Autolinee Toscane, Italy

Autolinee Toscane has been managing local public road transport in the Tuscany Region since November 2021. Autolinee Toscane is one of the subsidiaries of RATP Dev, a company of the RATP Group, the third largest transport operator in the world.

When Autolinee Toscane started operating the local public road transport in the Tuscany Region, they adopted a totally new approach to operations. Before, each municipality had had their own bus operator and now Autolinee Toscane is operating all bus routes (urban, suburban and regional). This shift also meant an opportunity to acquire new real-time information displays and install them throughout the region. It was decided to have one display model for uniformity and optimal management and maintenance.

The ultra-low power and battery-operated E-paper display technology from Axentia was chosen. The project includes more than 1,000 of the 13” Axentia iBus E-paper displays.

Easy and quick installation

Another important advantage with the sustainable choice of ultra-low power battery-operated Axentia iBus displays is that no roadwork is required. Since Tuscany is located to a large extent on historical grounds, digging for electricity would have caused Autolinee Toscane time consuming administrative work and costs for contractors.

An Axentia iBus display only takes about 5 minutes to install, which can be achieved by utilizing existing infrastructure. Autolinee Toscane can handle the installation with their own resources since no special skills or certified electricians are required.

A prioritized installation plan has been made based on population in each municipality and number of bus lines.

“The displays are extremely appreciated by the passengers. We are proud to present the low power battery-operated displays to our public transport community which resonates well with our plan for a sustainable future.”
Andrea Buonomini, Commercial Marketing and Technologies Director Autolinee Toscane

Accessibility – an easy add-on

All displays are prepared for audio. This means that each municipality can decide to retrofit text-to-speech buttons to increase accessibility for the visually impaired passengers.

Smart sustainable solution

An important aspect for Autolinee Toscane in choosing Axentia real-time displays is the fact that they operate solely on batteries and do not require any solar panel as most other low power solutions do. Even in sunny Tuscany it is impossible to guarantee enough solar power for all bus stop locations. Now the reliability of the displays is guaranteed across all stops even if the stop is placed in the shadow behind a building or under a tree. Long operation on battery is clearly the smart, reliable, and sustainable solution of the future.

Low Life cycle costs

Autolinee Toscane is used to making well informed decisions based on lifecycle costs for their products. After making a detailed analysis of the Axentia displays, the result showed that life cycle costs of Axentia ultra-low power battery operated displays is less than half compared to alternative solutions. The performances of Axentia iBus ultra-low power battery operated displays enable a strategy to place real time information at every stop.

The Axentia iBus displays only takes 5 minutes to install and will operate for more than 3 years on battery. After 3+ years, Autolinee Toscane simply change the batteries and the displays will operate for another 3+ years meaning low total cost of ownership.