Reducing bus stop publicity production time by 50% with Velociti
Devon County Council has a diverse public transport network, with approximately 250 public bus routes across the county. These include a mix of commercial and subsidised services, with frequencies ranging from every 12 minutes to some routes operating only a few times per year.
The council manages and produces roadside timetable information for around 130 bus stops, ensuring passengers have access to clear, accurate and reliable travel information.
The challenge
Previously, Devon County Council relied on spreadsheets to store timetable data and produce roadside displays. This approach was inefficient and time-consuming, requiring duplicate data entry and offering limited flexibility for design and presentation.
Spreadsheets also increased the likelihood of discrepancies between different data sources. For the more complex timetables, the end-to-end process – from receiving the timetable update, entering the data into multiple sources and producing a single roadside display – could take up to an hour. During periods of service change, the team could be required to update as many as 60 displays at once, placing significant strain on resources and increasing the risk of incorrect information being shared with passengers.
“Our previous approach relied heavily on spreadsheets to store timetable data and produce roadside displays. This was extremely time-consuming and inefficient. Because everything was done manually, there was a much higher risk of human error, particularly when working with complex timetables or when large numbers of timetables needed updating at the same time.”
– Luke Freathy, Public Transport Officer at Devon County Council
To address these challenges, Devon County Council recognised the need to modernise its timetable and roadside publicity management and production processes. The council required a solution that could manage complex timetables, improve design quality, and ensure data accuracy.
The solution – Omnibus Software Suite
The Omnibus Software Suite met these requirements. The timetabling solution drastically reduces the time and cost associated with creating and maintaining timetables, while preserving data integrity. Complex timetables, including differential running times, can be generated in seconds, and services can be retimed or amended instantly.
The roadside publicity solution draws directly from the timetabling database, ensuring complete consistency between operational data and public-facing information. Configurable templates provide full control over branding, layout and design, while automated batch production and in-house PDF creation allow large volumes of displays to be produced quickly and accurately.
“We knew the Omnibus Software Suite was well established within the industry, and that the timetabling solution was robust enough to handle the complexity of our timetables. From the demonstration, it was clear that it would deliver significant time savings. The roadside publicity solution was equally impressive, particularly the flexibility and customisation of templates.”
-Luke Freathy, Public Transport Officer at Devon County Council
Value delivered
By adopting a single, central timetable database, Devon County Council has eliminated the need for multiple data entry points through seamless integration with TransXChange and Velociti’s roadside publicity software. This has significantly improved confidence in data quality and made it easier to identify and correct errors.
The roadside publicity software has transformed production times. Once timetable data is imported, the council can generate around 130 roadside PDF displays in approximately 10 minutes, compared with hours under the previous manual process. Custom DevonBus templates were set up quickly, enabling the rapid rollout of consistent, high-quality branded displays.
“By adopting the Omnibus Software Suite, the entire process – from receiving timetable changes, importing and validating the data, to producing roadside displays – has been streamlined, saving us around 50% of the time we previously spent on the process.
We’re also able to store and use more detailed data, such as estimated times at stops that aren’t timing points, which gives us much greater flexibility for future publicity and development.”
-Luke Freathy, Public Transport Officer at Devon County Council
Passengers benefit directly from improved data accuracy and consistency. Reliable information is available not only at the bus stop but also across third-party platforms such as Traveline, helping to build trust and improve the overall passenger experience.
The future
Devon County Council is now in a much stronger position, supported by a fit-for-purpose solution built specifically for the public transport industry. The council has reduced manual workload, improved quality, and minimised errors across its roadside publicity process.
With accurate data held in one central system, the team has a strong foundation to build on. This opens up opportunities to further develop their publicity offering and explore additional functionality in the future.
