Santa Clara VTA now provides bus occupancy levels

Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) bus passengers can now see how full or empty their bus will be thanks to a new real-time feature in the Transit app.

Santa Clara VTA’s automated vehicle passenger count system can now interpret and send real-time capacity data to the Transit app so that waiting passengers can see if their bus has enough room to stop and allow more passengers on board. With the current six-foot distancing public health mandate, Santa Clara VTA has had to operate in “drop-off only” mode for parts of trips, especially along the more popular routes. Santa Clara VTA has been using this information to help address passenger pass-ups by deploying extra buses to stops that are most affected when resources are available.

On the Transit app, a “people” icon now appears with the approaching bus icon and, when touched on the screen, a text balloon pops up to indicate the level of crowding or if the bus is full.

This data is only available for buses now, but trains are currently operating with ample capacity, says the agency.