By John Osumi With the continuing acceleration of urban sprawl and the crucial demand for reliable transit, a critical question looms large for many transit operators: How can they guarantee the well-being of both passengers and drivers? When it comes to ensuring a safe and effective transit operation, comprehensive event recording is foundational to safety and security as it provides verifiable, real-time, and historical evidence of incidents. This enables transit agencies to: • Protect passengers and vehicle operators by deterring misconduct and enabling rapid security response. • Support incident investigations with high-quality video, audio, and location evidence. • Mitigate liability by documenting events accurately, reducing exposure to false claims. • Improve operations by analyzing trends and identifying additional training or maintenance needs. Unforeseen events such as accidents, traffic violations, and unruly passengers can pose significant challenges to transit agencies, potentially leading to increased liabilities and operational disruptions. However, with solutions like Luminator’s Mobile Video Security (MVS), agencies can quickly improve both incident response and reporting. AI-powered edge computing: AI processing units to allow real-time video processing without relying on cloud-based service latency and internet bandwidth restrictions. Video-based Automatic Passenger Counting (APC): Traditional sensor-based APC systems are seeing a significant increase in competition from video-based APC solutions in recent years. Powered by advanced video analysis algorithms and AI-enabled processors onboard, many of these systems have achieved the requisite APC counting accuracy standards to meet Federal Transit Administration (FTA) mandates. However, integration with third-party systems and long-term reliability may vary widely between vendors. Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS): Various types of ADAS sensors have been available in the automotive industry for more than 20 years.  Only recently has the technology progressed to the point where these can operate entirely (and reliably) through video-based camera systems. Modular scalability and long-term support: Luminator specializes in leveraging best-in-class DVR hardware, designed for each vehicle type and purpose. With nearly 100 years in business and more than 20 years delivering MVS solutions to transit agencies around the world, Luminator has a long history of commitment in support of its customers. Unified platform: As Luminator continually innovates, incorporates, and integrates its core RoadRunner MVS products, the complete product lifecycle is fully managed end-to-end to ensure “right sized” bespoke solutions to fit the needs of each customer. 8K video resolution and video-based Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS): Luminator offers an industry-leading unified ADAS solution that leverages onboard RoadRunner Pro DVR, Video Mirrors, and mSET Video Management Software for both real-time driver alerts and retrospective analysis. Health diagnostics and seamless remote access: mSET software provides secure web-based video access, automatic video clip downloading, and real-time health monitoring for all its connected products. Whether you are retrieving video after an event or viewing real-time video in a monitoring center, the level of detail and accuracy provided by Luminator’s MVS solution enables operators to react more quickly to situations and access compelling video evidence to support investigations and combat false liability claims. Luminator’s MVS solution excels with features such as: • Rugged onboard DVRs with AI processing capabilities. • IP and analog Cameras capturing high-quality video and audio, compliant with ONVIF industry standards. • mSET Video Management Software for secure real-time video management, health diagnostics, and easy access. • Vehicle Event Triggers (e.g., braking, door opening, turn signals, reverse) that tag video segments for quick retrieval. Video is stored in heavily tested & secure storage media onboard the DVR, which can be uploaded automatically or on-demand via Wi-Fi or cellular networks. mSET software supports both hosted and on-prem deployment scenarios. While there are many critical considerations when it comes to ensuring optimum performance of a video surveillance system, an effective fail-safe measure is crucial to ensuring the technology is functioning properly. Luminator’s MVS solution includes proactive health and diagnostic reporting to detect hardware/software issues; redundancy with automated backups in hosted environments to ensure uptime and disaster recovery; automatic alerts for camera disconnection, storage issues, or system faults; and secure browser-based access for real-time monitoring and troubleshooting. For many transit agencies, it is important to promote public transportation as a favorable commuting alternative to attract more riders toward utilizing transit. To achieve this, it is essential to present a secure environment for both passengers and staff. Thanks to advancements in IP video technology, the industry is changing the way public transportation professionals respond to security concerns, while also enhancing passenger experience. Visible and well-marked video surveillance systems can help act as a deterrent for criminals. Today’s high-quality images are also leagues ahead of fuzzy CCTV images of the past. The high reliability of IP video systems coupled with forensic-quality images is used repeatedly to help solve crimes. In the event of an accident or crime, Luminator’s MVS solution enables transit agencies to protect themselves, their employees, and their riders by quickly retrieving and sharing footage with law enforcement or legal teams, maintaining full chain-of-custody during the entire process. The system also aids in demonstrating compliance with safety protocols and training standards, supports insurance claims with time-stamped, high-resolution, location-based evidence and enhances public trust by showing commitment to transparency and safety. The system’s design ensures that only authorized personnel can access recordings, and GDPR-compliant policies govern data retention and disclosure. Luminator’s mission is “to empower transportation systems globally with reliable, safe, and efficient solutions to maintain a high standard of excellence across diverse markets” Luminator streamlines transit operations with innovative smart video surveillance solutions that enhance safety, security, and operational efficiency through real-time and AI-capable applications. John Osumi is Luminator’s Director of MVS Product Management & Global Strategic Initiatives. For more information, visit https://luminator.com/.

