Students to be the first to try HSL’s new Kutsuplus buses
The trial of the Kutsuplus buses will start in late 2012. The
new service will first be tested by students. The service area has
been planned so that the buses serve campuses. The first test users
will be able to try the new demand-responsive buses at a low
price. The basic charge is EUR 1.50 to which a distance rate of EUR
0.15 per kilometer is added.
The Kutsuplus buses do not have regular routes or
timetables. You can book a Kutsuplus bus to pick you up from the
closest bus stop with a smartphone or another mobile device. The
minibuses can accommodate nine people. At the trial stage, there
are a total of ten demand-responsive buses.
Before opening the service to all users, HSL is gathering
experiences on how the service works in practice. In addition to
information on the ease of use and technical performance of the
service, HSL collects data for the purposes of pricing. Once
sufficient results have been gathered, the service will open for
all users. According to preliminary plans, the basic charge will be
EUR 3.50 + EUR 0.45 per kilometer.
If the trial goes well and HSL is able to increase the number of
buses in the coming years, a wider price range could be made
available. Riding the bus is the cheaper the more passengers are
going from the same place to a common destination. In future, it is
possible to include in the service direct rides which would cost
more.
Kutsuplus in brief
Kutsuplus is a demand-responsive bus service based on a fully
automated booking and control system. The service is first of the
kind in Finland and anywhere in the world, as far as we know.
The three-year trial will start in late 2012, once the
booking and control system are completed and the buses are ready
for operation. In the trial phase, services will be operated with
three minibuses operated by Rapiditaxi and seven minibuses operated
by Taksikuljetus.
All Kutsuplus buses will be Euro5 compliant. The buses can seat
nine passengers, and they are well-equipped e.g. with power points
for laptops, information displays, air conditioning and
remote-controlled sliding doors. Travel comfort is enhanced by
wide, padded seats with armrests, curtains and carpets.
The new kind of public transport service has been under planning
for some years already. The intelligent transport system, on which
the service is based, is developed by Ajelo Oy, a company
established by a group of researchers from Aalto University.