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Routemakr
New Member
4 Posts |
 Posted - 01/31/2002 : 5:38:17 PM
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| Many Districts and Contractors have found themselves using routing software that is out of date or simply does not work the way it was intended to work. Through my research I have found that the future of routing relies on having good GIS maps and a common universal database structure. GIS maps are the future due to their easy intergration with GPS systems which are rapidly being implemented in districts. Having a software package that will help you route the way you want to route rather than forcing you to make a decision because, "the computer said so", is becoming more popular. One company that I have found to be ahead of the rest is Transfinder. This software let me be in charge and make the routing decisions that I wanted to make and saves alot of time. If any district or contractor is looking for a user-friendly and easy to implement software, than check out thier webpage at www.Transfinder.com |
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Debusguy
Senior Member
USA
114 Posts |
Posted - 02/01/2002 : 04:03:09 AM
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Gee, you wouldn't be a transfinder software saleman, would you?
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Routemakr
New Member
4 Posts |
Posted - 02/01/2002 : 05:39:22 AM
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Gee, No
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Debusguy
Senior Member
USA
114 Posts |
Posted - 02/01/2002 : 1:28:10 PM
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Sorry, Routemakr..I didn't mean to so cynical. My (limited) experience with route-making software has taken me down two paths. The first one involves database software integrated into other facets of school management, such as attendance and fund accounting, as our school district is currently using. Transportation seems to be the orphan child in these packages, but they do have the advantage of school office personnel sharing a common database. On the other end of the spectrum are those packages that start with transportation in mind, which Transfinder seems to offer. I would love to have such a package, but they are typically very expensive, and require a separate database than what the various school secretaries are using. Even if there some ability to update between these separate software types, it never is in real time, and I think some integrity in the system is lost as a result. LM
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Routemakr
New Member
4 Posts |
Posted - 02/01/2002 : 3:32:59 PM
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No Problem, I didnt mean to be short with you. I was kinda in a rush. I understand about software Intergration. Most districts are going that way which has made SIF (Schools Interproperability Framework)something districts are looking at. Most people are asking that their future software be SIF compliant. Although it is still in Beta format, it promises to be a good program. As far as sharing our transportation data with the district, Transfinder has a product call TransfinderLE. Their webpage tells how it all works and hoe it can be viewed by teachers, principals etc.. and from any web browser on a PC or Mac. It reads from your transportation data so if you make a change in your data, people can see that change right away which would make it real time. Anyway, it was just an insight on somthing I liked. Take care
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Blake913
Senior Member
USA
195 Posts |
Posted - 02/10/2002 : 2:00:39 PM
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In our system, we use Versa Trans. I think it works decent. We have had other nearby counties come to look at the program. One flaw I find with it is that it is hard to update student files which are put on route sheets. We are behind @ 2-3 months. Example: If you pull up my route on the computer, it will show I have 77 Elem students and 86 M&H. Actually, I have 100 Elem students and 82 M&H. It won't be caught up for a while to have an updated list of my students. Any software is only as good as the person using it.
913 is the next best thing to a Caddilac! |
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BigDaddyBusPimp
New Member
1 Posts |
Posted - 02/13/2002 : 06:00:52 AM
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I too have been in the transportation business for 20 years, in fact. I am familiar with the Transfinder program, as a matter of fact, a former user. I moved to Western NY where they already had Versatrans, another software package. After using it for the past 3 years, I've been wanting to save up my own money to get Transfinder back, or at least something that doesn't involve mathematical optimization (what a joke that is). Anyway, good luck
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maw
New Member
1 Posts |
Posted - 02/21/2002 : 10:35:37 AM
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| I too am a former Transfinder user and current VersaTrans user and find the mathematical optimization to be quite useful. Why not let the computer plan my routes as a starting point? I don't have to use any of the computer's suggestions if I don't want to. Its very easy for me to apply my knowledge and edit the routes, which I do. The computer optimization is also great when I'm running 'what if' scenarios. When I used Transfinder I found it to be very cumbersome. While they have an automatic grade advancement feature for the student, you must purchase a separate module to roll the student over to a new school, or do it manually. We have a lot of day variant kids and with Transfinder I had to create a duplicate student file to handle that. The biggest difference though was in the support. VersaTrans far exceeds the support I received from Transfinder. Its pretty obvious that Routemakr works for Transfinder. |
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Routemakr
New Member
4 Posts |
Posted - 02/28/2002 : 08:22:23 AM
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| Maw should really at least try to find out about a product before he tries to put it down. As far as optimization, just call a few Versatrans clients(as I did)and ask them how they like or if they use it at all. And in reference to the automatic upgrade, there is no separate module to buy and it rolls the students over automatically. I dont know about Versatrans support but I do know that every time I have called Transfinder, I got a human on the other end. Before Maw tries to make a sales pitch for Versatrans, he should get accurate information about thier competition. I honestly doubt that he has ever seen Transfinder. |
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BrantGardner
New Member
USA
1 Posts |
Posted - 03/12/2002 : 2:26:48 PM
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I am a representative of VersaTrans - just to make my biases clear up front. Concerning mathematical optimization, it can be helpful, but we strongly encourage our salespeople to make sure that everyone understands what automation can and cannot do. The design of our One Touch Routing is such that we encourage human interaction before routes are implemented. I would agree with Routemakr that most people use other methods of routing - which is why they are there. Since no one pays extra for it, it becomes another tool in the toolkit for use on the appropriate problem.
Personally, I have found the feature most useful when responding to "what if" questions, such as what the effect of changes in policy would have on the costs of transportation. At such times the mathematical optimization provides a great tool that gets me a usable answer faster than I could ever hope to achieve with a manual method.
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Choosing a Bus Routing Software
