When I wait at a bus stop, I usually know that my bus will be arriving within 5 to 15 minutes. I do not mind waiting as I can take a rest or have something to do.
My problem is that I have to look far away at the service numbers of the arriving buses, so that I can signal my bus to stop. This is stressful, especially as my eyesight is not good. This problem is also faced by many older people.
It will be useful for each bus stop to have a digital display to show the service numbers of the buses that are expected to arrive within the next five minutes. This will give sufficient notice to the passengers to get ready.
Our bus companies and Land Transport Authority have experimented with a high cost system using GPS. However, this system has not worked well, due to the inherent problems of tracking the buses with GPS and sending the data to each bus stop.
A polytechnic lecturer told me that some countries have adopted low cost, wire mesh technology to provide this information. I am not clear about how this system works. Apparently, it is possible for the bus to transmit its service number using this technology to be received at the bus stops and for the distance to be measured. If this technology works according to my guess, it is possible to install a low cost system to show the service numbers of the approaching buses.
I hope that some experts can see if this system is already adopted in some countries and see how it can be implemented in Singapore.
Tan Kin Lian
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I have no problem waiting for buses or seeing the numbers of buses arriving. I'm quite blessed with a good eyesight. However, I understand the problems of others. I've encountered elderlies who asked me at bus stops, what's the number of the coming bus. I think that a better and cheaper solution than an electronic display board is a bigger bus number display on the bus itself.
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