To enhance manpower dispatch efficiency in its bus expanded depot, Keihan Bus, a long-standing transportation provider with over 100 years of service in Japan, implemented Vivotek’s intelligent traffic solution to improve operational workflows.
The company’s network spans Osaka, Kyoto, and Shiga prefectures, offering a wide range of safe and reliable transportation services and carrying over 10,000 passengers daily. It also operates routes that serve major tourist destinations and offers transport to major national events. Among all its depots, the Hirakata Depot manages the largest fleet and is regarded as one of the company’s key operational hubs. And, as part of its recent relocation, the Hirakata Depot expanded its parking space and increased its fleet to around 120 vehicles, underscoring the need for a more efficient vehicle management system.
Even before the move, manually verifying each bus’s parking location was labour-intensive and inefficient. Staff had to physically check where each bus was parked and update a whiteboard using numbered magnets to represent each bus.
Compounding the issue, new regulations introduced in 2024 limiting driver work hours further exacerbated the shortage of bus drivers. This heightened the urgency of reducing operational workloads through digital transformation. To meet these challenges, Keihan Bus aimed to modernise its analogue parking management process and streamline daily operations, especially at its busiest depot.
To achieve operational efficiency, Keihan Bus, in close collaboration with IBS Japan and Mobile Create, implemented a Bus Depot Monitoring System powered by Vivotek’s license plate recognition (LPR) technology, using Vivotek’s IP9165-LPR-v2 JPN 12–40mm cameras. LPR cameras were installed throughout the depot to capture and recognise license plates of buses in real time during entry, exit, and parking.
The captured data is processed to identify the latest detected location of each vehicle, and the parking information is displayed on digital signage. This allows drivers to quickly find their assigned bus before beginning their shift, reducing unnecessary delays and confusion.
And now, according to Vivotek, by replacing this analogue system with digital monitoring, the company has significantly improved its efficiency and reduced the workload for both drivers and depot staff.
The new solution from Vivotek brings multiple advantages such as reliable performance, user-friendly setup, strong local support from IBS Japan, and system compatibility.
After implementing the system, according to Vivotek, the bus company monitored its performance and fine-tuned the settings to fit its operational environment. And as a result, the business says that the accuracy has remained consistently high and stable over time.
