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Last month, Icomera subsidiary GoMedia held a demonstration event at Arriva Rail London’s Camden Road Overground station, showcasing its Personalised Digital Sign Language solution, ‘Luna’. Arriva Rail London has been trialling the solution at five London Overground stations.
The demonstration event brought together guests from a range of organisations, including Transport for London (TfL), the Royal National Institute of Deaf People (RNID), and Innovate UK, as well as local rail authorities and other stakeholders.
Attendees took part in an active trial of the solution, travelling between Camden Road and Hackney Central Overground stations while using the web application to view real-time journey and delay information and experience Luna’s ease of use while they travelled.
Powered by Signapse technology and integrated with GoMedia’s accessible wayfinding solution, ‘Visor’, Luna translates digital information listed online into British Sign Language (BSL) and transmits it directly to users through their smart devices, providing a simple and cost-effective solution for making transport more accessible for passengers with hearing loss.
“Easy navigation, text versions of announcements – BRILLIANT!”
In addition to BSL, passengers can access the information Visor provides through audio and text announcements in up to 33 languages, extending the solution’s usefulness to a wide array of users, for example people who wear noise cancelling headphones when travelling.
Earlier in the year, the RNID conducted tests of the solution online and at stations. 20 participants of various ages and backgrounds were surveyed, all of whom were either deaf BSL users, or people with hearing loss ranging from “mild” to “severe” and “profound”. The results demonstrated that the “majority of testers feel Luna would make their travel more independent and would use it again”.
When asked whether Luna makes travel more independent for participants if implemented across the transport network, 16 out of 20 users confirmed that it would (3 were unsure), commenting:
“To have travel information at hand would definitely improve my confidence. I would not have to rely on someone else for support, I could do it myself.” – User aged 55-64 from Wales.
“I think it would allow me to work out what the announcements are. This is really helpful. Reliability would be so important.” – User aged 25-34 user from East of England.
Users also reported that they felt comfortable using the solution, which was intuitive, clearly organised, and easy to understand.
Two users aged 34-44 from Greater London said: “I did like how [Luna] was organized. It generally made sense to me in terms of categories.” and “Appreciative of BSL translation and all the updates with train times were helpful.”, respectively.
“Easy navigation, text versions of announcements – BRILLIANT!” – User aged 55-64 from East Midlands.
Luna was developed as part of the ‘First of a Kind’ (FOAK) 2024 project, which was funded by the Department for Transport (DfT) and supported by Innovate UK.
Quentin Dejean, Managing Director of GoMedia says: “Luna is the latest addition to our accessibility solutions ecosystem, which has been designed to make transport more accessible for all passengers, regardless of their additional needs, for example, hearing- and sight-loss, or translation support.
“Additionally, by facilitating independent navigation for passengers with smart devices, on-station personnel can be freed up to help other passengers who require in-person support – A vital consideration, for example, for an estimated 270,000 people in London who have limited or no Internet access.
“By offering inexpensive, easy-to-deploy accessibility solutions that target a wide range of use cases at once, we can offer a smart, connected journey for all – even across the ‘digital divide’.”
Travelers are increasingly choosing rail for its convenience, affordability, and unique experiences. This surge in ridership is a global phenomenon and these numbers tell a compelling story: Amtrak reported a 24.6% increase in ridership in the United States during its 2023 fiscal year. Rail travel in the UK showed a 20% year-over-year increase during the third quarter of 2023. Deutsche Bahn, the German operator, saw an 11.5% increase year-over-year in regional rail ridership in the first half of 2023.
The surge in ridership marks a transformative era for all rail operators, signaling not just a resurgence of trains as a primary transport choice, but a revolutionary shift in what passengers expect from their journeys. The industry has the potential to recapture pandemic-era losses and draw new demographics by prioritizing the passenger experience. But to capitalize on this opportunity, transport operators will need to ensure that they’re consistently delivering the experience their passengers expect.
Here are the steps to getting to that next level of passenger satisfaction and it’s all built on connectivity.
The traditional view of the office as a place for individual work is giving way to a new reality: it becomes a dynamic hub for collaboration and face-to-face interaction.
The notion that productivity is confined to the walls of a cubicle is a relic of the past.
In today’s fast-paced world, business travelers and remote workers are breaking free from traditional workspaces and finding productivity in unexpected places. This shift is particularly evident on trains, where in-transit Wi-Fi has become essential for passenger satisfaction.
This redefinition of the office’s role reinforces the value placed on the ability to perform solitary work tasks or join collaborative video calls during commutes. According to a recent report, an impressive 32% of travelers use train Wi-Fi for work, confirming its status as a new norm. London North Eastern Railway (LNER) noted, 82% of business travelers are choosing to travel by rail to stay productive while in transit and 51% say the Wi-Fi is more reliable than other modes of transport.
A recent example of this approach can be found in Porterbrook’s Innovative HydroFLEX train. DG8, an industrial design team, designed the interior of the train to include an ‘onboard boardroom’ featuring a conference table layout and 5G connectivity, meeting the needs of passengers looking to work, study or host meetings. By better understanding passenger habits, rail operators can design future carriages with amenities that truly meet travelers’ needs.
As passenger expectations climb faster than a bullet train, onboard Wi-Fi services are racing to keep up.
