The development of travel information in public transport. There is an increasing conviction that dynamic travel information in Dutch public transport is of much value. It is the Dutch policy to give a lot of responsibilities and means to the local governments. Because of this, there is a wide range of different dynamic travel information systems (DRIS). Nevertheless there are some developments recognizable in the choices which are made concerning DRIS projects. The organisation structure which is applied is very important. The organisation structure depends to a high degree on the role which the local government wishes to play in the project. The introduction of public tenders and the out of date systems to share out the gainings, forces transport companies to offer as many hours as possible for the lowest possible price. This development discourages innovation and quality improvements. As a result of this, the local governments take over these tasks more and more. For this reason DRIS projects in which the local governments have central control, will have a good chance to be successful. In the near future a chip card will be introduced in Dutch public transport. This will cause that transport companies can profit directly from quality improvements which will increase the gainings from customers. That’s why, innovation and quality improvements (like DRIS) will become more important issues for transport companies in the future. (Author/publisher)
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