Since taking new ownership in 2019 with nine drivers, one office employee, and one mechanic, Michigan-based charter and tour company, National Trails, has seen tremendous growth. In the last three years alone, the company has more than tripled the number of employees, doubled its school bus fleet and increased its motorcoach fleet size by 15. “During this period of rapid growth, we have been incredibly reliant on our software,” said Austin Arksey, owner of National Trails. “If we didn’t have software like busHive, we would not have been able to scale as easily and as efficiently as we have.” According to Arksey, when he purchased National Trails in 2019, charters were managed via handwritten or typewritten messages being physically handed to drivers. One of the first initiatives the company undertook was digitizing these many processes, and that meant migrating the manual charter-booking into busHive. busHive provides cloud-based software to streamline workflows and recordkeeping across the entire charter process – from the initial quote to confirmations, contracts, generating driver itineraries, billing, and invoicing. National Trails uses the software to manage its sales, billing, and payroll – with reporting that shows revenue per vehicle, profit/loss analysis, and other important benchmarking tools. “As we are continuing to add additional fleet, busHive has been very instrumental in giving us the keys to have visibility to being able to see our trips on a daily, weekly, monthly, even annual basis as well,” Arksey said. “It has been very helpful to have solid software in place as we continue to grow.” However, rapid scalability often comes with its own set of challenges as National Trails well knows. With the accelerated addition of employees, Arksey said that ensuring new hires are fully trained and brought up to speed on how the company functions and operates has been one of the biggest challenges thus far. “As we’ve been hiring people, some of the things that we look at are people’s adaptability, are they quick learners, especially when it comes to working with software and technology,” Arksey said. “We are not looking at people that can solve and handle the challenges that we have just today, that can help us solve the challenges we have tomorrow and beyond.” Arksey said that busHive has been instrumental in helping National Trails keep track of driver credentials and expiring licenses. The driver management tool has also enabled the company to maintain certifications without having any lapse in downtime for drivers. With the influx of new coaches and new business, preventive maintenance (PM) is always a primary concern. With more buses in the fleet, National Trails has continued to prioritize preventative maintenance on all its equipment. All work orders are loaded into busHive, allowing the company to ensure that PM orders process correctly and that inventory is properly maintained. “With the busHive software, we transitioned our techs from doing work orders on paper to doing them on tablets so we could reduce the amount of time that it took for those work orders to get into our system and have quicker visibility to be able to make decisions on equipment,” Arksey said. “Our downtime was reduced, and we were able to better manage, monitor and maintain our preventative maintenance schedules.” Arksey said he and his team feel extremely comfortable utilizing the busHive charter system as National Trails continues to grow, citing the great support network which the company provides. “The busHive team has been great,” Arksey said. “In the many years we have been working with busHive we have not faced any outages. Anytime we have suggestions their team is always receptive to changes and interested in learning about new ideas. It has been a great partnership and experience.”

