Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) has formed a partnership with CitySwift that will see the franchised bus network in the conurbation optimised through the use of artificial intelligence and data.
The supplier is thus now key to TfGM’s aspirations to grow bus usage on the Bee Network by 50 million journeys per year from 2022/23 levels by 2030. CitySwift’s performance optimisation platform gives transport authorities and operators insights, recommendations and predictions and supports the delivery of efficient, reliable and in-demand services.
TfGM will have access to CitySwift performance data across the Bee Network. That will help it to identify trends and pain points such as traveller destinations and service performance. From there, the authority will recognise where improvements can be made to benefit passengers.
In addition, TfGM will leverage CitySwift’s Spotlight product. It is an “intelligent recommendation engine” for bus network enhancements and has been designed for stakeholders.
Spotlight provides AI-powered insights into performance and resource parameters such as timeliness, cost and vehicle numbers through scanning the whole network, executing optimisation variations, and proposing return on investment improvements.
Speaking about the partnership, TfGM Senior Lead for Bus Franchising Catherine Towey says: “Customers are at the heart of the Bee Network and by working with CitySwift we will be able to see more clearly than ever before how services are performing. We can then use this information to prioritise improvements and deliver a better service for passengers.”
Adds CitySwift CEO and Co-Founder Brian O’Rourke: “The goals and vision set out in the Greater Manchester Bus Strategy speak clearly to our mission at CitySwift – grow patronage with frequent and more reliable buses.
“I am thrilled that we are partnering with TfGM, supporting it in achieving this goal through our transport data solutions as we continue to build the smart cities of the future.”