The ability to stay productive – and connected – during the journey is a key factor influencing the decision to choose rail travel. Yet still – in 2024 – passengers click the signal symbol in their task bar and anticipating the same level of productivity they would enjoy in a classroom, conference room, or office. Reliable wireless connectivity is a minimum standard for delivering passenger satisfaction — anything less will fall short of meeting expectations.
According to GSMA Intelligence, 77% of global train passengers expect to have access to Wi-Fi onboard by 2025, highlighting the growing demand for seamless connectivity. A recent report from the UK rail operator LNER surveyed the next generation of rail travelers — those between the ages of 13 and 18. Younger generations of passengers may all have their own mobile phones but only 30% have unlimited data. The remaining 70% have data plans ranging between 25GB and 200GB, leaving them dependent on public Wi-Fi for connectivity to avoid exceeding their limits.
In the realm of Internet connectivity, the paramount challenge for rail operators is delivering a seamless connection to passengers. With the rise of remote work models, 80% of businesses globally are offering remote work options. This trend underscores the growing importance of reliable connectivity for mobile workforces, including those traveling by train. Standards will continue to increase, and rail operators need to ensure they’re keeping up with expectations.
The latest onboard connectivity platforms utilize intelligent data traffic management tools. By prioritizing, throttling, and blocking different types of traffic according to pre-set priorities, such as prioritizing Microsoft Outlook applications over other services during weekday mornings and evenings, passengers exhibit a reduced risk of heavy bandwidth use.
Onboard entertainment has long been seen as the natural complement to Wi-Fi. US coach operator, Greyhound, saw a 40-point increase in their Net Promoter Score after the first year of launching an onboard entertainment service. Media content is stored locally onboard the vehicle and does not require an Internet connection – freeing up more of the available bandwidth for passengers using the Wi-Fi for “digital chores” (emails and social media etc.).
To curate a personalized onboard experience, the use of data collection through onboard Wi-Fi usage can provide valuable insights into behavior and travel patterns. By analyzing usage data, operators can see what types of content passengers are looking at and use this to further optimize the travel experience. A tourist on a longer journey may well be more interested in streaming media content, while a business traveler on a short morning commute may be more likely to want quick access to up-to-the-minute news.
Satisfied passengers expect to be proactively informed about the details of their journey without having to seek it out for themselves. Poor quality information, particularly during disruption, makes an already frustrating situation worse for passengers, and significantly more challenging for front-line staff. In contrast, if a passenger is kept informed regarding any delay, they can plan around it, and even use it to their advantage.
Creating two-way communications channels between operator and passenger allows for issues to be addressed in real-time. As a result, the operator can then correct the issue and resolve the dissatisfaction before it affects other passengers. By focusing on passenger satisfaction (i.e. CSAT scores), rail operators create confidence to travel, loyalty, retention, and overall positive experiences. When passengers are offered the opportunity to communicate their journey experiences in real-time it not only empowers them but also equips the operator with actionable insights.
Going one step further, immediate conversation capabilities can transform negative incidents into positive service stories, leading to increased satisfaction levels.
Convenience is the common thread that runs through every exceptional retail or hospitality experience. Regardless of whether you live in the center of a major city, the suburbs, or in a remote community, convenience is now top of mind when considering how to get from point A to point B. This focus on convenience is even shaping the economic picture, as many people are willing to pay more for an experience, if they consider it to be more convenient.
Trending on longer rail routes is the offering of at-seat food and drink ordering, allowing passengers to see what’s available and order refreshments via the train’s online web shop directly from their Internet browser. Rail operators realize that a passenger wants to spend time in their own way – including if they want to wait. By using an at-seat ordering application, orders can be delivered directly to passengers at their seat or collected from the train’s buffet car. At-seat delivery clearly provides convenience-related benefits for all passengers, allowing them to continue watching that movie or chat with their friends/family while they wait, rather than having to get up to collect their order. And lone travelers do not need to worry about leaving their luggage unattended or taking it with them around the train to collect their order – potentially losing their seat if it was not reserved.
In our technologically advanced modern world, we have an obligation to make reliable rail travel available to everyone.
Convenient and reliable rail travel should be accessible and inclusive for everyone yet 66% of people with disabilities struggle to make their journeys independently. According to Hearing Dogs and Hearing Link, a recent survey noted only 7% of people with a hearing impairment reported being somewhat confident that they would be made aware of changes and disruptions during their journey. Of those surveyed, only 16% thought they were treated equally compared to people without hearing loss.
Digital technologies which use personal smart devices can provide at-hand support, reducing the barriers to use for customers with hearing or vision loss – and addressing some hidden needs of a broader audience as well.
These innovations provide cost-effective “quick wins” for transport operators and authorities due to the comparatively small amount of capital investment required to develop and deploy them, and the rapid speed with which this can be done.
Rail operators are competing for passengers with private vehicles and ride sharing, and a rail service is only as good as its last journey.
Empathy emerges as the cornerstone of service quality, holding the power to profoundly influence and elevate passenger satisfaction. The pandemic has brought forth a wide range of emotional responses from passengers, including fear and anxiety. Demonstrating empathy becomes crucial for rail operators. This involves understanding passengers’ concerns, addressing their questions and worries, and showing compassion towards any difficulties they may face while traveling.
Historically, passenger feedback was most often collected retrospectively, leading to inaccuracies about which service the passenger was using. Today, rail operators are moving towards enroute feedback – collecting sentiment in real-time, tagging the date, time, route, and direction of travel.
