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IVU.suite at PostBus

Bern, Switzerland

Overview

Employees 4,000
Vehicles 2,200
Transport services 152 million passengers per year, 117 million vehicle kilometres
Operations Regional and urban bus transport
Objectives Redevelopment of planning, Standardising processes, Efficiency gains, Securing competitiveness
Special features Several operating regions with differing processes, Automatic Personnel Dispatch in regional transport, Establishment of centralised processes and technical leadership, Linguistic diversity of regions
IVU products IVU.timetable, IVU.run, IVU.duty, IVU.vehicle, IVU.crew, IVU.pad

Initial situation

PostBus and its three-tone horn are part of Switzerland’s cultural identity, and it is also the country’s leading public bus company. With over 4,000 employees and more than 2,200 vehicles, its yellow buses carry around 150 million passengers over 117 million kilometres every year. To schedule and deploy vehicles and personnel, PostBus had previously used a software solution that was developed in the late 1990s especially for the company, but had since become outdated. The planning process was largely decentralised: a total of 16 planning centres in ten operating regions created the corresponding vehicle workings and duty schedules for driving personnel. Each region had its own working procedures that had evolved over time and were adapted to local circumstances.

Objectives

In light of increasing competition in the Swiss public transport market, PostBus envisaged not only a redevelopment of its planning system but also an overhaul of its existing structures. Processes were to be standardised across Switzerland and unified for all regions. This included new, clearer definitions of planners’ and dispatchers’ roles as well as the establishment of centralised technical leadership.

The subsequent use of optimisation algorithms was also envisaged. PostBus expected to achieve improved working procedures and significant gains in efficiency, with the resulting lower costs helping to secure the future competitiveness of the company.


"IVU.suite has enabled us to roll out a solution throughout Switzerland and to establish uniform standardised processes. Nevertheless, we are still flexible where necessary. It allows us to considerably increase our efficiency, reduce our costs and thereby ensure that PostBus retains its competitiveness in the future."
Jean-Pierre Boillat
Head of Production Projects | PostBus Switzerland

PostBus is also gaining a system for more inclusive engagement of driving personnel in scheduling, thanks to IVU.pad.employee. In the future, drivers will be able to view duties on tablets via a browser-based employee portal and will also be able to send requests to the dispatch.

Outcome

Through their use of IVU.suite, PostBus has been able to establish a Switzerland-wide process and system infrastructure for integrated planning and dispatching of vehicles and personnel. Conditions that vary across regions are comprehensively covered by the standard solution and no additional development efforts were required in the core system. Both planning processes and planning quality have improved thanks to the IVU solution. A foundation has been laid for the system’s further development and for the subsequent introduction of the optimisation.

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Last update: October 2019

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