October 1, 2017 – DURHAM, N.C. – TransLoc, well-known technology provider for hundreds of university and municipal transit systems, earlier this year made the move to address the rapid rise of microtransit services, bringing flexible, demand-response transit options to the fixed route systems of municipal transit systems across the country. By helping to simulate, pilot and deliver highly flexible microtransit solutions through agency and city-owned transit agencies, TransLoc has found itself at the center of a mega-trend in the transportation industry.
New Technology Innovations
TransLoc Architect
In the first quarter of 2017, TransLoc introduced Architect, offered as a free web-based application to speed up and reduce the burden of converting transit agency route and transit data into the General Transit Feed Specification (GTFS) format. Since its launch, approximately 200 municipal transit agencies currently use this technology to accurately share their transit information with the public.
“As a small transit system, our primary goal in using Architect was to create a GTFS file for submission to Google as part of their Google Transit program. Architect not only worked beautifully but was easy to use. It only took us a couple of hours, including reviewing the how-to videos, which were great, to prepare the GTFS file.” – Guy Sample, Customer Service Agent, NassauTRANSIT
The MicroTransit Simulator
Each city is unique, as are the transit requirements of their communities. This creates a complex set of challenges for transit agencies interested in demand-response transit for their cities. Understanding how best to serve their riders, while minimizing the risks of introducing these new transit services is at the core of TransLoc’s MicroTransit Simulator. Since its introduction in July, more than 100 cities are in conversation with TransLoc about leveraging the Simulator, which uses big data and TransLoc’s market-tested scheduling algorithm to create predictive models for successful microtransit services before a single vehicle even hits the road.
“The results from TransLoc’s MicroTransit Simulator have taken the risk and guesswork out of planning for our microtransit service. We see demand-driven transit as the future for our region’s paratransit and on-demand services.” – Brandon Policicchio, Chief Customer and Business Development Officer for Greater Dayton RTA.
“We’re excited to be partnering with TransLoc on innovative approaches to the first/last mile connection problem and see the MicroTransit Simulator as a valuable tool to help us determine the best way to align these services with our customers’ needs.” – Dan Freudberg, Director of Service Quality for Nashville MTA/RTA
The MicroTransit Accelerator
With its mission to empower transit agencies to deliver the ultimate rider experience, TransLoc launched the MicroTransit Accelerator, a national competition intent on encouraging the adoption of demand-driven, flexible transit offered by transit agencies and municipalities to better serve their communities.
“As the city-owned flexible transit option that bridges the gap between single-user transportation and fixed-route services, microtransit has the power to positively impact a city’s social mobility and economic viability. The MicroTransit Accelerator reflects our commitment to supporting transit agencies and the industry’s shift away from supply-driven to demand-driven transportation,” said Doug Kaufman, TransLoc CEO.
New Partnerships
The Google Partnership
The rapid and widespread adoption of TransLoc’s Architect product prompted the forging of a new partnership with Google (NASDAQ: GOOG) to further ensure accurate integration of public transit information with Google Maps, at no cost to the public transit agency. This partnership has allowed TransLoc to manage larger volumes of real-time transit information for agencies.
With more robust information, smart cities are now beginning to harness Architect to develop community-based transit options such as on-demand microtransit services.
New Strategic Advisors
Aiding TransLoc as it works to fundamentally reshape our transportation future, the company expanded its team of strategic advisors. Gabe Klein, the former transportation chief for the cities of Chicago and Washington, D.C., and one of the nation’s leading voices for urban mobility, and Peter Hirshberg, creator of the Maker City Project, a national organization working with more than 100 U.S. cities and towns for smart city development, are both working closely with TransLoc to further deliver on the promise of sustainable transportation and the smart cities of the future.
Industry Recognition
Fast Company’s “Most Innovative Company”
TransLoc began 2017 being named one of Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies in transportation. The annual list honors leading enterprises and rising newcomers that exemplify impactful innovation. The magazine recognized TransLoc for making “getting around easier, no matter where you are or what your situation” and highlighted its approach to client partnerships in the public sector.
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About TransLoc
Hailed by Fast Company as one of the world’s most innovative companies in transportation, TransLoc, a Google partner, is the technology provider of the most flexible agency-owned microtransit solution for delivering the ultimate rider experience. By offering predictive models to simulate rider demand and fleet operations, the expertise to plan and deliver unique future-proof transportation solutions, and its cloud-based OnDemand dispatch system built for rapid deployment and hands-free operations, TransLoc is enabling transit agencies nationwide to remain central to the future of modern transportation.TransLoc has partnered with hundreds of transit agencies to reach a higher level of service and win the confidence of the riding public for more than a decade. To learn more, visit TransLoc.com or follow us on Twitter at@TransLoc.
Contact
SHIFT Communications for TransLoc
Meg Brenner
TransLoc@shiftcomm.com
617-779-1800