The traditional reliance on post-journey feedback, whether in the form of complaints or compliments, has long hampered rail operators’ ability to swiftly address concerns and cultivate positive passenger interactions in the moment. The ability to tap into passenger sentiment in real-time is invaluable. Where passenger experiences are often shared online or directly with the service provider, efficiently capturing sentiments can transform service delivery.
In an era where passenger feedback can significantly influence brand reputation and operational efficiency, understanding and addressing real-time sentiment is essential. If a passenger has a disappointing experience with unkempt facilities, delayed service, or unreliable Wi-Fi, they could be more likely to consider other options for their next journey — even if their five previous journeys were problem-free.
The digital era of rail opens up a myriad of possibilities for operators to elevate passenger satisfaction to new heights. By focusing on the key areas outlined here – from seamless connectivity to personalized experiences – the passenger rail industry can secure a competitive advantage and prove rail travel as a mainstay for the modern passenger.
This isn’t just about technology upgrades; it’s about embracing a mindset shift. Operators must understand that passenger expectations are shaped by their daily digital interactions. By mirroring the convenience, personalization, and accessibility they experience elsewhere, rail travel becomes not only a viable alternative but a preferred choice for future journeys.
GoMedia has developed Luna, a smart application powered by Signapse technology and integrated with GoMedia’s accessible wayfinding solution, ‘Visor’, which translates digital information listed online into BSL and transmits it directly to the user through their smart device via a personalised digital signer.
The development and testing of the solution has been funded by the Department for Transport (DfT), through the £5.3m First of a Kind 2023 (FOAK23) competition, which it delivered jointly with Innovate UK (part of UKRI) and High Speed Two (HS2) Limited.
There are more than 150,000 people in the UK who rely on BSL, meaning that many passengers who are deaf or have hearing loss struggle to access essential information whilst travelling. This can be particularly difficult during service disruptions, as information is often shared through audio announcements and is not always available on visual displays or signs.
Project Luna uses a unique webpage, accessed by URL or QR code, which enables customers to access station and facility information, live departures and disruptions, and station announcements in up to 33 different languages.
In addition to BSL, passengers will be also able to access the information Luna provides through audio and text announcements, extending the solution’s usefulness to more than just BSL users, for example people who wear noise cancelling headphones when travelling.
Matthew Bromley, Head of Business Intelligence at ARL, said: “We are committed to finding solutions which will help London Overground passengers travel independently and with ease, so it made perfect sense to trial GoMedia’s Luna solution. We hope our collaboration with GoMedia will be another step towards more accessible public transport for all.”
The solution is being trialled across five London Overground stations from May until September 2024.
Read the original press release here
The Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) reports that 4 out of 10 blind and partially-sighted passengers cannot make all the journeys they need or want to make. This is particularly important as there are currently many potential passengers being locked out of using the most environmentally friendly mode of transportation.
To find out how digital technology is used to provide accessible public transport, as well as how it compares to other industries, we asked some questions to RNIB’s Head of Inclusive Design, Robin Spinks, as well as experts in the field of digital accessibility solutions for public transport: Sven Koster, Head of New Business Development and Innovation at GoMedia, and Raúl Moreno, Head of Strategic Partnerships and Projects at NaviLens.
Question 1: Can you tell us about NaviLens and how it is combining with GoMedia to improve Accessibility on public transport?
Raúl Moreno, NaviLens: NaviLens is a groundbreaking technological solution initially developed to help people with vision loss navigate their environment independently. Blind people and those with other degrees of vision loss either have difficulty or are unable to use traditional signage and, therefore, face significant challenges finding their way in unfamiliar environments, particularly busy ones like public transport stations.
This innovative technology employs a distinctive system of high-contrast, color-coded symbols—readily detectable and interpretable by smartphones or specialised cameras and easy to recognise by people with vision loss. These dynamic NaviLens Accessible codes encode a wealth of information, including location details and directions, empowering users with real-time access to relevant and contextualized data based on where the code is located.
This is where GoMedia plays a pivotal role in applying the solution to public transport. By linking NaviLens to GoMedia’s real-time passenger information database – A blended service called “Visor” – users simply scan the NaviLens Accessible codes with their smart device to get fully up-to-date journey information in real-time.
Users can benefit from the help of the app’s voice assistant to continue their journey, with practical information including descriptions of physical elements, guidance indicators, and real-time arrivals, departures, and delays.
Sven Koster, GoMedia: GoMedia believes that a better journey experience leads to increased customer satisfaction and more public transport usage overall. To deliver better transport for everyone, it is important to take an inclusive approach with our digital passenger experience, catering to people of all backgrounds and abilities.
When RNIB introduced us to this wonderful technology around five years ago, that allows blind and partially sighted people to access information in a format that works for them, we were excited by the prospect of helping passengers make their journeys independently by combining NaviLens’ innovative wayfinding technology with GoMedia’s digital journey information service.
Since partnering with NaviLens to help passengers with sight loss, we’ve gone on to identify and develop an ecosystem of accessibility solutions for public transport, that also address the needs of passengers with hearing loss. These including personalised onboard announcements co-developed with the charity Hearing Dogs for Deaf People, as well as personalised digital signers, developed with Signapse AI.
