UK: Hull Trains emerged from its three-month ‘hibernation’ as English coronavirus restrictions were eased on April 12, and has begun publishing real-time information on how busy its services are.
The technology developed in-house by First Rail uses data supplied by onboard staff to show how busy the trains are using red, amber and green codes on its website and app. It also shows the locations of toilets and priority seating to limit the need for people to walk through carriages.
‘Welcoming people back onboard safely is vital to the future of the business’, said Managing Director Louise Cheeseman. ‘As an open access operator, we rely on revenue from train tickets sales. We want to make it as easy as possible for people to travel safely and this live tracking tool will play a big role in that. The Live Train Tracker will help people to make more informed decisions about travelling by train while we steadily reintroduce services and build the business back up.’
Hull Trains is currently operating a reduced timetable of two weekday trains each way per day and three on weekends, plus a third northbound train on Fridays. An increase in services is planned from May 17.
