France In
Paris, France, SIEL indicator systems (abbreviated from Système d’information en ligne) are installed in the
RER, the
Paris Métro and on 250 bus routes on the
RATP bus system. On the RER, two types of indicators are used. The first-generation model indicates only the termini of trains stopping at a station through the use of square lights beside the words bearing the name of a terminus. The second-generation model includes an LED display above the square lights indicating the terminus and train service. The displays are used only on the
RER line A,
RER line B and at
Gare de Châtelet – Les Halles station on
RER line D. They can be inaccurate at times because of the lack of communication between
SNCF and
RATP, the two operators of the RER. On the Paris Métro, there are two types of information display systems. The LED numerical display installed in all Métro lines (except
line 14) has been in use since 1997. The television display is installed on all stations on line 14. The displays show the time needed for a train (and the subsequent train after it) to reach a particular station. On the bus network in Paris, monochrome
LCDs have been used since 1996 to indicate the time needed for a
bus on a bus route to arrive at a
bus stop, after a two-year trial period on a few bus routes. RER A - Gare de Vincennes (3).jpg|1st generation termini indicator on the RER line A SIEL - RER B - Direction.JPG|2nd generation termini indicator on the RER line B Metro Paris - Ligne 11 - station Arts et Metiers - SIEL.jpg|LED indicator on the Paris Métro Metro Paris - Ligne 13 - SIEL.jpg|A variant of the Métro's LED indicator used on
Paris Métro Line 13 utilizing a lighted arrow indicating the terminus of the next train SIEL-Ligne 14-Train à quai.JPG|TV screen previously used on Paris Métro Line 14 SIEL - Lignes 42 et 88.JPG|LCD used on Paris's bus system Dilidam - Heuliez GX 137 L Electrique n°056 (Ligne 22) - 31-07-2023.jpg|A SIV system on
Palm Bus line 22's interior, also featured in
Toulouse, Paris, Toulon, etc
Japan In Japan, passenger information systems in
commuter trains are typically installed above each passenger door. However, in
one-person operated trains and buses, these displays are often located above the driver's seat at the front of the vehicle so that passengers can check fares when paying. In
limited express trains and
Shinkansen, the displays are usually installed above the partition doors leading to the deck areas of each car. Information is generally provided in both Japanese and English. However, on lines and vehicles frequently used by foreign visitors, such as
airport rail link, displays often support additional languages such as Chinese and Korean. In regions with large
Brazilian populations, such as the
Tōkai and northern
Kantō regions, Portuguese-language displays are also provided (e.g., on
Meitetsu Buses).
Overview The adoption of passenger information systems in Japanese railway cars began to spread in the late 1980s. By utilizing the monitor’s train position detection functions calculated based on wheel rotation counts, etc., the timing of text display and automatic announcements can be synchronized. In recent years, performance improvements in monitor systems and integration with communication devices such as have led to expanded functions and display content. Systems that receive data from the ground via digital transmission using train radio or mobile phone networks such as
FOMA or
Mobile WiMAX are becoming widespread. These systems display information such as news, advertisements, and train operation updates. Examples include: • (
JR East) • (
Tokyo Metro) • (
Tokyu Corporation and
Yokohama Minatomirai Railway) • (
Saitama Railway) • (
Seibu Railway) • (
JR West) With the enactment of the in the 2000s, now called the , new vehicles are required to include these display systems not just as service equipment, but as essential tools for informing hearing-impaired passengers about next stops, transfer guidance, and, for trains, which side the doors will open on. As a result, the systems have come to play a greater role as elements of
universal design. There are also cases, such as the
Izukyū trains, where onboard display systems are installed but used only during operation as limited express services or other premium services. JR East discontinued its onboard news ticker service on March 12, 2021, citing the widespread availability of smartphones enabling passengers to access information independently. This service, which displayed news from various media outlets, had been in place since 2002 on its Shinkansen lines (
Tōhoku,
Jōetsu,
Hokuriku,
Yamagata,
Akita) and limited express services such as
Hitachi,
Tokiwa, and
Narita Express. Similar services on the
Tōkaidō and
Sanyō Shinkansen were also terminated, with Tōkaidō ending on March 13, 2020, and Sanyō on March 31, 2023.
