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Computerized Scheduling Streamlines County's Reserve A Ride
OCEAN COUNTY - A state of the art computerized network will streamline the way passenger routes are scheduled in the Ocean County Transportation Department's Reserve A Ride system.
"The county will begin implementing new software that will enhance the way rides are scheduled and tracked," said Kathleen C Edmond, director of the Ocean County Transportation Services Department.
Reserve A Ride, which is part of the county's Ocean Ride system, allows seniors and persons with disabilities who need custom transportation to a doctor's office or other medical facility to call the county in advance and schedule a ride. Transportation is provided directly from the home to the doctor's office and back.
With the new system, expected to come online by April, a passenger's address, destination and other information will be fed directly into computers. The computers will then devise times and routes using digitized street maps of the county. The computer system will compare patterns, route networks and even speed limits to schedule the needed transportation routes.
"All this is going to be going on
behind the scenes," Edmond said. "What our passengers are going to
see is improved service."
Freeholder Gerry P. Little said the new software will improve the way rides are scheduled without sacrificing the human touch.
"Anyone who calls to reserve a ride will still talk to a real person," he said. "Our operators will feed all the information into the computer, which will then output a schedule for the day."
Edmond said upgrades will be completed in two phases. The first phase, which implements the scheduling software, will be completed by the spring. A second phase, slated to be done later in 2007, will add wireless digital communication to the Reserve A Ride fleet. Each vehicle will be equipped with a computer terminal and touch screen that will stay in constant contact with the department's dispatchers in Toms River.
The mobile data computers will allow drivers to input information on passenger pickups and travel time directly onto the screen.
The Transportation Department is required to keep detailed records of the number of passengers carried, trips made and miles traveled in order to qualify for federal grant money. "We will be eliminating a tremendous amount of paperwork," Edmond said. Additionally a computerized road map of the county will display the location of each vehicle for dispatchers at the Ocean Ride offices.
For more information on Reserve A Ride, call 732-736-8989.
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