ON-DEMAND PUBLIC TRANSPORT SERVICES USING REAL-TIME RIDE SHARING SYSTEMS FOR SPECIAL USER GROUPS

Elderly, disabled, and school children have difficulties in personal mobility although they should have equal opportunities to use public transport. Municipality officials provide and pay for these services, which are most expensive. There are potential savings available. Advanced telematic applications, automatic vehicle location, digital maps and communication links, vehicle dispatch centers, vehicle occupancy information, route planning algorithms, integrated payment systems, and cooperation between public transport modes are the key elements concerning the services and savings. Bus and taxi operators have vehicles with seats for passengers and space for wheelchairs. Multi-operator and multimodal vehicle dispatch centers collect the users' demand for transport and provide vehicles that are the most suitable for the particular demand. Multiservice integrated payment systems, including smart card and clearing system, secure the management of travel rights, clearing between operators, money transactions, and real-time information whether the passenger is entitled to use these services or to pay him/herself for it. These measures provide public transport services for most people and offer a cost-effective way of organizing transport service on-demand.