For too long, transportation operators have relied on cumbersome spreadsheets, manual processes, or outdated legacy transportation management software to manage their fleets. This often leads to inefficiencies, missed opportunities, and unnecessary costs (a nationwide study recently found that most transit agencies are struggling with shrinking budgets and ballooning expenses).
Artificial intelligence could be the answer, and it's already being used to analyze vast amounts of rider and transit data to optimize transportation operations. These AI-powered tools can help you uncover patterns and make faster, smarter decisions — and even predict future demand. It's time to modernize by harnessing AI for smarter, more efficient transportation management.
Taking AI Beyond Chatbots
When thinking of AI, chatbots like OpenAI's ChatGPT or Google's Gemini are front-of-mind for many people. However, it's AI's ability to manage large amounts of data that brings unique benefits to the workplace — especially transportation management. With AI, you can input large amounts of information and turn that raw data into actionable insights, coming to potential conclusions far faster than a human can.
A few months ago, Deloitte surveyed 200 transportation operation executives. It found that of their companies, half have already integrated AI into their operations. "Enough value is being realized to convince leaders of the transformative potential of AI," reports Deloitte. "Nearly all transportation executives surveyed (99%) expect the technology to transform their industry."
How AI Can Improve Transportation Management
"Transportation use cases seeing the highest adoption and impact [include] asset management [and] route optimization," Deloitte's survey found, noting that "roughly 80% of adopters report extremely high or high economic value in each use case." AI's transformative quality can offer its outsized impact in five key ways.
1. Simplify Routing Options
Inefficient routing increases mileage and time and has direct impacts on your operational finances. There are also ripple effects, such as a greater overall environmental impact and lower customer/employee satisfaction and productivity.
When you focus on route and fleet efficiency, automation, and other ways to modernize your fleet operations, case studies have found that the operating costs per mile of transportation drop significantly — in some cases by up to 90%.
SHARE’s AI-powered Core Routing Engine revolutionizes transportation operations by optimizing point-to-point travel, geofencing, and virtual locations to ensure efficient and seamless mobility. Using advanced AI algorithms, it can:
- Analyze real-time traffic patterns, demand, and constraints to suggest the most effective routes
- Reduce travel delays and vehicle miles traveled (VMT)
- Maximize service coverage
SHARE’s fleet routing software minimizes onboarding time, adapts to shifting transportation needs, enhances operational efficiency, lowers costs, and improves the overall rider experience.
2. Enhance Fixed Routes
Traditional fixed-route transportation solutions leave a lot to be desired, with fixed routes having long been identified as a chronic transit problem that deters commuters, employees, students, and other end users from riding.
SHARE’s Fixed Route Module integrates real-time rider data — such as pickup and drop-off locations, ride times, and trip frequency — with transit resources like vehicle availability, fleet management GPS tracking systems, capacity, designated stops, and service area boundaries.
This delivers deep insights into service efficiency, to:
- Give you accurate fixed-route arrival predictions
- Ensure reliable commute planning for riders
- Help identify service gaps or opportunities for improvement
3. Predict Future Demand
Demand for transportation is projected to triple in the next two decades, largely due to population growth in cities and towns across America.
SHARE’s AI-powered demand prediction tools can help you anticipate future ridership trends by analyzing past rider behavior and census data. For instance, census data may reveal population shifts that may impact ridership, allowing you to adjust routes and schedules proactively. Similarly, if your company is expanding hiring in a new area, SHARE’s AI can pinpoint the most popular transit stops and peak travel times, ensuring efficient service allocation.
This predictive capability empowers you to build a more responsive, future-proof transit plan with confidence.
4. Test Scenarios
What if you change your transit schedule? What if you shifted an existing route? What if there's an extreme weather event? What if you open a satellite office in a neighboring suburb?
Scenario planning in corporate strategy first rose to prominence in the 1960s and is now used in transportation planning at all levels of public and private transit. “The beauty of scenarios like these is that they give us a range of possibilities,” says transportation researcher scientist Johanna Zmud. “The actual future of transportation will unfold somewhere between them. Effective planning and policies are robust and can meet the needs of system users regardless of which scenario comes to fruition.”
SHARE’s AI-powered simulation tools let you explore any “what if” scenario, helping you make data-driven decisions before implementing potentially costly real-world changes. For example, if a municipality is considering a new transit line, SHARE's AI can estimate how many riders it might attract, how it would affect existing routes, and what operational costs would look like.
5. Personalize Services
There's no one-size-fits-all transportation solution, and you need to tailor services to your community's specific needs.
SHARE's AI features can recommend targeted solutions based on service area data. For instance, they may identify neighborhoods with limited vehicle access but a high number of commuters, and suggest expanded transit options. The tools can even help pinpoint other ways you can proactively adapt to shifting community needs, such as increasing service frequency during peak hours or introducing specialized routes for seniors or commuters.
Harness SHARE's AI Engine to Future-Proof Transportation
AI-powered transportation management software is revolutionizing transit, but the concept of integrating AI into your operations may feel daunting. Take the guesswork out of AI implementation. SHARE Mobility's software simplifies transportation with AI-powered tools for routing, scheduling, and management so you can gain deep insights, continuously analyze system performance, and make data-driven decisions with confidence. Book a call with our team today to learn how AI can solve and future-proof your transportation solutions.