Robin Spinks, RNIB: What sets Visor apart is its holistic approach to user experience, which is encapsulated in a single, easy-to-use app. Thanks to its versatility, the solution has been applied in a variety of ways, from domestic settings to inclusive tourism experiences, and spanning all modes of transportation.
Users do not need to know precisely where codes are placed and can receive the information they need in a variety of formats and languages, all through an intuitive, user-friendly app.
Question 2: What are some of the specific challenges you have to consider when deploying the solution and how do you overcome them?
Raúl Moreno, NaviLens: We have worked with several multinational companies across a range of industries, including Kellogg’s, Proctor & Gamble, and Coca Cola, all of which use NaviLens technology to relay important product information to consumers using the NaviLens codes, whether they experience vision loss or not. Whether a single NaviLens code is applied to product packaging, or whether hundreds of codes are integrated into large environments like train stations, proper placement is key.
It requires close collaboration between several stakeholders to assess and determine the best possible locations for codes to be placed, for example considering how items will be stacked on shop shelves, or where to display codes to form the most efficient path through busy stations from one mode of transport to the next.
Clear communication and effective project management are therefore vital to any installation and choosing partners that can successfully see deployments through from start to finish is a tremendously beneficial consideration for every party involved.
Sven Koster, GoMedia: With several deployments of Visor completed, we have faced and learned from a variety of challenges across several different public transport environments.
Through our West Midlands pilot, we proved that we could implement the solution for a total end-to-end journey. We could guide passengers with sight loss to successfully find the tram stop, identify the correct tram as they boarded, based on the journey they selected in the app, and then get off at the correct stop as well.
When we deployed Visor at one of the UK’s busiest rail stations, London Euston, we were presented with an extremely busy and highly dynamic environment. Other station improvement works were being conducted while thousands of passengers moved around the space daily. This required very careful planning and cooperation with the UK’s rail infrastructure provider, Network Rail, to ensure that passengers were given the best possible route through the station and avoid disruption.
On our most recent deployment on the Docklands Light Railway (DLR), we encountered new challenges still. For example, the solution deployed at Cutty Sark station had to provide users with fully up-to-date information, despite being completely underground with no cellular connectivity.
Robin Spinks, RNIB: Every location is different. Every physical building is different architecturally, be it a railway station or a light rail station, or a bus station, or a subway. All of those stations and environments have got different characteristics and I think what’s really important for us is that we capture the user experience across different contexts, so we’ve been able to help pilot this solution on product packaging, at a major bus station in the West Midlands, and on four DLR stations with really high footfall.
We are really excited to get all of that information from as many different contexts and users as possible, with different eye conditions and different levels of confidence. All of that helps us build a better picture and ultimately to enable people to move around more confidently.
An obvious thing for us to do is to partner with organisations who are stakeholders in this space and use their infrastructure and expertise to achieve some positive change and make travel easier for people. It’s all about opening up opportunities, improving confidence, and enabling people to get about. We can’t do that on our own, but we can do it by working with great partners like GoMedia.
Question 3: What can the public transport industry learn from other sectors in making their services more accessible?
Raúl Moreno, NaviLens: There has undoubtedly been some financial uncertainty across the globe in recent years and, in an industry where spending is carefully and publicly scrutinised, it is understandable that some hesitancy can arise when thinking about whether to deploy new technologies, particularly across entire transport networks.
This is where we believe that solutions like Visor can truly make a difference, by bridging the gap between tried and tested technologies and new ways of providing customers with the information they need to make informed decisions. The way that information is presented to passengers has a significant influence on their choice of transport and by providing a more efficient, enjoyable navigation experience, passengers will choose to use public transport more often over other, less sustainable modes of transport such as cars.
Sven Koster, GoMedia: If we take major cities as an example, there are a number of factors affecting public transport usage which transport planning authorities may not have fully considered. In addition to passengers with physical accessibility needs, there are several “hidden disabilities” that may affect whether passengers can use traditional signage and announcements, for example passengers with low literacy levels or hearing loss.
It is also important to consider tourism in these environments. Tens of millions of tourists can pass through the world’s busiest cities every year, many of whom may not have high English reading comprehension levels. By providing them with updates in their native language, these users are able to make their journeys more quickly, safely, and independently, reducing strain on passenger information services and station congestion, making the service more attractive and efficient as a whole.
Robin Spinks, RNIB: That’s correct – You don’t need to have vision loss to try Visor. You can download the app as a sighted person and give it a try, because there’s an additional benefit alongside the benefits that blind and partially sighted people experience, for example: Having information in your native language. If you’re a native German speaker, for example, and you’d like to have signs and announcements in your native language, or find a step-free route around the environment, you can do that with Visor.
In terms of the public transport industry, every piece of research that we do around blindness and sight loss indicates that mobility, travel, and getting around continues to be one of the biggest barriers that people face, wherever they are in the world and that’s certainly the case for two million people with sight problems here in the UK.
By keeping such a large number of people locked out of the public transport system through inaccessibility, there are millions of pounds, euros, and dollars in ticket revenues that is not being realised, not to mention the impact on the economy as a whole when people find it difficult to get out to work, enjoy leisure activities, or buy products. For example, transport operators in the West Midlands alone are missing out £4 million of revenue every year because their public transport system isn’t fully accessible.
Question 4: How do you foresee Visor becoming more widely adopted across the public transport industry?
