Madrid’s Municipal Transport Company: Encouraging bus use

The Company

EMT Madrid, Public Transport Operator of the City of Madrid, runs a fleet of 2 100 buses on 216 lines 24 hours a day, 365 days per year, serving over 425 million passengers. EMT Madrid is committed to operating at the highest quality standards, and the use of innovative technologies is at the heart of these efforts.

The Challenge

A survey on the public bus service highlighted user discontent over disrespect of punctuality and frequency. EMT sought to respond to this concern, help customers to plan their trips more efficiently, thus encouraging a more intensive use of public transport and a reduction of CO2.

The Satellite Solution

EMT Madrid developed a web platform, Movilidad 2.0, allowing bus users to position themselves on the bus network, identify surrounding streets and bus stops, calculate the walking time between two stops, the arrival times of the buses, and thus better plan a door-to-door trip. Users can access interactive maps and information on incidents and provide real time feedback to the company’s customer service. The application can also be downloaded on smartphones. 

The Results

Since the creation of the platform, 300 000 daily connections related to mobile applications (Java, Android, iPhone), to use online information, to access Geocoding and to calculate buses’ arrival times have been registered. “Movilidad 2.0” enhances the offer of services and user experience, thus fostering the use of public transport and better air quality. Given the pioneering nature of the experience, this service is also integrated in Google Transit.