SWAT JAPAN Supports the Trial of the “Shimomachi On-Demand Bus” in Niigata City

SWAT Mobility Japan Co., Ltd. ("SWAT Japan"), a Japanese subsidiary of SWAT Mobility Pte. Ltd. (SWAT), is a mobility technology start up headquartered in Singapore. SWAT will be providing a vehicle dispatch application called “SWAT JP”, which is powered by a proprietary dynamic routing engine, for the on-demand bus demonstration experiment conducted by Niigata Transportation Co., Ltd. and Nihon Unisys Co., Ltd. in Niigata City. 

The trial in Niigata City is the pilot area of the "Smart Mobility Challenge" promoted by METI, MLIT. SWAT JP will be implementing on-demand buses in the "Shimomachi" area, where conventional regular and fixed-route buses operate, and will also be providing more convenient transportation services for residents in the area.

To support the trial, SWAT Japan will be providing three applications: a passenger application, a driver application, and an administrator application.

• Passenger App: Passengers can book an on-demand bus by entering the boarding / alighting location and desired boarding time in the smartphone app SWAT JP.

• Driver App: When a passenger makes a reservation, the driver will pick up and drop off the passenger according to the navigation to the destination which is automatically generated on the driver app. This app is customized to clearly indicate the route the driver needs to take, ensuring that drivers are able to operate and utilize the application efficiently without stress.

• Operator Interface: The administrator can make a boarding reservation for a rider through the Operator Interface. In addition, the tool can check the movement of the vehicle in real time and past movement history. Service levels can also be improved by analyzing the movement information.
  
  

Details of the demonstration experiment

Outline: In the conventional regular / fixed route operation area (Shimomachi area), we will operate on-demand trial basis, and measure the acceptability of local residents to on-demand transport, and also log any issues that arise during operation. Based on the results, we aim for full-scale implementation by launching other trials from the next fiscal year onward.

Sponsor: Niigata Kotsu Co., Ltd., Nihon Unisys, Ltd.