Raúl Moreno, NaviLens: There is often a potential for reluctance to adopt new methods, particularly in more traditional or established environments. The aim is to continue to prove the accuracy and reliability of the system in diverse real-world conditions, such as varying lighting conditions and crowded spaces, through both live deployments and technological trials.
As NaviLens continues to establish itself as the most cost-effective, efficient, and user-friendly accessibility solution to deploy, we hope that more widespread adoption across transport networks should become a reality, as it has in multiple cities and public spaces, and on consumer products worldwide.
Sven Koster, GoMedia: Many of the major players in the public transport industry are now discussing NaviLens technology and, by packaging it into GoMedia’s successfully tested Visor solution, we can combine our resources, expertise, and industry knowledge to deploy the solution quickly and cost-effectively, anywhere in the world.
We are continuing to gather some highly positive feedback from passengers and transport operators alike and the more we can use this to talk about passengers’ accessibility needs and how to solve their challenges, the closer we get to public transport systems that are fairer and more inclusive for everyone.
Robin Spinks, RNIB: We encourage everyone to try Visor for themselves. Download the NaviLens app and let us know what your experience is like. We are always keen to try new approaches and pilot products in new areas.
So, watch this space, we’ll be doing more for sure.
The Automation & Self-Service Awards recognize exceptional innovations that create great user experiences and boost business effectiveness in seven categories: Best Use of AI, Vending, Kiosk, Robotics, Accessibility, Best Mobile Solution, and Influencer of the Year. Cherryh Cansler, VP of events for Networld Media Group, and Dave Wurm, chief sales officer at Networld Media Group, producer of the summit, presented the award winners.
As the winner in the Accessibility category, Visor represents the future of transportation by enabling passengers with sight loss to have greater independence while using public transportation, providing easy access and personalized information that makes travel more comfortable and reassuring for everyone.
Visor is more than just a technological solution; it is a symbol of hope for millions of passengers with sight loss addressing the challenges in navigating while traveling. These passengers have long struggled with traditional signage and therefore cannot be fully independent in unfamiliar environments.
Our vision for Visor was to address these challenges and transform transportation infrastructure into an accessible and inclusive environment. Visor provides contextual guidance to travelers, helping make transit facilities fully accessible, and allowing us to build transportation systems which can be enjoyed by all.
The solution, developed by GoMedia in partnership with the Royal Institute of Blind People (RNIB), leverages NaviLens BIDI codes and GoMedia’s cloud-based, passenger information system to display directions in the NaviLens and NaviLens GO apps.
“I am deeply honored to accept the 2023 Automation & Self-Service Award in the Accessibility Category for our groundbreaking innovation, Visor,” said Roger Matthews, Chief Commercial Officer. “Our journey to this award has been one of perseverance and dedication, and we would like to extend our heartfelt gratitude to our partners for their unwavering support and commitment to realizing our vision.”
Visor is the first and only solution that gives users contextual awareness and autonomy back with an interface that gives passengers information in the format that exactly fits their accessibility needs exactly. Something that point-to-point navigation does not provide. Visor provides many innovative features, including real-time live personal journey information in at least 24 different languages about facilities, points of interests, and retail, and navigation directly to the passenger’s device.
Visor’s approach is unique in the market. It makes use of optical BIDI codes that can be scanned from a smart device up to 12x further away than similarly sized QR codes. Passengers simply hold up their smartphone. The smart device automatically recognizes any BIDI codes in view and displays location- and context-specific directions to help the passenger reach their destinations more quickly and easily.
“I believe that innovations like Visor are key to realizing a more inclusive tomorrow, where all individuals can travel with greater ease and confidence, especially those with specific accessibility needs,” said Sven Koster, Head of New Business & Innovation.
Transport systems, pavements, and built environments are often not designed to be fully inclusive for blind and partially sighted people, making them difficult to navigate, particularly if the environment is unfamiliar. The Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) reports that 4 out of 10 blind or partially sighted passengers cannot make all the journeys they need or want to make.
Visor makes stations accessible for the blind and partially sighted local passengers, as well as offers benefits for tourists that can now find their way around the public infrastructure in their own language; a customer base of 42 million people in the USA and Europe alone. The solution meets multiple needs to the marketplace including: providing accessible wayfinding for visual-impaired travelers, maximizing passenger comfort and confidence, allowing equitable means to travel on mass transit, and expanding ridership by meeting the needs of potential future transportation systems.
With Visor, Icomera and GoMedia have set a new standard in the transportation industry for being a technological service innovation enhancing the appeal of public transportation in accessibility, comfort, design or user-friendliness of a transport system, vehicles, and stations.
The Polar Bear Express service provides vital connections between the communities of Cochrane and Moosonee, through some of the province’s most remote areas.
Members of the community enjoyed an opportunity to board the train and bus to experience the Passenger Wi-Fi and GoView entertainment portal. Dignitaries joined ONTC’s CEO, Chad Evans and Commission Chair, Alan Spacek as they announced the start of this project, marking a significant milestone in a commitment to modernization.
“Trips can fly by when passengers are connected and entertained; commutes can feel easy when they are productive,” says Gabriel J. Lopez-Bernal, President of Icomera North America. “We are thrilled to bring passengers seamless travel – from one mode to another – from Ontario Northland bus to the Polar Bear Express passenger rail service.”
