Texas State University Receives Three Electronic Bus Kiosks

By Marques Mingo
‘In the Public Interest’ Producer and Host
*Story aired on February 25, 2015

Texas State University has developed new electronic campus maps near bus loops and has made it easier for students to get real-time bus info.

The Texas State University Department of Transportation Services department has received three electronic kiosks to go at each of the bus loops on campus. These kiosks are part of the new GPS navigation system Texas State has in all of its shuttles.

The system will allow students, faculty, and staff to receive necessary information needed when riding a specific bus. The kiosks are an element of a contract agreement between the university and the Department of Transportation Services.

“The elements of the contract were to provide a new GPS locating system for our shuttle busses,” said Texas State University Shuttle Manager Steven Herrera. “We have that installed on the busses, we have passenger counters, we have real time GPS information that’s updated every three seconds to your smart device, PC, or whatever you may be looking on.”

Herrera says they only asked for three kiosks in the original contract to see how they would work out, but they have a lot planned for these kiosks in the near future.

“There is the capability to provide additional information on these kiosks but the original design/intent was to provide and display the shuttle information,” said Herrera. “As we get that installed and working and up and running, then we will look at our next steps to show additional information that would be most likely appropriate to show at the kiosk location.”

All three kiosks have been installed at their locations. The first is at the UAC bus terminal, the second at the LBJ bus loop, and the third is at the Quad bus loop.

Currently, two of them are up and running and Herrera hopes to get the third one running by the end of this week when the fiber connection cable comes in.