The simplest definition of on-demand transit is a transit service without a fixed route and/or without a fixed schedule. It’s a flipped transit model, whereby the service and operations adapt themselves to the rider demand – instead of riders having to adapt to the fixed routes or schedules.
Here’s the catch: riders need to request their rides in advance so the system knows where to go to efficiently meet the demand at each moment in time. Riders may still have to walk to a bus stop, but the routes, schedules and stops are all optimized to the demand.
Fun-fact: Paratransit and dial-a-ride services are forms of on-demand transit that have existed for decades.
Short answer: No. The industry has a variety of names to describe dynamic transit services that adapt to the demand but they are essentially all the same. However, there are dozens of different models of on-demand transit that can lead to very different outcomes.
For example, on-demand transit can be a door-to-door, curb-to-curb, or stop-to-stop service. It can be used as an end-to-end service, bringing riders directly to their destinations, or as a last-mile service, connecting riders to a fixed transit service. The on-demand transit, micro-transit or demand-responsive transit model used will vary depending on the needs and objectives of each community.
As such, it’s important to have a transit software platform that can help manage a variety of different transit models.
The main benefit of an on-demand transit solution is the flexibility that it offers to transit providers and riders, which creates transit accessibility that may have never existed before. While fixed-service transit solutions require a certain population density and configuration to work efficiently, on-demand transit solutions can be targeted and tweaked to work even in low-density areas with specialized needs, periods of highly variable ridership or periods with much lower ridership.
This means that communities where a fixed transit model was never before viable, can finally have access to cost-effective, reliable, and accessible transit. Whether you’re looking to increase coverage area, reduce costs, or handle specialized use cases and geographies, on-demand transit software may help you achieve your goals.
Costs for on-demand software solutions vary based upon the needs of individual transit operators, but in general the Blaise system can be implemented for a fraction of the costs associated with traditional transit planning software or other on-demand transit software vendors. We have worked with agencies that serve a few hundred rides a month, to a few million. Our software runs on highly accessible web and mobile technologies and is “bring your own vehicles”, which means you can use Blaise’s solution to turn any transit fleet into an on-demand fleet.
Blaise’s dispatch and transportation scheduling software, the Blaise Engine, can be ran on any web-enabled personal computer, on any browser. Our web and mobile passenger apps and mobile driver apps can be run on any standard smartphone and tablet, respectively. The driver’s tablet needs an internet connection, but the entire system can run without it for communities that have little or no cellular internet coverage.
The Blaise on-demand transit solution consists of 3 parts. Our transit scheduling software, Blaise Engine, allows transit operators to set vehicles, drivers, stops, and payment options that make up a transit system, allows dispatchers to input passengers and ride requests into the system, and allows administrators to view real-time and historical data of transit operations.
Our passenger mobile and web app, Blaise Transit, allows passengers to book and pay for their own rides, as well as helping them successfully navigate their trip in real-time. Our optional driver mobile application, Blaise Drive, provides drivers with real-time navigation and passenger manifests to ensure smooth running of the dynamic transit routes.
Almost every city and community which has transportation gaps can benefit from an on-demand transit solution, but on-demand transit is not right for every use case. We’ll be the first to say that on-demand transit is not a silver bullet.
Lower-density or lower-ridership routes or zones can be served very well by an on-demand transit system. Using our AI-assisted route optimization, Blaise can allow transit operators to increase the reach of their services, with fewer resources (drivers, mileage, dispatchers), than would be required for a fixed route system.
Specialized transit services, such as paratransit and non-emergency medical transportation (NEMT) can also be served well by a system like Blaise. Our dispatching and vehicle scheduling software can reduce dispatching and coordination costs, and our AI-assisted routing tool can optimize routes to reduce operating costs.
High-density areas with healthy ridership are typically well served by fixed transit lines. That being said, even the highest-density cities have gaps in their transit system, and it can be too difficult to continually rebalance fixed services and operations based upon ridership patterns and seasonality. An on-demand transit system gives cities flexible tools to help them spread their reach, test new routes, or connect riders to their fixed lines.
On-demand transit exists in dozens of forms and what’s right for each community will change based on their unique needs – that’s why Blaise will work with every one of our clients to run feasibility studies and simulations and figure out if on-demand transit is right for you, and if so, where it will have the greatest impact on riders and your budget.
By definition, on-demand transit scheduling software like Blaise is designed to serve a greater number of riders, with the least amount of vehicles, fuel, drivers and other transit resources. Say goodbye to the days of running empty buses on fixed lines, where no one gets on or off for miles.
When there is demand, the routes created will follow the shortest path possible to serve all riders, ensuring to limit both the costs and greenhouse gas emissions of the rides. Going a step further, by running on-demand transit, we can help you right-size the vehicles to the demand – in many cases, the demand in your community can be served with smaller vehicles that are less polluting and less costly.
Another benefit of on-demand transit, is that by offering a more practical and convenient way of getting around your city, you’re likely to boost transit ridership and convince more people to leave their cars at home!
Blaise was founded in 2018 – there were other on-demand transit software solutions and dispatch management solutions that existed at that time, but there were clear gaps that weren’t being met. Incumbent solutions were expensive, extremely long and complicated to implement and only offered a limited number of transit models.
Blaise’s universal platform is extremely fast and easy to implement – each city can pick and choose the elements of Blaise that are right for their own transit system all within one system, whether it be for classic on-demand, paratransit, fixed route integrations, flex models or any combination of those.
Our patent pending optimization models are fully customizable to achieve your transit objectives. While we have the most advanced on-demand transit software on the market, one of our core differentiators is our personalized customer support model; we take the time to get to know your community before launch and are a call, email, or text messages away for all your needs after launching the platform.