“Plan Group, an EQUANS Company, is proud to be the installation team on this groundbreaking project. Plan Group will perform the installation in accordance with the Icomera (design documentation, project deployment schedule. Our Teams will work as one during the installation efforts by providing the installation modification procedure, quality assurance inspection and testing procedures to validate the work before proceeding to Commissioning and Acceptance Testing. As part of the installation support, training guidance will be provided to ONTC installation staff.” – Scott Mitton, Head of Business Development – Technology for Plan Group, Inc.
In January 2023, Icomera partnered with ONTC in designing an onboard connectivity solution for the bus fleet. Ontario Northland’s bus fleet provides transportation from Hearst to Toronto, Sault Ste. Marie, Ottawa, Sudbury, Thunder Bay, Winnipeg, and many points in between.
Installations were completed in early October, just in time for the holiday peak travel season. The bus fleet is now equipped with a first-class experience where passengers have access to reliable mobile Internet and entertainment – even on journeys through rural or remote areas – and local information in both English and French.
“The onboard experience continues to evolve in all kinds of exciting ways. Because GoView entertainment content is hosted directly on the onboard hardware and delivered directly to passengers’ mobile devices, there’s no need to download an app and we are proud to be bringing our platform to Ontario Northland,” said Roger Matthews, Icomera Chief Commercial Officer.
These digital transformation projects achieve ONTC’s 2022-2023 Business Plan goals of improving operational efficiency of business lines and consolidating the data expense per vehicle. The projects will continue to be spearheaded by Icomera Canada, led by the project management and technical services team out of Mississauga, and supported globally.
GoMedia’s FOAK23 project, ‘Luna’, comprises a solution that translates digital information listed online into British Sign Language (BSL) and transmits it directly to the user through their smart device, by way of their own personalised digital sign language avatar.
Powered by Signapse technology, the Luna system will be integrated with GoMedia’s accessible wayfinding solution, ‘Visor’, giving users access to a wealth of information about their journey, in the way they need it, no matter where they are. Passengers can use their personal devices to access station and facility information, live departures and disruptions, station announcements, and navigational instructions, in BSL as well as audio and text, in as many as 33 different languages.
Signapse’s vision is to translate all the world’s words into sign language. This team of Deaf professionals, entrepreneurs, academics and linguists are using 20 years of research into Generative AI and 300 sign languages. They are creating the most elegant solution to the problem of dynamic and instant translation of transport announcements for the Deaf Community.
The technology will be trialled by UK transport operator Arriva Rail London, operator of the London Overground service, across five stations for a period of six months and will involve the use of a unique webpage accessed by URL or QR code. Luna will be tested alongside other end-to-end wayfinding systems and user feedback will be collected to determine which solution works best against a wide range of scenarios.
Roger Matthews, Chief Commercial Officer of Icomera and CEO of GoMedia, said: “We are pleased to deliver another innovative accessibility project through the ‘First of a Kind’ programme, adding to a portfolio of award-winning accessibility solutions that have been proven to give passengers more autonomy and independence in how they travel.
“With British Sign Language used by over 151,000 people in the UK, including it as a means of communicating important travel updates and wayfinding information is crucial in helping a large number of passengers who may otherwise struggle to make their journey. It therefore made perfect sense to trial GoMedia’s Luna solution, to provide a truly independent journey for our passengers.”
Sally Chalk, Signapse CEO, commented: “Our vision is to translate all the world’s words into sign language. There are 2,400 train stations in the UK in our database. This partnership means that Deaf passengers can access critical, real-time information about those stations in their pocket, giving our Community the control and choice that they need.”
The AdWheel awards aim to honor public transportation systems and business members for their “outstanding marketing and communications efforts that contributed to strategic organizational goals.” Our instructional video on HEAR, Accessible On Board Train Announcements, demonstrates a prime example of educational communications that empower public transportation decision-makers to make informed choices.
After facing a final round of judging of the 49 First Place winners, GoMedia was one of the APTA Business Members presented with a Grand Award at APTA’s TRANSform Conference and EXPO on October 10, 2023, in Orlando, Florida.
“Making public transport inclusive is not just about fulfilling a function, it’s also about instilling confidence in all passengers, regardless of their abilities. It’s especially important for people with hearing loss, who may need assistance when navigating through a transit station, platform, vehicle, and eventually their destination. Therefore, on behalf of the team at GoMedia, I am deeply humbled to receive the Grand Award to recognize us for our accessibility work.” – Sven Koster, Head of New Business and Innovation at GoMedia
The video was created to 1) educate deaf and hard of hearing passengers on how to use HEAR on board trains; 2) empower those passengers to travel independently and, 3) highlight the need for investment in accessible passenger announcements. The video was narrated and produced by Sven Koster, GoMedia’s Head of New Business & Innovation, using his keen eye for storytelling and his own mobile phone.
The story is never completely told; we need to continue to create compelling campaigns that explain the pressing need for accessible journeys, ensuring that transportation infrastructure and technological advancements cater to the diverse needs of all individuals.
The video was used in tandem with a survey with NGO partners for people with hearing impairments to discover the ease of travel and boost confidence. Of those surveyed, 96 percent of the people were more confident during their journey and hoped to utilize public transit for more of their travel – rather than on-demand transit.
