New technology is helping people get door-to-door transport to Covid vaccination appointments at the touch of a button.
An on-demand, app-enabled service is providing travel to several vaccination centres across Argyll and Bute where journeys are not served by bus.
Regional transport partnership Hitrans is working with West Coast Motors, the main bus operator in the area, and The Routing Company on the service which will be available between 9.30am and 3.30pm every Monday, Wednesday and Friday.
Transport can be summoned using The Routing Company’s Pingo app or by calling the Pingo help desk on 0141 370 9262. Journeys will cost £2 but are free for card concession holders.
The scheme could be rolled out to other areas and is the first in what is expected to be a broader, longer term partnership between The Routing Company and Hitrans to provide further transport projects for communities across the Highlands and islands.
Need for more flexible transport system
It is made possible through Hitrans challenge sponsorship in the Scottish Government’s CivTech 5.0 programme. It highlighted the need for a more flexible system to meet the challenges of transport services across the Highlands and Islands.
Jayne Golding, projects and policy officer at Hitrans, said: “Working with CivTech has been a fantastic experience and has allowed us to connect with companies such as The Routing Company to provide a solution we hope can support transport planning across the region.”
Ranald Robertson, partnership director of HITRANS, added: “We are delighted to launch this service with West Coast Motors to provide safe travel for members of the public to reach vaccination appointments alongside trips currently not served by public services.
“We are delighted that the first use of this solution is supporting members of the public to travel safely to their vaccination appointments, and we look forward to rolling out the driver app and data dashboard across other areas in the Highlands and islands over the coming months.”
Improving the use of vehicle fleets
The Routing Company has emerged from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s computer science and artificial intelligence laboratory.
As part of the partnership, it will provide information to help Hitrans and West Coast Motors develop a better understanding of how people and goods move within the region.
Colin Craig, managing director of West Coast Motors, said: “By using this technology, we can improve the use of existing vehicle fleets, which will help reduce costs, widen coverage, and better understand interactions between different transport services.
“In addition, the trial could be expanded to accommodate winter flu vaccination appointments to ensure safe and efficient transport to the public to these vital services.”
James Cox, chief executive of The Routing Company, added: “We are thrilled that our technology and partnership with Hitrans and West Coast Motors will help make it easier for members of the public to access life-saving vaccines. We look forward to building on this partnership in the weeks and months to come.”
Last summer Hitrans launched the challenge “how can we use technology to create a smart and sustainable travel network in remote and rural areas?” to provide data to help transport planners and providers improve services and make cost efficiencies.
It has drawn up an action plan to halt the decline in the use of rural and island bus services, which has been heightened by the impact of Covid-19.
