Biz Briefs covers all the latest supplier news in the industry. If you have a press release you'd like to share, contact us.

The latest installment of Biz Briefs include Tolar, Masabi, Modeshift, and Lochner.

Tolar to Supply ‘Mini’ Shelters for Houston Agency

Tolar Manufacturing Co. entered into an agreement with Greater Southeast Management District to manufacture, deliver, and install 14 new 10-foot Sunset “Mini” bus shelters in Houston.

The shelters have been customized with design solutions to meet accessibility requirements at sites with limited right-of-way access. Eleven of the 14 bus shelters have already been installed in the area, with three more planned to be in place by July 2024.

The new Sunset “Mini” shelters feature a full-sized 10-foot Sunset shelter roof over a customized “Mini” base, which provides shelter, lighting, and seating on a reduced footprint. The design allows Greater Southeast Management District to place shelters at bus stops where a full-sized shelter is not possible, assisting in their mission to bring more shelters to more locations.

Each shelter is equipped with solar-powered LED security lighting overhead and LED accent lighting on the shelter front, along with Greater Southeast Management District branding and logos.

Colorado’s ECO Transit Taps Masabi for Account-Based Ticketing

Eagle County, Colo.’s ECO Transit launched a new era in convenient and equitable travel on its services with the addition of account-based ticketing powered by Masabi’s open platform Justride.

The system delivers fare capping, ensuring all riders are guaranteed to pay the lowest possible fare for their journey, regardless of how they pay for travel, with Justride automatically calculating and deducting the correct fare from riders’ accounts to deliver enhanced fare equity and increased accessibility.

The phased “Mobile-First” deployment began with the launch of the ECO Tickets app in late 2022, enabling riders to purchase tickets using their smart devices. Building on this success, the modular design of the Masabi platform has made it straightforward to deploy ECO Transit’s new fare system in phases, providing an easy and low-risk upgrade path from mobile ticketing to a full account-based ticketing solution.

Further upgrades are planned, including the introduction of ECO Transit smartcards, allowing everyone to tap and ride.

Modeshift to Supply CATA’s Fare Payment System

Modeshift is launching a partnership with Meadville, Pa.’s Crawford Area Transportation Authority (CATA).

The partnership will digitize CATA’s transit operations in Crawford county, providing a cutting-edge mobile ticketing platform for residents, comprising six intown bus lines in Meadville and four commuter bus lines to Meadville from Titusville, Cochanton, Conneaut Lake, and Seagertown.

The new online and mobile platform will provide riders with a hassle-free ticketing solution, enabling them to plan, pay, and validate rides with just a few clicks on their smartphones. This strategic collaboration aims to revolutionize the transit experience by introducing a seamless and convenient way for passengers to manage their commute online or with their mobile devices.

CATA is the latest Pa.-based transit agency to partner with Modeshift to modernize fare and data collection infrastructure. Most recently, Modeshift partnered with Hazleton Public Transit and continues to see success in five other partnerships across the state.

Lochner Partners to Provide Digital Twin, Asset Management Solutions to Rail Clients

Lochner partnered with Praedico, a global technology company, to provide digital twin and asset management solutions for passenger and freight rail clients across North America.

Praedico integrates operational data and asset management information into a simple and intuitive software platform. By aggregating, organizing, and managing the static, spatial, and live data for all rail assets, Praedico creates a data-driven digital rail network.

The platform allows the progression from reactive maintenance to a predictive or AI-driven approach, maximizing efficiency, optimizing capacity, and increasing availability.

For rail asset and maintenance managers, having a digital twin of the entire network provides visibility into the performance of infrastructure assets — from the big picture to the smallest detail — with the ability to monitor and compare the performance of tracks, stations, and rolling stock.