Thetis - All made in Arsenale Venice

On 28 June Antonello Aurigemma, Rome’s Councillor for Mobility, presided over a ceremony to announce the introduction of 80 new Roma TPL buses, marking the beginning of a three year programme to replace the 440 buses currently in service on the bus routes in Rome’s periphery (new buses are being added every 6 months).

In May of this year, Thetis supplied the AVM system and control centre for the existing fleet. Naturally, this same technology has been installed aboard the new buses.
At the ceremony, Thetis’ Marino Mazzon provided information on the technology and the control centre to the councillor as well as a delegation of managers from Roma TPL and Breda Menarini, the company that was contracted to build the first two instalments of 80 buses.
The on-board, state-of-the-art AVM system supplied by Thetis includes a UPL 090 computer, a new product that manages positioning data and schedule adherence, as well as the video surveillance equipment and passenger counters. In addition, the computer manages automated audio and visual announcements of the next stop as well as a new feature – a countdown of the time remaining until the next departure, which is displayed on an LED screen at the front of the bus when the bus is at the terminus. Another new product supplied by Thetis is the UMB 090, an on-board multimedia system featuring two 19” high-resolution TV screens (managed by the on-board computer but connected to the Mobility Agency) that plays agency film clips and messages about mobility in real time. In the future, this system will also play newscasts and advertisements.
The control centre designed by Thetis manages adherence to schedules and, among many other tasks, sends real-time positioning data on the fleet to the Mobility Agency. This data is used for the ATAC Mobile service, which provides notifications via mobile phone regarding expected arrival times at stops. 
The Periphery Network public transport service consists of 83 bus lines and provides public transportation between Rome’s periphery and areas near the city centre. There are approximately 400 buses in service every day and approximately 28 million kilometres are driven every year. The Periphery Network accounts for approximately 25% of Rome’s total bus transport services and has been in operation since the early 2000s.