Audio/visual "next stop" announcements on buses

[jon0844]

Following some social media advertised testing sessions a few weeks ago, Uno (Herts) has at last got the next stop info working on its new BYD EV buses - although there was no sound on mine. For months it has just shown a PC BIOS like display showing key info from the bus itself (from battery status to GPS co-ordinates and much more).

The display is different to the other Uno buses, including the route number, next stop, the following stop, plus how many stops to the final destination.

There's also a single line LED display that is blank. Not sure if that's supposed to display anything (again, before, it paged through vehicle diagnostic info).

 

[py_megapixel]

Sheffield:

First, running buses both with none fitted, doubles & singles.

Stagecoach: all Trident E400’s except one (19514) have none fitted & are in daily service. Some Scania’s have none fitted based out of Ecclesfield. Went on 15661 last Friday on 88 which was fitted but only had the clock/date showing & the please remain in seats announcement.

TM Travel: some of the E400’s have been fitted with a large majority of the fleet not fitted with them.

Stagecoach in Sheffield are doing very poorly. Not only are the majority of the E400s not fitted, but the E200s - while the audio does work on at least some of them - have displays which are permanently blank.

First just seems to have a few stragglers now that aren't fitted at all, although they still have a long way to go before the system actually works reliably on all buses.

I was impressed to see that Hammonds Coaches, which has just taken over the H1 service connecting the Sheffield hospitals, has got the displays working pretty much from the start. I don't know whether the audio works.

 

[BuhSnarf]

Following some social media advertised testing sessions a few weeks ago, Uno (Herts) has at last got the next stop info working on its new BYD EV buses - although there was no sound on mine. For months it has just shown a PC BIOS like display showing key info from the bus itself (from battery status to GPS co-ordinates and much more).

The display is different to the other Uno buses, including the route number, next stop, the following stop, plus how many stops to the final destination.

There's also a single line LED display that is blank. Not sure if that's supposed to display anything (again, before, it paged through vehicle diagnostic info).

View attachment 212830

Uno have surprisingly been slow off the mark with many of their buses and routes when it comes to Next Stop Announcements (NSA) even when having the kit onboard. Someone who commented on my video about NSAs stated that they had done some work for Uno and found that the person who had come in to get the NSA displays working hadn't particularly done a good job so I wonder if that has something to do with it.

Where is the single LED display? Is it facing forwards, if so it would be the display for rear facing disabled passengers and so should replicate this display by showing the next stop.

 

[jon0844]

No, the other display is just at the front of the bus facing towards the back. It was previously scrolling through the same info shown on the screen but is now blank.

 

[kevjs]

Interestingly I noticed Nottingham City transports buses annoncence they are on diversion after the next stop and to ask the driver for assistance (while already turning off the usual route), but no indication that it's on diversion on the visual displays - shown here while crossing the tram lines so would usually have all the stops though the Meadows shown, but nope straight to where it rejoins the usual route at Victoria Embankment, ignoring all the stops on the diversion (possibly complicated by the first one being suspended and a temporary stop in it's place further round).