The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : Department bats for GPS for transport vehicles

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Thursday, Oct 30, 2008
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Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

Department bats for GPS for transport vehicles

Anil Kumar Sastry

Vehicle owners in the State being convinced about the advantages of installing the system

GPS enables real-time tracking of the movement of vehicles
The status of various equipment in the vehicle can be checked

— Photo: K. Gopinathan

Keeping a tab: With the installation of GPS devices on transport vehicles, owners can detect misuse of vehicles by the crew.

BANGALORE: To make owners of public transport vehicles cheerfully accept global positioning system (GPS) to be fitted on their vehicles, the Transport Department is convincing them with the inherent benefits, such as detection of fuel pilferage that the system offers.

Installation of GPS enables real-time tracking of the movement of vehicles.

While the regulatory authorities will be in a position to know whether a particular vehicle is being used for the purpose for which it was given permit, vehicle owners can detect misuse of the vehicle for other purposes by the crew.

Even the status of various equipment within the vehicle can be checked, said Bhaskar Rao, State Transport Commissioner.

Mr. Rao told The Hindu, “We are scouting for a GPS manufacturer who can offer the gadget along with sensors that can detect sudden depletion of diesel in the fuel tank, among other advanced technology.”

The Department, in association with owners of private buses, had got GPS installed on a few buses (stage carriages) on a pilot basis. The study revealed that the gadget was beneficial to owners as well as the Department.

Mr. Rao said apart from detecting pilferage of fuel, GPS could also enable the owner to know whether the crew of the vehicle loaded extra material on the vehicle without his (owner’s) notice. Overloading of the vehicle would cause more wear and tear of the spare parts of the vehicle and since the crew indulge in it, the owner does not benefit. Hence, every owner was keen on operating the vehicle with the prescribed load, he noted.

For bus operators, the system would enable them to check whether the bus was being operated on time and on the prescribed route. It would indicate the speed at which the bus is being driven even as the owner has the option to caution the driver against rash and negligent driving. It would register the distance covered, the places where the vehicle stopped or halted, the duration of the halt and the like. The Department hopes that the owners would voluntarily install the gadget, rather than making it a compulsory move, Mr. Rao said.

Once the modalities were finalised, GPS would have to be fitted on all public transport vehicles while the Department monitors the operation of these vehicles. As the number of vehicles had increased manifold, it is humanly impossible to monitor each vehicle, especially, regarding their operation, use for which they are put and even payment of tax, Mr. Rao said.

The Commissioner made a presentation on the pilot project to a select group of fleet operators, both goods and passenger, here recently.

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