1. THE MILESTONES OF MASS TRANSIT CS 410 Blue Group communicate 2Me

2. A Brief Overview The Problem Our Solution Evaluation Plan Four Phases o Staffing o Costs What is being provided and what is not Risks and their mitigation Funding/Budget Conclusion 2 April 9th, 2009 CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009

3. Meet the Team April 9th, 2009 3 CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009

4. Overarching Problem Passenger needs are not addressed by mass transportation systems. 4 April 9th, 2009 CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009

5. The Wait Hampton Roads Transit (HRT) routes can have passengers wait anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour in suburban areas such as Chesapeake or Virginia Beach. Source: http://www.gohrt.com/faresandinformation/busroutes/busroutes.html http://www.gohrt.com/faresandinformation/busroutes/busroutes.html 5 April 9th, 2009 CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009

6. Inclement Weather & The Chase On average there is precipitation 115 days a year in Virginia. Source: http://www.met.utah.edu/jhorel/html/wx/climate/daysrain.html http://www.met.utah.edu/jhorel/html/wx/climate/daysrain.html Passengers not waiting in the designated bus stop areas are often overlooked by the bus driver. 6 April 9th, 2009 CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009

7. Heavy Passenger Loads & Bus Bunching CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009 In July, there are currently at least 55 festival events in Norfolk. Source: http://www.festeventsva.org/calendar/current- events/http://www.festeventsva.org/calendar/current- events/ Routes like the Net in Norfolk and the Wave in Virginia Beach have buses running as close as 6 minutes apart. April 9th, 2009 7

8. Missing the Bus Causes: Bus is Off Schedule Passenger Late Arrival to Stop Unaware of Real-time Schedules Driver Unaware of Awaiting Customers Effects: Schedule Problems Lower Passenger Appreciation Less Passengers Less Revenue 8 April 9th, 2009 CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009

9. Regional Transit Need is Increasing CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009 Hampton Roads has a population of 1.5 million By 2025, Hampton Roads is projected for 2.5 million Annual Ridership on HRT: 18.5 million Buses in the HRT System: 343 Average bus capacity is currently only at 15% Severe congestion is expected on 1,221 lane miles in Hampton Roads in 2026 Source: http://www.hrtransit.org/pdf/hrtbrochure/HRT_Brochure.pdfhttp://www.hrtransit.org/pdf/hrtbrochure/HRT_Brochure.pdf http://www.gohrt.com/pdf/strategicplan/Strategic%20Plan%20Final%20--%20November%202008.pdf April 9th, 2009 9

10. A Proposed Solution: communicate 2Me CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009 Increase coordination of passengers and drivers by providing real time bi-directional information April 9th, 2009 10

11. The Solution Real-time information for the driver such as:  Prioritization of stops  Number of commuters waiting at the next stop for their route Accessible and convenient to end users Reasonable cost for transportation companies 11 April 9th, 2009 CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009

12. communicate2Me - The Solution April 9th, 2009 12 CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009

13. A Feasible Implementation Passengers will be provided with methods to: Allow Stop Reservations via: o Personal Computer and Web Site o Cellular Phone / Short Message Service(SMS) Texting Have notifications of changes in schedule o SMS notification service o Email Result: Increases Coordination between driver and passenger 13 April 9th, 2009 CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009

14. April 9th, 2009 Benefits CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009 Passengers: Better Service More Interaction Greater Satisfaction Bus Drivers: Warning of Waiting Passengers Increased Awareness of Future Loads More Efficient Routes 14

15. Evaluation Plan Time o Measured against baseline project plan Cost o Measured against budget plan per phase Scope o Measured against requirements document Quality o Measured by customer and end user satisfaction April 9th, 2009 15 CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009

16. {phase 0} - concept (60 days) Milestones Problem Area Development Feasibility Research Milestone Scheduling Website Development SBIR Proposals Acceptance Criteria Review Board Acceptance April 9th, 2009 16 CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009

17. {phase 0} - organizational chart April 9th, 2009 17 CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009

18. {phase i} - prototype (130 days) Milestones Prototype Specifications Test Plan User Manuals Proposal Prototype Construction Demonstration Acceptance Criteria Review Board Acceptance April 9th, 2009 18 CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009

19. {phase i} - prototype components April 9th, 2009 19 CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009

