I’ve been finding, as time goes on, places where multiple technologies have been deployed together, with some sort of common function, but without the level of integration to make the all play together nicely.

The local public transit authority’s buses are a prime example. On one bus, we find all of the following: a two-way radio, a fare box, an electronic marquee on the front, an electronic marquee on the side, an electronic marquee on the inside, a recorded announcement outside the bus, a recorded announcement inside the bus, and a GPS.

The two-way radio and fare box could be independent of the rest of the gear, but aren’t. This allows the dispatchers to know where the buses are and whether or not the fare boxes should be emptied. I honestly have no way to know if that part works or not.

The marquee on the front and side of the bus know what route the bus is on, or else they would be unable to display “57X Schenectady/Albany Express” as well as they do. That part of the technology, at least, seems to work well.

Likewise, the marquee inside the bus displays usually accurate info on where the next stop is, indicating that it has both route and GPS data.

The recordings, on the other hand, seem lately not to have a clue. The outdoor announcements have been reduced to simply “eastbound” or the like, rather than a full description of the route.

The indoor announcements have fared even worse, going so far as to announce stops that not only are wrong, but are miles away from the route.

What is needed, I think, is a central brain for all of this gear. It should take the GPS data and route data, drive the marquees and announcements, and talk to HQ via the radio. The reduction in independent systems would not only reduce confusion, but it would also make less work for the bus driver, make any error immediately apparent, and, best of all, by reducing the complexity, it should reduce the cost.