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Who are Optibus (optibus.co)'s three major competitors and how are they differentiated from product and brand positioning perspectives?
Hello, and thank you for your request for information on Optibus' three major competitors and how they differ from product and brand positioning perspectives. The short answer is that Pantonium, Routematch and the Trapeze Group all provide software solutions for public transit, to varying degrees. A deep dive of my findings follows.
METHODOLOGY
I reviewed the Optibus website and related articles to gain an understanding of the company and its transportation optimization software. I determined that the company's proprietary optimization algorithms work with public transportation organizations, providing the ability to change staffing and equipment based on real-time needs.
I was able to find several companies that provide transportation software services by searching through Capterra's 2017 list of the top 20 public transportation software companies, filtering out those that clearly focused on other aspects of public transportation. Those that most closely match Optibus in functionality were researched in greater detail.
Website: www.pantonium.com
This privately-held company is based in Toronto, Canada, has roughly 49 employees, and generates an estimated $5 million in revenue annually.
Product: Cloud-based mobile technology for dispatching, route optimization, driver and vehicle scheduling, and billing and invoice management. The company optimizes routing and connects passengers with vehicles in real-time.
Brand: An innovative player in the personalization of public transportation and filling a need for on-demand transportation.
Target Market: Non-emergency medical transportation,(NEMT) community & public transit, student transportation, ridesharing systems.
Clients: All clients are based in North America. They include Mega-Tran Idaho; CT Transportation; Reliable Transit Services; and Freedom Shuttle.
Clients Success: Caliber Transport & Patient Care successfully uses Pantonium and experienced significant year-over-year growth (January, 2015-January, 2016). During this time, they increased the number of vehicles from 30 to 120; experienced a 465% increase in rides and 172% increase in trips per vehicle; shortened ride times by 34%; and did not need to increase the number of dispatchers on board.
Partners: Deloitte, Mapquest, Android, Queen's University, University of Toronto, MaRS, and Intermec, among others.
Pricing: Not disclosed
Website: www.routematch.com
Routematch is a privately-held company based in Atlanta, Georgia. with a second office in Denver, Colorado. The company has 114 employees and an estimated $5 million in annual revenue. They claim over 600 customers worldwide and a 98% retention rate.
Product: Routematch offers a "complete intelligent transportation system (ITS) technology platform [that] lets organizations take advantage of one technology foundation to tackle today’s passenger transportation challenges." A combination of hardware, a mobile platform, and software applications are offered on a modular, customizable basis. Cloud-based services are promoted at 99.9% up time.
Brand: The brand is portrayed as an all-inclusive solution for companies of various sizes, as innovators and partners to their clients. They stress their excellent customer support and provide education, training and implementation services through various media (including webinars, videos and in-person visits).
Target Market: Non-emergency medical transit, school transit, fixed route providers, public transit agencies.
Clients: South Central Arkansas Transit; City of Porterville, California; Washington County Transit; Coast Transit Authority; and VIA Mobility Services.
Client Success: In late 2013, the City of Porterville, California rolled out new transit technologies from Routematch, along with new signage, and solar features to improve service and increase operational efficiency. Within a year of introducing these technologies, the city realized a "35% decrease in demand response operational costs, an increase in the number of passengers per revenue hour (from 3 passengers/hour to 5-6 passengers/hour. Ridership rose by 22% in its fixed route service.
Partners: Samsung, Verizon, Android, AT&T, Microsoft, Panasonic, Luminator, Mackenzie, Citrix
Pricing: Not disclosed
Website: www.trapezegroup.com
Trapeze Group is based in Mississauga, Canada and has 310,000 employees, with annual revenue estimated at $95 million. The company has 3 Canadian offices and 5 US locations. They provide multiple services, including passenger transportation, operation and workforce management, and "intelligent solutions". Trapeze offers solutions for both fixed-route vehicles and rail, and they serve municipal transit programs.
Product: Trapeze's TransitMaster CAD/AVL provides dispatchers with real-time information to better serve passengers and minimize the impact of breakdowns. Information is also communicated to riders. They also provide products for automatic fare collection, enterprise asset management, and business intelligence.
Brand: Trapeze promotes itself as a full-service transportation provider that offers "scalable, long-term, flexible solutions".
Target Market: Fixed route, paratransit, non-emergency medical transport, and municipal transit systems (bus and rail). They primarily serve large scale companies.
Clients: Metro Transit - St. Louis; Spokane Transit; Charlottesville Area Transit; Dallas Area Rapid Transit
Client Success: The Spokane Transit Authority was able to improve operations efficiency by 62% by using Trapeze's Operations and Intelligent Decision Support System solutions.
Partners: Though no partners are specifically named, Trapeze indicates that they work with a variety of industry vendors to provide the best products and services to their customers.
Pricing: Not disclosed
CONCLUSION
To wrap up, Pantonium, Routematch and the Trapeze Group are competitors of Optibus. Pantonium brands itself as an innovator in the public transit space, while Routematch focuses on innovation, superior customer service, and their partnership approach to their clients. The Trapeze Group offers a one-stop shop for larger public transit agencies.
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