Public Transport in Jaipur to Get Smart: Smart City Project

JCTSL buses, both low floor buses and city mini buses have been running in the Jaipur city for years. The JCTSL buses are the lifeline of Jaipur's public transport and now Jaipur Metro has also come up to further enhance the public transport system. The metro is running at 9 stations so far, connecting Mansarovar to Chandpole. We can expect a proper metro connectivity across the city in the coming years.

But this isn't all. As we all know Jaipur bagged the 3rd spot in the list of the top 20 cities selected for the Smart City project on 28 January 2016. Since then, Jaipur has been progressing to become Smart City Jaipur with different development projects. The next big initiative taken under the Smart City Project in Jaipur involves developing Jaipur's Public Transport into a smarter network for the ease and comfort of all commuters.

Jaipur Public Transport to go Smart

Jaipur Smart Mission Limited JSML, the body handling all development plans under the Smart City Jaipur Project, has now chosen to develop Jaipur's Public Transport. Jaipur's Public transport including Jaipur City Transport Service Limited JCTSL buses and metro will intelligent with the new plans that JSML plans to incorporate in public transport.

Passenger Information System - Know All

JSML is soon going to introduce Passenger Information System in the public transport of Jaipur. With the introduction of Passenger Information System, the commuters would be able to know the exact schedule and location of public transport in Jaipur as well as about the seat availability in JCTSL buses and Jaipur metro.

Once the system is established, you as a commuter will get access to information like:

• the exact schedule of JCTSL buses and Jaipur metro
• location of the JCTSL buses and metro
• seat availability
• details required to hire cabs

JSML will install Passenger Information System at 250 locations in the city. Passengers waiting at bus shelters will be provided with information about routes, next bus arrival (real time) of the particular routes, location of the bus, arrival of the next stop.

The Journey Planner app

All this would be possible through a smart city app titled - Journey Planner. This mobile app is a part of the many other initiatives being taken by JSML to streamline Jaipur's Public Transport sector. This app would integrate all means of the city's public transport sector which includes JCTSL buses, Jaipur metro and cab services.

The Journey Planner app will have inbuilt route information of all routes in the city. You just need to enter the origin and destination of your trip, just like you do while booking cabs these days. The app will provide complete information about:

• the possible routes available to make the trip
• the frequency and timing of JCTSL buses along with fare information
• the latest metro routes including information about the route, frequency and fare

Control Room

Under this project to make Jaipur's Public Transport Smarter, a control room would also be established in the city. From this control room, the movement of each and every city bus would be tracked through the Vehicle Tracking System (VTS) in each vehicle and also the GPRS enability. The people at control room would also be able to see who boards the bus at designated stops through camera.

According to estimates shared by the Chief Executive Officer of JSML, Sandesh Nayak, the estimated cost of this smart city project in Jaipur is Rs.22 crore. In the first phase, Smart Passenger Information System SPIS will be rolled out for Jaipur city buses and Jaipur Metro.