  For over 50 years the Transit Authority of Northern Kentucky (TANK) has prioritized accessibility and ease of use for its ridership. Serving the Northern Kentucky region, including Boone, Campbell and Kenton counties, TANK has embarked on a transformative journey through the adoption of Avail Technologies’ computer-aided dispatch, automatic vehicle location solution (CAD/AVL). This partnership is part of TANK’s broader strategy to improve service efficiency, enhance communication, and elevate the overall rider experience. By integrating cutting-edge technology, TANK is redefining its operational processes and preparing for a future of increased demand and performance optimization. TANK has been an Avail Technologies customer dating back to 2018 when the agency’s enterprise resource management (ERP) provider was acquired by Avail. Thanks to its long history with the company, when the time came to replace TANK’s previous CAD/AVL solution, the selection process was an easy one. When TANK released an RFP for a new CAD/AVL system, Avail was prepared to not only upgrade the agency’s current ERP but provide a full installation of the CAD/AVL system. “Our previous CAD/AVL system and the equipment was really getting old, and it was just not working for us anymore,” said Lyndi Whiteker, Performance Analyst at TANK. “We were also trying to move from a traditional radio tower communication type system to cellular. That was a big factor in why we got the new system, but our equipment was just really getting old and starting to fail and it was time.” In March of 2023 the agency began the 11-phase process to onboard Avail’s updated CAD/AVL system. Over a year’s time, the solution was programmed onto all 95 of the agency’s fixed-route fleet vehicles and the groundwork was laid for a smooth rollout of the new technology. In addition to the CAD/AVL system, TANK opted to adopt further upgrades including Avail’s voiceover IP (VoIP), the addition of infotainment signs to vehicle interiors, the installation of digital signage at three stations, automatic passenger counters (APCs), and the addition of automated yard management to their fixedroute fleet. The agency also transitioned from an on-premise server to Avail’s cloud platform. Avail’s technology provides transit agencies with a single database for data to flow seamlessly throughout the organization. Business intelligence dashboards report metrics in real time to help improve efficiency, justify funding requests, and demonstrate compliance. Riders are immediately notified of changes, dispatchers know the locations of every bus and driver, incidents are tracked as they occur, and vehicle health monitoring capabilities can predict failures so maintenance can easily work on all vehicle issues before those buses hit the road. According to Avail Technologies project manager, Neal Castles, TANK was looking to solve a few specific challenges they had faced with their previous CAD/AVL system. Issues with reporting data, generating reports, keeping track of vehicles, and an outdated radio tower communication system. “Those were just a few of the challenges that were presented to us,” Castles said. “As we went along through the installation, we were very deliberate about addressing each of those issues.” The Avail onboarding process is a methodical one, with each vehicle undergoing a pre inspection prior to the installation itself followed by an ATP, a rigorous test to ensure that all new features are functioning properly. From the outset, TANK was confident in Avail’s ability to meet its operational needs. One key feature of Avail’s approach is its adaptability, as the system is highly customizable to fit the specific demands of its clients. “What made this partnership special is TANK already had our ERP solution,” said Robert Manaseri, Avail Technologies Vice President of Programs. “We then deployed our CAD/AVL solution. That is the beauty of a uniform platform. Our ERP system is built specifically for transit agencies, and then you add the CAD/AVL, it’s all under one umbrella. It gives our customers all the information they need in one place.” Avail’s myAvail system goes beyond CAD/AVL; it is an Enterprise Transit Management Solution (ETMS) with role-based user interfaces for operations, finance, and administration staff to manage all aspects of a modern transit agency operation. Capabilities include automatic mining and analysis of operational data, configurable performance metrics dashboards, preemptive notification of upcoming issues, as well as onboard, desktop, email and text alerts to avoid operational issues. In an installation or upgrade of this magnitude, Avail first conducts a survey of all the vehicles that will require new hardware. Avail then creates a bill of materials for each vehicle type. From there, Avail’s production team begins ordering components and building vehicle kits, before sending the kits to the agency’s facilities. Avail installers and field engineers arrive to support the installation effort, and Avail conducts on-site training while aiding with the initial vehicle pilots. “They were really thorough,” Whiteker said. “We went through a requirements review in the beginning, and then we moved towards getting the new data in the system. They guided us through all of that, they came on site and helped transition us into each piece of the system, one week at a time.” As part of the project, Avail created an enhanced training plan for TANK. The training plan is aimed at utilizing each component of myAvail to its fullest advantage – from the operator to operations, marketing, customer service, training, and the maintenance department. As part of the advanced training, Avail focused on creating standard operating procedures (SOPs) and implemented a multi-phase learning process, starting with a high-level introduction to the concept for different levels of usage for employees. “Maintenance training was fantastic,” said Bill Hock, TANK Director of Maintenance. “They were on site, the installation team reviewed everything with my team throughout the entire process to make sure that everybody had a thorough understanding of how everything worked. It was a really good process.” Once the process is complete, the agency and Avail conduct a full-fleet rollout. In the case of a large agency like TANK, this rollout can take up to two months to complete. “One thing that we are big on at Read More >