20. {phase i} - financials April 9th, 2009 20 CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009

21. {phase i} - hardware requirements hardwareqty total SMS & Web Server1 $1,500 Software Development Workstation1 $2,000 Cellular Phones2 $800 overall hardware costs $4,300 April 9th, 2009 21 CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009

22. {phase ii} - critical design (1 year) Milestones Web Interface Web Message Algorithm SMS Gateway Development Algorithm Development Algorithm Testing Transit Interface Interface Test Acceptance Criteria Interfaces with Google Transit Receives SMS Messages Passes Tests Connects with Transit Authority's Systems April 9th, 2009 22 CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009

23. {phase ii} - organizational chart April 9th, 2009 23 CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009

24. {phase ii} - major components April 9th, 2009 24 CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009

25. {phase ii} - financials April 9th, 2009 25 CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009

26. {phase ii} - hardware requirements hardwareqtycost Total SMS Server2$1000. $2,000 Web Server1$2000.$2,000 Algorithm Server2$2000.$4,000 SMS Service / Credits (yearly)1$36,000 overall hardware costs $44,000 April 9th, 2009 26 CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009

27. {phase iii} - production & beyond Milestones Support Current Installations Improvement: Modifications to Interface Improvements to Algorithm Acceptance Criteria Market Penetration Market Acceptance Profitability April 9th, 2009 27 CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009

28. {phase iii} - organizational chart April 9th, 2009 28 CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009

29. {phase iii} - financials April 9th, 2009 29 CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009

30. in the box Service to set up and maintain: o Short Messaging Service gateways o Web servers o Application servers Algorithm to communicate between end users and bus drivers April 9th, 2009 30 CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009

31. not in the box Buses Wireless communication between buses and Transit Center Tracking system for buses (GPS, RFID) April 9th, 2009 31 CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009

32. who is the customer? Initial customers: Transportation Hampton Roads Transit (HRT) Metropolitan Transportation Authorities Future customers (Phase III+) Shipping United States Postal Service (USPS) United Parcel Service (UPS) Other Services Cable Utilities April 9th, 2009 32 CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009

33. price point April 9th, 2009 33 CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009 Costs: Yearly Cost to Customer: $400,000 Customer ROI: Increases fuel mileage by 3%, saving $200,000 a year Increases choice ridership, leading to more customers

34. April 9th, 2009 current competition CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009 34

35. risks & pitfalls 1.Interoperability problems 2.Latency Issues 3.Abuse of the system 4.SMS message costs 5.Phone incompatibility 6.Transit operator ignoring system 7.Down Time April 9th, 2009 35 CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009

36. risk mitigation Interoperability: Direct Communication with each Transit Authority's technicians Latency: Optimize Incoming SMS Processing Time Synchronize Driver Updates based on Position Abuse of the System: No way to mitigate without tracking passengers Transit Operator Ignoring System: Education Tracking of Requests to Pickups April 9th, 2009 36 CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009

37. budget Funding Source: Department of Transportation o SBIR – Phase 1: $100,000 o SBIR – Phase 2 : $650,000 o SBIR –Phase 3: Small Business Loan/Venture Capatilists http://www07.grants.gov/search/search.do;jsessionid=MgLfJcyflkGLZ3tLyF7Rj6GTJrn0PfTyyFvzsQtD1TNF10WzQqWS !-802466050?oppId=46140&flag2006=false&mode=VIEW http://www.gohrt.com/pdf/budget/Budget_2009.pdf April 9th, 2009 37 CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009

38. cost to develop Phase 0: o Free Phase 1: o Hardware Resources - $4,300.00 o Personnel Resources - $14,525.00 Phase 2: o Hardware Resources - $44,000.00 o Personnel Resources - $443,114.00 Phase 3: o Hardware Resources - $37,200.00 o Personnel Resources - $286,860.00 Total - $829,999.00 April 9th, 2009 38 CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009

39. breaking even April 9th, 2009 39 CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009

40. closing statements Current Systems are One-Way: Informing the passengers, not Interacting with them. communicate 2Me promises to: Connect Passengers with Drivers, and Vice Versa Each phase is feasible in terms of: Cost Requirements Staffing let's do it! communicate 2Me April 9th, 2009 40 CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009

41. Any questions? April 9th, 2009 41 CS 410 Blue Group Spring 2009