Display Formats Route Map Type Seen in Tokyo Metro’s
01 series (
Ginza Line) and
02 series (
Marunouchi Line), the route map-style display shows the destination, next stop, and direction of travel using illuminated or flashing lamps. Although relatively simple, this type has the advantage of allowing passengers to grasp the entire route intuitively. However, due to increasing route complexity from through-services and the challenge of updating maps with new stations, lines, or timetable changes, LED-based text displays became the mainstream format from the late 1980s. Tokyometro02map.jpg|Route map type display on Tokyo Metro 02 series
LED Type This type became widespread from the late 1980s. It uses strings of
light-emitting diodes (LEDs) to display text and is now the most common format. Compared to route map-style displays, LED systems are more flexible when making updates. They can visually emphasize information through color combinations, scrolling, or blinking. Most are three-color displays, but since the late 2000s, full-color displays have also been introduced. Some systems are capable of two-line vertical displays, while others separate destination and general information across two parallel screens (e.g., the
Tobu 30000 series). In some cases,
vacuum fluorescent displays (VFDs) are used instead of LEDs (e.g., ). JREast651-LED.jpg|Example of three-color LED display: JR East
651 series train JRE E657 LED Information board.jpg|Example of full-color LED display: JR East
E657 series train Izukyu 8000 Series EMU 012.JPG|Example of VFD display: Izukyū 8000 series train
LCD Type This system uses
liquid-crystal displays (LCDs), allowing for a wide range of visual presentations including graphics and video. After being experimentally introduced by some operators in the 1990s (such as on the Tobu
9050 series), it became widely adopted in the mid-2000s. In addition to displaying information such as upcoming stops and service updates, some vehicles use LCDs for
digital signage to show advertisements. Certain trains also have the capability to display forward-facing views from the lead car (e.g.,
Odakyu 50000 series,
Kintetsu 21020 and
50000 series). JRE-Series-E235 Inside Digital-Signage.jpg|Example of LCD: JR East
E235 series JRW 225-display.jpg|Example used for advertisements: JR West
225 series Inside of Meitetsu 2000 series - Driver's View (LCD).JPG|Example showing front view:
Meitetsu 2000 series Plasma Display Type Before LED displays became widespread, some vehicles, such as the Shinkansen
100 (the early models) and
300 series, were equipped with
plasma display panels (PDPs). These displays could only show red monochrome. Some trains (like the Shinkansen
500 series and JR West
681 series) were equipped with PDPs capable of displaying eight colors, but due to degradation and limited functionality, they were later replaced with three-color LED displays. 500kei-no1car inner.jpg|Example of 8-color PDP display: 500 Series Shinkansen
Illuminated Panel Type This is a simple system that lights up only the next station on a panel. It is difficult to adapt to temporary stops or additional stations. The earliest known use dates back to 1930 on the
Osaka Municipal Subway’s . As of 2010, this type was still in use on the
JR Kyushu , which operates the limited express
Umisachi Yamasachi.
Other Types On the Tobu
6050 series used on rapid and semi-rapid services on the
Tōbu Nikkō Line, destination and service type indicators are installed near the gangway doors and crew compartments. These were introduced to reduce passenger confusion between trains bound for the
Kinugawa Line/
Yagan Railway through services and those bound for
Tōbu–Nikkō, replacing the older practice of hanging destination boards inside the cabin. In the
Japanese National Railways (JNR) era, similar destination indicators were installed inside express diesel cars operating in the
Tōhoku region, where train splitting and combining were frequent.
Keisei Electric Railway also used interior destination boards in its earlier "Red Train" models.
Installation Methods Display units are generally installed either at the ends of passenger cabins or above passenger doors. Displays installed at the ends of cars are often placed at both ends. This configuration is common in cars with cross seats, but visibility is reduced from the rear of the train. To address this, some newer trains have improved visibility by increasing display size or adding additional units in the middle of the cabin (e.g., Shinkansen
800 series). For door-top installations, there are several variations. Some trains display above every door, while others have alternating displays above left and right doors (staggered layout), and some displays only on one side in the direction of travel (e.g., some JR Kyushu
813 and
817 series trains). While LCDs are usually installed above doors, some trains, such as JR East’s
E259 series, JR West’s
321 and
225 series,
Keio 5000 series, and Seibu
40000 series, have them installed in three locations per car, with two displays on each side aligned parallel to rail sleepers. Kintetsu also installed LCDs in the smoking areas of its
21000 series "Urban Liner Plus" and
21020 series "Urban Liner Next" (now removed and covered with panels). Additionally, trains like the JR East
E235 series and Tokyu
2020 series have LCDs installed above luggage racks, primarily for advertising purposes.
Buses As mentioned earlier, displays in buses are most commonly installed above the driver’s seat or directly behind the driver's compartment. However, on certain services such as the free terminal shuttle buses at
Haneda Airport, displays are also mounted above the passenger doors—similar to train configurations—since boarding and alighting occur from all doors, unlike on regular route buses.
Germany '' passenger information display in Düsseldorf's new station at Heinrich-Heine-Allee with greeting message "welcome to the new network..."