HEAR, short for Hearing Enhanced Audio Relay, is an onboard digital service that delivers personalized journey information announcements to passengers with hearing loss. It addresses the pressing need for accessible passenger announcements, ensuring that transportation infrastructure and technological advancements cater to the diverse needs of all individuals.
“Winning this award is not just about recognition, it’s a reminder of the importance of inclusivity in every aspect of transit. It’s about making sure that everyone feels welcome and empowered to travel independently. We are committed to continuing to make a real difference in the lives of people with hearing loss, so we will continue to improve HEAR with the hopes of expanding its reach to other transportation systems across the world. Once again, we are humbled by this recognition and grateful for the opportunity to make a positive impact on the lives of others.” – Roger Matthews, GoMedia Managing Director
As narrated in the educational video, the HEAR application enables passengers connected to the onboard Wi-Fi to receive personalized journey announcements to their smart devices in real-time. These notifications can be specifically tailored to passengers’ preferences, for example only informing them of announcements relating to their destination, in both audible and readable formats.
Trials of HEAR on Transport for Wales trains on the Rhymney line yielded remarkable results. Passengers with hearing loss received real-time, personalized announcements tailored to their preferences, available in both audible and readable formats, ensuring they did not miss crucial information about their journeys. Inspired by this success, the HEAR campaign was launched to showcase how effective HEAR is compared to traditional hearing loops.
According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, Bureau of Transportation Statistics, as of 2022, 11.2 million people, age 65 and older, have self-reported travel-limiting disabilities. According to the National Institute on Deafness and other Communication Disorders, one in eight people in the United States (13%), aged 12 years or older has hearing loss in both ears, based on standard hearing examinations.
“As an industry, we must continue to strive towards a future where accessibility is not an afterthought, but a fundamental aspect of passenger experience. We recognize that our work is far from done, and we remain fully committed to our mission of enhancing accessibility and inclusivity in transportation. Thank you, APTA, for this important recognition, which inspires us to continue working towards a more accessible future for all.“– Gabriel J. Lopez-Bernal, Icomera US President
GoMedia – a subsidiary of Icomera and of EQUANS – developed the technology with support from non-profit organizations such as Hearing Link and Hearing Dogs with the aim of alleviating the challenges that passengers with hearing loss face. Through educational initiatives, community engagement, and advocacy efforts, this partnership is making significant progress in creating a more inclusive and welcoming environment for everyone.
HEAR was funded by the Department for Transport through its £9m ‘First of a Kind 2021’ competition, delivered by Innovate UK (part of UKRI).
To view all the APTA AdWheel 2023 Grand Award winners, click here.
NaviLens is designed specifically to enable blind and partially-sighted people to access and locate information and interact with their environment, particularly in busy areas like train stations. NaviLens’ technology has seen successful deployments in New York Metro, Barcelona, and Los Angeles. It is even used beyond transport, such as in supermarkets on some Kellogg’s packaging, to provide ingredient information.
NaviLens technology is based on image recognition using augmented smart codes, placed along designated customer itineraries, and a smartphone app that provides voice guidance for blind and partially-sighted passengers. Once the smart codes have been scanned using the NaviLens app, users can benefit from the help of the app’s voice assistant to continue their journey, the voice assistant having told them practical information including description of a physical element, guidance indications and real-time DLR arrivals and departures.
The trial of NaviLens will be supported by audio announcements at stations, members of staff at Woolwich Arsenal DLR station and Passenger Service Agents that are onboard all DLR trains to assist passengers. The technology could also support those hampered by language barriers, or passengers unfamiliar with London: the NaviLens app can transmit the information encapsulated in the smart codes in augmented reality, in 33 different languages.
TfL is actively pursuing innovation, and in particular is working with KeolisAmey Docklands to use the DLR as a testbed to help improve customer experience and decarbonisation right across the network.
Seb Dance, Deputy Mayor for Transport said: “Encouraging greater use of public transport is a top priority for the Mayor, and the NaviLens app should make a real difference for partially-sighted customers and help make London’s transport network accessible to all. The DLR is one of the most accessible modes of transport on our network and this new technology will go even further to help customers with access needs travel with ease, building a better, safer and fairer London for all.”
Tom Page, General Manager of the DLR at TfL, said: “Customers are at the heart of everything we do. With step-free access across the DLR network, the NaviLens technology will allow us to use four stations to trial how we can best serve everyone, including those with accessibility needs or needing to access information in other languages. NaviLens will work alongside Passenger Service Agents that are onboard all DLR trains, and we will work with our partners KeolisAmey Docklands, GoMedia and The Royal National Institute of Blind People to review the trial once it has concluded.”
Andrew Dickinson, Service Delivery Director at KeolisAmey Docklands, said: “KeolisAmey Docklands are excited to trial the innovative NaviLens technology in partnership with GoMedia, RNIB and Transport for London. We are proud to operate the DLR serving our customers, communities and businesses in east London. We continually look to improve and make our railway even more accessible to all.
“This trial is an exciting partnership collaboratively working to improve the customer experience for those who are partially sighted or fully blind. By embracing and building on technological developments we can build the connectivity of the Docklands area to those living around it.
“We will also be developing the trial to see how it can help us with other areas of customer communication and provision of service information.”
Robin Spinks, RNIB Head of Inclusive Design, said: “Navigating train and light rail stations can be a very daunting and anxiety provoking experience for people living with blindness or partial sight.
