SafeTravelPH Parasol App Breaches 7,000 km of Tracked Public Transport Trips in Last 6 Months (... 6-7!)

SafeTravelPH is proud to share an exciting milestone: over 7,000 kilometers of jeepney, tricycles, UV Express, and bus operations have now been tracked through the Parasol Mobile App in the last six months alone. That's 40-km of public transport knowledge source each day!

This achievement reflects continuous research deployments, planning data collection, operations monitoring, training programs, and anti-aggressive driving initiatives conducted this year with partners and users across the country: from Metro Manila (including EDSA) and Santa Rosa City, Laguna to Puerto Princesa City, and Iloilo City and Naga City.

Additionally, in the same timeframe, we gathered over 83,000 kilometers of travel data using our GPS and telematics devices from partner PUV operators. This is currently being analyzed to thoroughly characterize the fuel efficiency of modern jeepneys/PUVs and the on-road behavior of drivers.

A Philippine-built tool helping modernize Philippine mobility

Since its first prototype in 2020--developed at the University of the Philippines--the SafeTravelPH app has helped planners/firms, government agencies, researchers, and cooperatives/operators generate high-resolution movement, passenger flow, and ridership data.

Captured at 1 Hz (one data point per second), this data includes:

• GPS location and route path

• Passenger boarding and alighting activity

• Stop behavior and congestion impacts

• Travel time and intersection delays

• Driver's speeding behaviour

At a time when data-driven public transport planning is still a young profession/practice in the Philippines under the Public Transport Modernization Program (PTMP), this dataset has become a critical resource for evidence-based decision-making.

It has even inspired students, developers, and startups to replicate or enhance elements of the app for their own research and analytics use cases--showing how innovation can expand through open, generous knowledge-sharing.

From Data to Commuter Experience--informing Naga City's route rationalization and public transport modernization roll-out.

From data collection → to planning → to real-time operations

SafeTaravelPH Parasol’s newest upgrades transform the app from a research instrument into an operational partner on the road:

🚦 ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance Signals). Real-time alerts (visual, haptic, and audio) and feedback to help prevent overspeeding and aggressive driving

📍 Live vehicle GPS location and occupancy broadcast. Capabilities that can support real commuter and co-driver information services. (Imagine: “Your rural- or suburban-based PUV will arrive in 3 minutes-and still has seats available.”)

🚌 GTFS generation. Helping local routes enter global mapping systems like Google Maps--making Philippine PUVs more discoverable and easier to use.

Soon: Smart Service Contracting for a fairer, more sustainable system

The Parasol platform will also enable smart-contract–based quality-kilometer verification system--a game-changer for small operators who cannot afford costly GPS devices.

When combined with Parasol’s OBD-II telematics system, cooperatives and LGUs can finally access:

• Reliable monitoring for service contracting programs of the government/benefactors that increases public transport frequency and reliability

• Fuel efficiency and eco-driving metrics

• Blockchained Quality-of-Service (QoS) performance information (speeds, safety, completeness of trips, distance traveled, etc.)

This ensures that modernization becomes measurable, equitable, and financially viable.

A Collaborative Future

More deployments. More data. More human knowledge. More tools co-developed with planners, governments, operators, drivers, students, and communities.

We’re just getting started--and we’re excited to build this future with you, including more open datasets, open-source projects, and mentoring and capacity-building opportunities.

As more cities adopt performance-based planning and service models, the Parasol platform aims to serve as a shared digital backbone--co-developed with LGUs, operators, researchers, and commuters. The goal remains simple: to build a smarter, safer, and more people-centered public transport system for the Philippines.