Automatic Passenger Counting

Automatic Passenger Counting

The highly advanced R-Com IoT VT Automatic Passenger Counting system ( VT-APC ) uses a vehicle mounted, high resolution video camera to count, record & compare passenger activity on public transportation (buses / trains / trams / shuttles). The primary function of this device is to accurately record passengers boarding and disembarking from a public transport vehicle.

A dedicated, highly advanced VT APC processor module captures live video footage of passenger activity and converts this into ‘units / blobs of data’.

Sophisticated, embedded algorithms eliminate potential errors and compensate for shadows, poor light, duplication & very close people counting as passengers get on and off.

Data is transferred to an on board MQTT logger unit where the data is stored and converted to industry standard MQTT format prior to transmission via Wi-Fi / network protocols to a remote Cloud based server.

Converting the data in real time & in situ in this way facilitates significant data compression in order to maximize the efficient storing and subsequent transmission of data for analysis.

All devices are highly secure and can be accessed remotely for remote management, maintenance & calibration.

These devices are usually deployed at the entrance / exit to the vehicle or in individual carriages on longer vehicles such as trains. Each entrance / exit point is individually calibrated for the highest accuracy delivering reliable passenger counts and real time passenger counting data.

The passenger counting is augmented by an additional I/O door signal sensor which in conjunction with on board GPS location identification provides on/ off passenger data by specific stop.

Solution Application and Usage

Making alternative public transportation more widely available, viable and desirable is one of the key objectives of any City planning team as they wrestle with the problems of road congestion and pollution.

The real time & time stamped, 24hr base data provided by the R- Com VT Passenger Counter can provide invaluable data regarding actual usage of public transportation.

Understanding the quantity, frequency and behavior of passengers can give essential insights for transport operators and planners.

More traditional ‘clip board ‘surveys and interviews can also be better targeted and designed using the highly accurate base data provided.

The solution is particularly effective for collecting baseline historical data to provide accurate business case support before any decisions, changes or investments in transportation are made.

Why Count Passengers?

The data can also be used as before / after impact analysis to demonstrate return on investment following the implementation of public transportation infrastructure initiatives.

This can be used very effectively to:

  • Accurately and consistently record the number of passengers using public transportation.
  • Monitor / identify peak demand periods, busiest routes and analyse usage of specific transport stops.
  • Test the popularity of new routes / services  & suppliers with reliable before and after comparison data
  • Measure frequency and volume of passengers at different times of day in order to more effectively plan & position vehicle resources and timetables
  • Improve the timetabling of vehicles around the busiest routes and improve scheduling at busy times of day and peak visitor / commuter periods
  • Identify passenger security / health & safety issues  
  • Bikes, luggage, adults and children can easily be distinguished.
  • Calculate verify and protect revenue against tickets issued per driver
  • Help plan additional resources at exceptional peak periods such as major city events, football games, concerts and public gatherings.
  • Measure usage & popularity of public services locations & transport hubs such as Park & ride / Stations / Bus stops.
  • Correlate Transport Supplier numbers in order to verify contract terms & conditions, charging models and resources deployed. The increase in fare revenue produced by cross-checking passenger numbers with issued tickets can more than pay for the system.
  • Save on training and employing people to manually count passengers.
  • Analyse key performance indicators like passengers per mile and cost per passenger.
  • Combine with the R com Occupancy and Queue management solutions to also provide passenger numbers in stations and show current occupancy. Queues can be monitored showing the number of people currently waiting and the average queuing time .