“As someone who is registered as blind, I can struggle to navigate around train stations as the signs are often inaccessible to me. I don’t want special treatment; I just want access to the same information that everyone else takes for granted.
“RNIB is delighted to be involved in this partnership, where NaviLens technology is enabling more confident, independent travel for people like me.”
Roger Matthews, Managing Director of GoMedia and Chief Commercial Officer of its parent company, Icomera, said “GoMedia’s accessibility solution uses a live, cloud-based passenger information system to deliver accurate, content-rich, location-based information to users of the Navilens app. The trial does not require the installation of any additional physical infrastructure aside from the optical smart code stickers, so it presents a fast and cost-effective accessibility win for transport infrastructure owners and operators.”
KeolisAmey Docklands operates and maintains the DLR under franchise for Docklands Light Railway Limited, part of Transport for London. It is the busiest light railway in the UK.
KeolisAmey Docklands is a joint venture between transport operators, Keolis (70%) and infrastructure specialists Amey (30%).
GoMedia creates award-winning infotainment platforms for rail, coach, and transport companies, including, Greyhound Buses (USA), TransPennine Express, Capitol Corridor (California), Metrolinx (Canada) and more. In September 2020, GoMedia was acquired by Icomera, a subsidiary of Equans and the world’s leading provider of integrated connectivity solutions for public transport. GoMedia is helping to deliver The Connected Journey, improving the onboard experience through world-leading entertainment, live passenger information, and a range of messaging solutions delivered to passengers’ own mobile devices. For more information about GoMedia’s accessibility solution, visit www.gomedia.io
That’s why constant innovation is vital. Thankfully, due to the ever-increasing levels of digitalisation within the public transportation industry, the capacity to deliver experiences which live up to passenger demand has been significantly improved in tandem: Fast and reliable connectivity empowers transport operators to enhance existing onboard passenger services, or to deploy helpful and handy new applications.
In this article, I’d like to introduce and explain two such GoMedia solutions in a little more detail: At-Seat Ordering, and ScreenShare.
At-Seat Ordering empowers passengers to browse, order and pay for food and beverages from the comfort of their seat, simplifying the travel experience and creating additional revenue potential for rail operators in the process.
Utilising the fast and reliable Wi-Fi delivered via Icomera’s centralised connectivity platform, At-Seat Ordering allows customers to see what’s available and order refreshments via the train’s online web shop directly from their Internet browser; this means that no App is required (though the service can be integrated with a transport operators branded App, should that be preferred). The solution automatically brings the passenger to the correct web shop for their specific train service and can even be designed to automatically attach their designated seat number to each order.
There’s the possibility for orders to be delivered directly to passengers at their seat, or to be collected from the train’s buffet car. At-seat delivery clearly provides convenience-related benefits for all passengers, allowing them to continue watching that movie or chatting with their friends / family while they wait, rather than having to get up to collect their order. For lone travellers especially this improves the travel experience, since they do not need to worry about leaving their luggage unattended or taking it with them around the train to collect their order – potentially losing their seat if it was not reserved.
There are also specific advantages for anyone who might otherwise find it difficult to reach the dining area independently; passengers with mobility issues can rest assured that their snacks will be delivered to them at their seat, saving them the difficulty of finding their way. Further improving accessibility, At-Seat Ordering is WCAG 2.0 compliant and can be built to be multi-lingual too.
From a transport operator’s perspective, the solution supports a variety of payment options and can be integrated with existing Electronic Point of Sale (EPOS) and stock management systems, where available. Food and drink stock levels can be updated in real-time, and staff on the vehicle can directly create, edit and / or remove any listings themselves.
ScreenShare is a high-quality video and audio-conferencing solution, allowing passengers to give presentations, collaborate on documents, or chat with friends / family located on the same train.
With more rail passengers than ever utilising onboard Wi-Fi services while they travel, and more seeking to take advantage of their commute to carry out work-related tasks, ScreenShare makes communication between passengers traveling on the same vehicle easier and more productive. For example, a group of colleagues travelling on the same service might decide to use the ScreenShare feature to prepare for an upcoming meeting together, by sharing their entire screen, a single application window or web browser tab. Similarly, if a group of friends are on a busy train and forced to sit apart from one another, ScreenShare allows them to carry on their conversation throughout a trip.
ScreenShare leverages the onboard Wi-Fi hotspot connectivity delivered by Icomera’s routers, providing a far more stable connection than relying on a single passenger’s mobile data to host a meeting. Because all data is transferred across the train locally, the service doesn’t impact other connected services (such as passenger Wi-Fi), since it does not require any of the bandwidth from the vehicle’s external Internet connection, saving data costs for the transport operator. Additionally, if the vehicle loses external Internet connectivity for whatever reason, ScreenShare continues to work.
ScreenShare integrates as part of a transport operator’s web portal so, again, no App is required. It can be designed to meet bespoke brand guidelines and is password-protected, delivering security and peace-of-mind for users.
Inventive in their aims yet simple to deploy, passenger-centric services which take advantage of improved digitalisation within the rail sector, such as At-Seat Ordering and ScreenShare, help transport operators set the benchmark for seamless and enjoyable journeys.
By building travel experiences which are effortless, engaging and rewarding for passengers, we can elevate train travel, setting it apart from other modal choices, and encouraging its future use.