New app to improve the accessibility of public transport for passengers

Friday, 2 February 2024

A new app to help public transport passengers by enabling them to alert a bus driver that they are waiting at a bus stop is now being trialled by Adelaide Metro.

The See Me app was developed by Cassie Hames, an Adelaide-based software programmer at SAGE Automation, who is legally blind. While the app has initially been designed to support people who are blind or vision-impaired, it can be used by people of all abilities, with a broader potential to ease anxiety for all public transport customers.

From Monday, the See Me app will be trialled for a six-month period on the 99A and 99C free City Connector services, available in the Adelaide CBD from Monday to Friday. Instead of physically hailing the bus, the See Me app links to the bus onboard system to notify the bus driver digitally that a passenger is waiting.  The app then delivers spoken, visual and haptic notifications to the passenger's phone when the bus is approaching both the pick-up and destination locations.

The app ensures people don’t miss their stop and helps to make independent travel on public transport safer and more accessible for everyone.

Ms Hames has been recognised as one of three winners of the 2022 Holman Prize - an international award for innovative thinkers who are blind or legally blind - for her development of the app.

The app was also recently recognised as Initiative of the Year at the 2023 Australian Access Awards.

Earlier this year, SAGE Automation secured a $500,000 investment from iMOVE Cooperative Research Centre’s Impact Extension Program to support the app development from proof-of-concept to a scalable solution.

SAGE have run trials of the app to gather user feedback from clients of Guide Dogs SA/NT and See Differently with the Royal Society for the Blind.

The trial has the added benefit of assisting tourists who often frequent both routes, ensuring they don’t miss their destinations when travelling around Adelaide.

The See Me app is available now for download on Apple and Android devices by searching for See Me: Bus Signalling.