Remind me what that means?!

Accessibility is one of the most important considerations in transport apps and websites. It means making an app or website accessible to users in more challenging situations and for those with disabilities. Accessibility is often referred to as A11y for short. A11Y is a numeronym (similar to an acronym) with the first and last letters of …

Account-Based Ticketing is a ticketless way of allowing people to travel. Users tap or scan a smart card, mobile phone, contactless bank card or other secure token linked to an account to make their journey.

Agile is an approach to software development that focuses on delivering a solution in iterative stages – starting with the delivery of the current most useful single change, then evaluating its impact before deciding what the next most useful single change is to make. This ensures the users of the solution get the most useful …

ALBUM was formed in 1984 to provide a forum to exchange best practice among its members and for the promotion of high-quality services that encourage more people to travel by bus. There are around 150 members representing bus operators in the UK and ALBUM provides a networking opportunity for bus managers, to share best practice and …

A software intermediary that allows two applications to talk to each other. An API is a set of commands, functions, protocols, and objects that programmers can use to create software or interact with an external system. It provides developers with standard commands for performing common operations so they do not have to write the code …

An online shop where apps can be found and downloaded to your mobile phone. The app store for Android devices is called the Play Store. The app store for Apple devices is actually called the ‘App Store’.

A unique identifier UK-wide for bus stops used in NaPTAN.

Automatic Vehicle Location systems provide the GPS coordinates where a vehicle actually is.

Backward compatible refers to a hardware or software system that can successfully use interfaces and data from earlier versions of the system or with other systems.

The Bus Fare Cap Grant (BFCG) scheme in England was introduced to enable bus operators (outside of London) to cap the price of a single journey by bus at £2, without running services unprofitably. The scheme was introduced in January 2022 and has been extended several times. It was launched by the Department for Transport …

BODS provides bus timetable (TransXChange), real time vehicle location (SIRI-VM) and fares (NeTEx) data for every local bus service in England. It was commissioned following the Bus Services Act 2017, which included improvements designed to make commercial bus services more accessible to passengers. It is a Department for Transport led initiative to enable new applications, …

The Bus Recovery Grant (BRG) is a way for the Government to support commercial bus operators in England due to the impacts of coronavirus (COVID-19) on their revenue from reduced passenger numbers. To be eligible for the Bus Recovery Grant funding, operators must:

A BSIP will formulate the delivery of outcomes required by the National Bus Strategy and is developed in parallel with the LTA (Local Transport Authority). BSIP content prepared by LTAs in England and submitted to the Department for Transport (DfT) will be expected to represent an outline of positive changes that are planned.

A grant paid to operators of eligible bus services and community transport organisations to help them recover some of their fuel costs. The amount each bus operator receives is based on their annual fuel consumption. BSOG also benefits passengers by: helping operators keep fares down enabling operators to run services that might otherwise be unprofitable and …

Mistakes in code that keep a website or program from working properly.

A byte is the smallest addressable unit of memory in a computer, commonly made up of eight binary digits.

A software cache stores data so that future requests for that data can be served faster; the data stored in a cache is the result of an earlier request for the same data which is then stored locally or somewhere along the network, such as a router or switch network device. The more requests that …

CEN is the European Committee for Standardization. It is an association that brings together the National Standardization Bodies of 34 European countries. CEN provides a platform for developing European Standards and other technical documents concerning various kinds of products, materials, services and processes. CEN supports standardization activities in relation to a wide range of fields …

Where data is not stored locally on your own computer, but is spread out among a number of remote servers accessible through the Internet. Services like Google Docs and Gmail are examples of cloud computing—you are interacting with data on your home computer that is stored externally in “the cloud.”

Provide content-delivery-network services, DDoS mitigation, Internet security and distributed domain-name-server services. Cloudflare’s services sit between a website’s visitor and the Cloudflare user’s hosting provider, acting as a reverse proxy for websites.

Software that facilitates creating, editing, organising and publishing content. Drupal and WordPress are examples of Content Management Systems that allow you to create and publish content on the Internet.

Computer code is a set of rules or instructions that tells a computer what you want it to do. Coding, or programming, is a way of writing instructions for computers that bridges the gap between how humans can express themselves and how computers actually work.

