Taichung Dynamic Bus Information & Transit System has added a number of features in this year’s revision, including the country's first group dynamic bus information and the integration of bus schedules and transfer planning queries. Moreover, the smartphone application (APP) query system established by Transportation Bureau of Taichung City Government can not only estimate the bus arrival time at any bus station but also search the scenic attractions in the neighborhood. The system is so highly acclaimed that it was awarded the 2012 ITS Application Award by the Intelligent Transportation Society (ITS) of Taiwan.
　　Transportation Bureau of Taichung City Government has since 2004 continued to expand the Dynamic Bus Information System, providing real-time bus information to the public through the web, smart phone and PDA. Moreover, 167 LED smart stop sign systems have been set up at the main passenger shelters, hospitals, and airports and 115 stand-alone smart stop sign systems have been hanged on the sidewalk to provide the estimated bus arrival time.
　　After the completion of backbone construction projects for the Dynamic Bus Information System in recent years, the Transportation Bureau has further promoted its applications, including the display of traffic speeds, the dynamic system to incorporate bus operations and subsidy practices, the analysis program for estimated bus arrival time accuracy, the arrival schedule for bus routes, the analysis of energy-saving driving practices, and the software development for smartphone dynamic bus information systems.
　　Transportation Bureau said that the Dynamic Bus Information System can inform the passengers of "real-time bus location” and “estimated arrival time” to reduce their anxiety while waiting and thereby boost their habit to commute by bus. A questionnaire survey showed that the Dynamic Bus Information System has made 70 percent of people more willing to take a bus. It is obvious that the Dynamic Bus Information System is very essential for the sustainability of the public transportation system.
　　In addition, Transportation Bureau has been using the Dynamic Bus Information System to evaluate, subsidize, and audit the operations of city bus companies. The System helps a lot for incorporating the highway passenger services into the city bus management system when the former Taichung County was merged into Taichung City.
　　Transportation Bureau is determined to continue strengthening the function of its Dynamic Bus Information System so as to boost the willingness of Taichung residents to travel by bus. In addition to Application of Taichung Dynamic Bus System, the other three winners of the 2012 ITS Application Award are the Smartphone App “Fun Travel in Taipei” by Taipei City Department of Transportation, the “Intelligent Transportation and Innovative Tourism Services System” by Chunghwa Telecom Laboratories, and the “Southern Traffic Control System Engineering Project of Integrated Freeway and Expressway Networks” by Southern Region Engineering Office, Taiwan Area National Freeway Bureau (TANFB), Ministry of Transportation and Communications.