Urban public transit authorities are an increasingly common user of vehicle tracking systems, particularly in large cities.
"Passive" devices store GPS location, speed, heading and sometimes a trigger event such as key on/off, door open/closed.
Once the vehicle returns to a predetermined point, the device is removed and the data downloaded to a computer for evaluation.
These systems also offer tracking of calls, texts, web use and generally provide a wider range of options.
The American Public Transportation Association estimated that, at the beginning of 2009, around half of all transit buses in the United States were already using a GPS-based vehicle tracking system to trigger automated stop announcements.
[3] This can refer to external announcements (triggered by the opening of the bus's door) at a bus stop, announcing the vehicle's route number and destination, primarily for the benefit of visually impaired customers, or to internal announcements (to passengers already on board) identifying the next stop, as the bus (or tram) approaches a stop, or both; the latter are often also displayed on an internal LED display or LCD monitor connected to the system while the loudspeakers play them.
Data collected as a transit vehicle follows its route is often continuously fed into a computer program which compares the vehicle's actual location and time with its schedule, and in turn produces a frequently updating display for the driver, telling him/her how early or late he/she is at any given time, potentially making it easier to adhere more closely to the published schedule.
Other applications include monitoring driving behavior, such as an employer of an employee, or a parent with a teen driver.
This approach recommends four layers of security based on the risk factors pertaining to a specific vehicle.
Newer Vehicle tracking systems also use the latest NB-IoT technology that can provide low power consumption and optimized data transmission rates.
These systems are typically equipped with features to monitor statistics such as; fuel consumption, average speed, current driver time and location.