Deutsche Bahn AG offers a Travel Information System ( (RIS)). It shows current train times compared to the published timetable, as well as known delays and expected arrival and departure times of the
trains. The information is made available to the
train conductor (via
SMS) as well as to the passenger via loudspeaker in the
train station or schedule boards on the internet. The corresponding
VRR and
VRS information systems also process RIS data. The data can also be queried in real-time via mobile devices like
mobile phones. The RIS was started in 2003, and by 2007, it was planned to have 30,000 trains equipped with the necessary train describer (electronic train number). In an accompanying program the older
split-flap displays were replaced by electronic dot-matrix signage. Large stations have
platform displays with multiple rows, but the Deutsche Bahn network operator developed the Dynamic Font Indicator ( (DSA)) standard system for smaller stations with a single row. In 2011, a federal funding was granted to equip 4500 additional stations with DSA signage, making for most of the 6500 DSAs by 2015. The federal grant came along with a
Federal Railway Authority ( (EBA)) order in 2010 to have all stations connected to the travel information system to announce delays with electronic signage or loudspeakers. The Deutsche Bahn operator tried to block that order legally for stations with a very low frequency but lost all lawsuits in 2015. It was given 18 months to equip the remaining stations with DSAs. The DSA system has a
GSM radio module to receive a text message to be displayed in a horizontally-moving
news ticker style. A loudspeaker may optionally be mounted on top. When there is no delay, the current time is shown statically on its 96×8 LED dot-matrix display.
United Kingdom National Rail stations are equipped with visual
platform displays and audio announcements, which indicate the next service or services from the platform and warn passengers to stand clear of trains that are not scheduled to stop, not in use or are about to depart. Additionally, concourses and ticket offices have large screen displays that show all of the services available at the station for the next hour or more and, at major stations, the full route of the service and any restrictions applicable (e.g. ticket types, catering services, bicycle carriage). Many smaller and less well-used railway stations have, instead of such systems, "passenger help points", which connect the user by telephone to a control room by pressing an "Information" button. The information is available online at the
National Rail website and on mobile devices. Most
London Underground stations have "countdown" displays on each platform. They are simpler than the national rail displays since most platforms serves only a single line, and there are few or no variations in carriage restrictions and destinations served. Audio announcements are also made regularly. Local authorities and some transport operators provide electronic versions of the bus timetables to the
Traveline information service, which covers all public transport modes, and from there to other information services such as
Google Transit. The deployment of real-time bus information systems is a gradual process and currently extends to around half of the national fleet and a high proportion of town-centre stops but relatively few suburban and rural locations. The first use of such systems was in
Brighton and Hove. The Traveline NextBuses information service provides the next departures from any bus stop in the UK, and some trams as well. The information has the real-time feed that has been connected in; otherwise, the scheduled times are given. The government-sponsored
Transport Direct project provided journey planning across all transport modes (including private car) and was increasingly linked to real-time information systems prior to its discontinuation in 2014.
United States schedule-information monitors in each shelter of
Portland Transit Mall were considered groundbreaking in urban transit use when the mall opened. This photo was taken in 1987. of the
Washington Metro station of the
New York City Subway Real-time passenger information was brought to riders in the US by
NextBus corporation, a small start-up, in 1999. The first systems were installed in
Emeryville, California, and later in
San Francisco, California. , both initial systems are still in operation. The
Washington Metro installed a passenger information display system (PIDS) in all of its stations in 2000. The system provides real-time information on next train arrivals, delayed trains, emergency announcements, and related information. Metro also provides current train and related information to customers with conventional
web browsers, as well as users of
smartphones and other mobile devices. In 2010, Metro began sharing its PIDS data with outside software developers for use in creating additional real-time applications for mobile devices. Free apps are available to the public on major mobile device software platforms (
iPhone/
iPad,
Android,
Windows Phone,
Palm). The system also began providing real-time train information by phone in 2010. The
New York City Subway began installing its public address/customer information screens, commonly known as "
countdown clocks", in its stations in 2007. In 2012, the system began offering SubTime, a website and iPhone app for real-time train arrival estimates for several of its subway services. The arrival data are shared with outside software developers to support creation of additional apps. There are also PIDS installed on some
MTA Regional Bus Operations routes over the years, but mostly, the MTA offers real-time bus tracking through another website/app called
MTA Bus Time. The Boston
MBTA Red, Orange, and Blue Lines introduced countdown clocks in early 2014, and the Green Line introduced them the following year. The eastern end of the Green Line introduced clocks in early 2016. They reflect how many "stops away" the train is, rather than how many minutes it will take to arrive.
Amtrak has deployed PIDS throughout the
Northeast Corridor. , PIDS are being deployed with
unified messaging, which can include information streamed to mobile devices, phones and translated directly to voice announcements.
Text to Speech products have been designed to convert PIDS data to speech in a choice of over 20 languages. ==See also==