Streamlining public transport planning and operations in Vignola
The Challenge
Vignola is a small city in the Modena region of Italy, well connected to the surrounding areas. It has a public transportation network that links it to nearby rural areas, including both city bus lines and routes serving neighbouring towns.
What is the main challenge?
Recent legislation imposing a 30 km/h speed limit in various regions of Italy, including Vignola and Modena, affects public transport vehicles as well. Due to this regulation change, Vignola needs to adjust its public transportation schedules to meet demand without compromising service levels.
The city aims to make its public transport planning resilient to such regulatory changes by evaluating the impact on vehicle numbers, kilometres travelled, frequency, service levels, driver and vehicle scheduling, costs, and more.
The Solution
To address this challenge, a scenario-based, data-driven public transport (PT) decision support system was implemented for the city. To adapt public transport planning to the new speed limits while meeting demand, optimised vehicle and driver scheduling was automatically generated using Cermoni. The municipality also aims to use its resources more efficiently and enhance service quality.
The objective is to improve public transport services with fewer vehicles and lower costs, all while maintaining high service standards, complying with new regulations, and reducing environmental impact.
Within the scope of the study, the timetables of 13 lines from the Vignola movement centre were imported into Cermoni, and a detailed analysis was carried out using standard timetable information such as line length, vehicle type, and average trip duration. Using Cermoni's planning feature, vehicle and driver assignments were made in alignment with the timetable.
One of the pilot’s objectives is to demonstrate that cities of different sizes can digitise and optimise their public transport planning processes affordably. The solution shows that even small cities like Vignola can implement this data-driven, innovative public transport planning system, making more efficient use of resources like vehicles and drivers.
