Optibus Reviews

“modern platform with full integration

Pros

Back in 2023, we started using it to organize our water-based public transport operations within the hvv and finally replace the outdated, inflexible Excel planning we had relied on before. Even though the team had limited prior knowledge and with the hands-on support from the IT staff, I saw how we were able to build our pre-planning and operational scheduling on a modern, up-to-date platform. The natively cloud-based application now gives us a great foundation for future development in employee coordination and passenger information. By now, I feel it offers a comprehensive solution that covers everything from route planning to generating real-time data for passenger information systems which gives us a lot of confidence going forward.

Cons

After a long market review from 2021 to 2022, we came across very few downsides. The only real point for us was that full adaptation to the German market especially the VDV interfaces, was an essential requirement and it had to address this as a relatively new player in the market at the time. By the time the project launched in 2023, though, we were able to confirm that it had done the necessary groundwork and the complete integration into the hvv data hub was successfully achieved.

“Efficient route planning and optimization

Pros

It helps me a lot with building service tables, optimizing vehicles, planning routes and managing route mileage.

Cons

Preferences could be clearer which would make the necessary adjustments easier when trying to optimize a scenario.

“Balanced control and compliance

Pros

Using the scenarios gives me the flexibility to handle several tasks while keeping compliance in line which is something that has always mattered a lot to me.

Cons

At times it runs into a few bugs and I have to refresh the page to get it working again. It also isn't fully translated into Portuguese yet.

“Great interface with dark mode issue

Pros

Overall I find the software's interface really good. The only part that feels a bit off to me is the dark screen since the black background strains my eyes a little.

Cons

Platform really needs to be updated because this process takes far too long, mainly since the systems have different import and export requirements.

“schedule optimization with complexity

Pros

It helps me optimize scheduling, improve driver and conductor shifts and refine the schedules we already have in place.

Cons

It feels quite complex and we would prefer something more practical. Because of that, creating schedules ends up taking more time.

“Visual service planning tool

Pros

This platform makes service planning and organization much more practical and visual for me which significantly reduces the chances of operational errors and helps the team save a lot of time.

Cons

Even though the platform does an excellent job optimizing driver schedules and the operational fleet separately, there still isn't a way to work with both optimizations together, where defining one part directly influences how the other is optimized.

“Fleet programming preview tool

Pros

Thing I appreciate most in it is the programming module because I find it much simpler to preview what will happen with the fleet and it also lets me spot whether there are errors in the registration data.

Cons

Even after using the platform for quite a while, I still feel the need to reach out to it whenever I want to set up new preferences for internal tests. It's not really a major issue since the support team is very helpful especially with customer support but I do think the platform could improve its translations so planners can work with less dependence on support.

“Great optimized scheduling platform

Pros

The schedule optimization has been excellent and the system itself has been really good. I've been enjoying using it and learning more about it every day.

Cons

Up to this point, I haven't had any issues. Everything has been good for me especially since it's my first time using it and I'm still learning how the system works.

“Responsive IT support

Pros

Public transportation operators all work a bit differently, each with their own specific requirements. One thing I really appreciate is how available the IT support team is whenever we need clarification or help setting up or adjusting preferences. They do a good job of adapting the scenarios to match the customer's actual needs.

Cons

When it comes to smaller operational adjustments, the algorithm feels somewhat limited. It performs well when the scenarios involve major changes but with minor changes, the results are not as effective.

“All-in-one!

Pros

Speed, the way the work is structured and having all the available information gathered in a single tool make this really valuable for me.

Cons

no cons

“Clean electrical planning

Pros

Electrical planning function is really useful and I find the overall design clean and well organized. I also appreciate the map-based line planning which makes the whole process much more practical for me. On top of that, I've noticed support responds quickly which has been a big plus.

Cons

One downside is that the timetable layout has rows and columns reversed compared with the usual industry standard. At the moment, it also feels a bit too expensive for a long-term partnership.

“Automated routing planning tool

Pros

Modern design really stands out to me. A big plus is the simple way the planning module works and I find the automatic routing especially helpful.

Cons

Biggest issue is the mix of languages, with English and German appearing together. That gets distracting and can be confusing at times.

“constant crashes and sluggish loading

Pros

There are plenty of features available, including optimization tools and manual scheduling options which I find very useful.

Cons

System runs very slowly all the time and keeps crashing midway through use. It takes far too long to load, can't handle even 20 routes and adjusting the time plan also takes an excessive amount of time.

“fast bus scheduling savings

Pros

Tasks that used to take days or even weeks to optimize a schedule are now finished in just a few seconds to about a minute. I've found this makes it possible to build and test different bus schedules as often as needed and keep adjusting things until the best route plan is found. The algorithms and calculations also account for local bus and driver regulations, while still delivering the most optimized solution with the lowest possible cost and resource use. In my experience, the return on investment comes almost right away sometimes within only a month so bus operators start seeing savings from the very beginning.

Cons

I'm still waiting for the real-time version which was expected by the end of 2017. Once that is available, traffic congestion or schedule changes could be handled immediately. Right now, it onSchedule is limited to advance planning and only provides a solution for building bus schedules ahead of time.

“Quick processing for complex cuts

Pros

It handles complex run cuts really quickly which I've found to be a big plus.

Cons

None so far.

“fast browser-based workflow

Pros

Everything runs quickly, the interface feels simple and the feature set is quite rich. I also really appreciate that there's no local deployment involved since I can use it right in the browser.

Cons

The only thing I feel is missing is a dispatching module.