The annual TASA User Group meeting was hosted again this year by Gateway Ticketing Systems, Inc. 18 attendees arrived ready to discuss the current market needs of the intercity transportation industry, and to share how their organizations are addressing these needs.
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To remain competitive, intercity bus companies must find ways to continually provide their customers with top-level service while simultaneously improving efficiency. These proved to be hot topics at the 2011 TASA meeting as demonstrated by the Gateway and customer presentations.
The TASA members focused their presentations on sharing successes and planning for the future. Mike Harris of Martz Trailways discussed the extra level of customer service Martz provides using the Galaxy for Transportation Seat Assignment feature, enabling passengers to select their seat when scheduling a trip.
Kim Reeves and Bud Vandergrift of The Saskatchewan Transportation Company (STC) provided their detailed plan to upgrade from their current TX3280 system to the Galaxy for Transportation module. In addition, STC will pilot the Galaxy for Package Express module, scheduled for development in the first quarter of 2012.
Kathy Giard of Peter Pan Bus Lines updated the group on their bus side scanning initiative. By June 1, this initiative will be allowing Peter Pan drivers to scan PrintAtHome tickets and validate those tickets using Gateway Ticketing Systems Turnstile Controller software.
Gateway’s Transportation Product Manager, Scott Trievel, outlined the plan to establish the Galaxy for Transportation development team, focusing on the development and support of the intercity bus industry. Scott also presented the results of several discovery sessions and surveys that identify the market needs of the industry, including online ticket sales, kiosk sales, capacity management, and sharing ticket and coupon data between carriers. Sales Engineer Jerry Burchard demonstrated a bus-mounted scanner, which would virtually eliminate the hand-held scanners used by drivers.
Wayne Fuller will continue to maintain the shared schedule database for TASA until May of 2012, when he will step down. Scott Trievel, Transportation Product Manager for Gateway Ticketing Systems, Inc., announced plans and provided the Gateway solution for assuming Wayne’s responsibility, revealing the schedule editing capabilities in Gateway’s flagship product, Galaxy.
Another informative, thought-provoking session ended with Scott Trievel observing, "It was great to get together with our intercity customers for this annual meeting. I especially found the customer presentations interesting. It is always good to hear the challenges our customers face and how our software helps them address these challenges so the goals of their organizations can be achieved."
About Gateway Ticketing Systems, Inc.
Gateway Ticketing Systems, Inc., is the world leader in admission control and ticketing software for the attraction, amusement, and transportation industries. Located in Boyertown, Pennsylvania, Gateway Ticketing Systems provides sales, service and support for Point of Sale and ticketing systems throughout North America and worldwide. For more information on Gateway Ticketing Systems, visit https://www.gatewayticketing.com or call +1 (610) 987-4000.
About TASA
Transportation Automation Standards Association (TASA) is a group of North American bus companies striving to form standards for the bus industry. TASA provides a master schedule database for all Gateway Ticketing Systems users and currently has 18 intercity bus company members.
