Project Description

The Problem

Grand River Transit (GRT), the public transit agency for the Regional Municipality of Waterloo, had unique challenges operating through COVID-19 restrictions. They needed to rapidly meet three new requirements:

  • Create a mobile COVID-19 vaccination clinic by retrofitting a 40 ft conventional bus.

  • Create 4 mobile COVID-19 testing clinics by retrofitting a 40 ft conventional bus.

  • Create a mobile rest bus for staff to meet COVID-19 distancing requirements for breaks by retrofitting a 40 ft conventional bus.

The buses high electrical and climate requirements, meaning the engine had to be run to ensure comfort and usability for GRT staff, passengers, and healthcare workers. Idling is especially hard on diesel transit vehicles and GRT needed a way to reduce fuel costs and vehicle wear while operating in these new conditions.

  • Idling is Wasteful – A full day of idling can waste over 100 litres of diesel per day on a single vehicle!

  • Idling is Damaging – A full day of idling can cause vehicle wear equivalent to thousands of kilometres of driving.

  • Idling is Prohibited – Municipalities are passing bylaws banning unnecessary idling every day.

The Solution

The fleet management team at GRT reached out to us to adapt our existing transit products to this new problem. We applied our FlexCase platform and transit product to convert a NOVA LFS into a mobile rest shelter in only two weeks!

We leveraged our onboard LTE modem to tune the software for this new COVID application, identify when additional driver training was required, and send SMS alerts to fleet supervisor staff to reduce on road issues in real-time. The end result is that Audesse can remotely ensure that drivers remain happy while tracking and notifying vehicle health issues to fleet staff.

How Does Our Transit Application Work?

For this project, the key feature is anti-idling. Our system intelligently controls the vehicle to capture the following benefits:

  • Intelligently and automatically reduce idling by up to 90% though controlling the engine with no driver intervention.
  • Keep cabin temperature comfortable and interior/exterior lights on for visibility.
  • Ensure compliance with original equipment manufacturer guidelines.
  • Work seamlessly, requiring no additional staff training.

Results

This project was implemented in the spring of 2021 and was active for the summer. Healthcare works appreciated the less noisy environment to do their work, and GRT was able to avoid posting a supervisory driver for the day. In addition to improved comfort and convenience, the following savings were achieved across the conventional diesel buses used for this project.

Description Value
Buses with Audesse System 5x NOVA LFS – Diesel
Total In Service Hours Since Install 2,165 hours
Idling Reduced 970 hours, 52% reduction
Fuel Saved 3407 Litres
Engine Wear Reduced “ghost miles” 198,969 Kilometres

 

What’s Next?

Managing a public transit fleet is challenging.

Staying compliant with fleet policies, environmental policies, and minimizing fleet costs while simultaneously working with drivers can be extremely difficult to manage manually. Audesse makes automotive grade control and telematics simple and automated.

Are you a fleet manager looking for similar outcomes? Contact us for a personalized assessment of how we can make your life easier.