visitors as the electronic bus stop displays would go blank across the region as the system covers displays in Derby, Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire too.”
The decision was made under a delegated decision on 30 March.
