Biz Briefs: London Underground, PRT Mobile Ticketing, and More

London Underground, Nevomo, Pittsburgh Regional Transit, and Luminator Technology Group recently announced news from their respective companies.

SISCOG Equips London Underground with Expert System

SISCOG has supplied London Underground (LU) with an expert system to help schedule and optimize the work of its 5000 Customer Service (station staff).

The system developed, based on the proven CREWS product already being used for more than 3,500 train operators/drivers since 2008, was first put against a test trial of a Proof-of-Concept (PoC). 

The PoC convinced LU decision-makers by achieving savings while catering to staff work preferences.

Later, the full system also proved capable of expediting the planning and optimization time from 35 hours to 15 hours in one of the largest and complex station staff groups.

In addition to this double efficiency, LU scheduling experts are now autonomous to edit, manage, and test the station staff labor rules implemented in the system. Other requirements for the system were also met, such as a less error-prone and swifter User Experience, and integration with SAP systems.

Nevomo Successfully Tests Trains’ Ability to Levitate on Railway

Nevomo successfully performed tests that proved that railway vehicles could levitate on conventional railway lines. 

MagRail tests confirmed that railway vehicles can operate on existing railway infrastructure without any friction. 

During trials on a more than 720-meter-long section of Nevomo test track in Nowa Sarzyna, Poland, MagRail vehicles reached a speed of 183 mph demonstrating stable levitation and magnetic guidance on rail infrastructure. 

The six-meter-long vehicle weighing two tons began levitating at just over 43 mph, and it went from 0 to 62 mph in 11 seconds.

Ultimately, the high-speed passenger MagRail trains are expected to run up to 341 mph on railway lines.

PRT Deploys Mobile Ticketing and Validators

With the installation of mobile ticketing validators on rail cars complete, the fare payment option is now available throughout the Pittsburgh Regional Transit’s entire system.

Powered by Masabi, mobile ticketing is now available on PRT’s network of 700 buses, 80 rail cars, and both the Monongahela and Duquesne inclines.

“We are thrilled to finally launch mobile ticketing across our entire network,” said PRT CEO Katharine Kelleman. “Now, whether you ride the bus, rail, either incline or across different modes to get where you’re going, you’ll have access to the best our system has to offer.”

The latest installation was enabled through the use of the light-rail-certified Justride Validator, which conforms with NFPA 130, the National Standard for Fire Prevention for Fixed Guideway Transit and Passenger Rail Systems, a federal requirement for installation of equipment in rail vehicles. 

Luminator Launches New Software Suite

Luminator Technology Group announced the launch of its new software suite, Luminator Suite.

The new software suite allows information to be controlled through a single, web-based user interface. 

Users will now be able to manage their entire passenger information system in just one app. 

Other features include shortening the downtime of vehicles through configurations of destination messages, route numbers, and public information that can be transferred directly to the vehicle via Wi-Fi or cellular.