A journey operated without financial assistance of any kind. Services of this kind are entirely dependent on its passengers to provide sufficient funds in the form of fares for it to sustain a profit. Some commercial services may be operated under contract to specific organisations with no financial benefit to speak of other than fare …

Contactless Model 1 is the type of contactless card payment that you experience in a retail environment, like a shop. The products you are buying are totalled up by the cashier, or a self-service machine, and you pay the total on the screen with your contactless payment card. When paying in this way on a …

Contactless Model 2 is the type of contactless card payment that you experience when you travel on public transport in some large towns and cities. A good example of this in the UK is London. Some Contactless Model 2 schemes require you to tap on when you board and then tap off when you get …

In Contactless Model 3, a contactless EMV card or device is associated with a pre-purchased ticket and used to travel. Travelling on a Contactless Model 3 scheme would require you to tap an associated contactless card on a card reader before travel so the bus operator can confirm the card gives you the authority to …

DDoS, or Distributed Denial of Service, is a malicious cyberattack in which multiple compromised computers, known as “bots” or “zombies,” flood a target system or website with a massive volume of traffic. The goal is to overwhelm the target’s resources, such as servers or network bandwidth, rendering it inaccessible to legitimate users. DDoS attacks typically …

The Domain Name System is the phonebook of the internet. Each device connected to the internet has a unique IP address which other machines use to find the device. DNS servers eliminate the need for us to memorise IP addresses such as 192.168.123.1

Downtime and uptime describe how long a website, computer or other system has been working (uptime) or not working (downtime).

Demand responsive transport (also known as demand responsive transit) is a form of shared transport for where vehicles alter their routes for each journey based on demand, without using a fixed route or timetabled journeys. These vehicles typically pick up and drop off passengers in locations according to passengers needs and can include taxis, buses or other vehicles.

Each journey on a bus services has a final destination but in some contexts that information is not useful to users. For example with circular routes, both inbound and outbound journeys may be headed towards a bus station. This isn’t very useful to someone currently at the bus station. Instead of always showing the final …

A national scheme funded and run by the Department for Transport and administered by Local Authorities across England. The scheme provides all eligible elderly English residents, and eligible disabled people, with free off-peak bus travel on weekdays and all day at weekends and Bank Holidays. Within Greater London the scheme is linked to the Freedom …

A tickets ‘entitlement’ defines when and how it can be used. Fixed date tickets can be used many times during a valid date range i.e a school term pass. Fixed date ticket entitlement will be a date range. Flexible tickets are valid for use over a set time period e.g a day ticket which can …

An Enhanced Partnership is an agreement between a local authority and the bus operators in its region, to deliver a joined-up network of bus services. In the past, bus operators could operate as if their competitor operators didn’t exist. This makes catching the bus harder for those that do. By working more closely together, through …

ETA is often displayed on the screens on bus stops or train stations. It is a prediction of when a vehicle will arrive, based on where it is at that moment. It can also be used by a journey planner as an indication of when a traveller will arrive at a destination.

ETMs are machines with computer processors and memory which issue tickets for travel. ETMs are either designed for in-vehicle use, as fixed or handheld units, or for use at stations and other off-bus locations in the form of electronic kiosks.  In-vehicle fixed electronic ticket machines (ETM) are most commonly used on bus services, although they …

A firewall is a network security system that monitors and controls incoming and outgoing network traffic based on predetermined security rules. A firewall typically establishes a barrier between a trusted internal network and untrusted external network, such as the Internet.

First & Last Mile describes passenger travel in the context of getting to a transit provider stop, and then from a stop to a final location. In the 2014 Active Travel Survey, walking was recorded as a ‘stage’ (where there is a change in the mode of transport) in around 1/3 of bus trips. Micromobility …

Front end is used to describe all the parts of a website that can be seen and interacted with by users.

FTP essentially transfers web page files to the computer server so others can access them. FTP can also be used to download files or programs from the Internet to your computer. When you download these files, you are transferring them from other servers through FTP.

The Future Transport Zone (FTZ) programme trials innovative new solutions, powered by digital technologies, to make public transport better and more connected within communities. The Department for Transport select regions to become Future Transport Zones and provide funding to deliver a programme of investment in the region.

The open data standard for bikeshare. GBFS makes real-time data feeds in a uniform format publicly available online, with an emphasis on findability. Under the North American Bikeshare Association’s leadership, GBFS has been developed by public, private sector and non-profit bike share system owners and operators, application developers, and technology vendors. GBFS is intended as a specification …

A data specification that allows public transport operators to publish their transit data in a format that can be consumed by a wide variety of software applications. Today, the GTFS data format covers both static and real-time data and is used by thousands of public transport providers. You can learn more about the GTFS specification …

The central system which holds information about everyone’s smart cards. HOPS automates many of the complex daily tasks of a smart transport ticketing scheme including transaction processing and asset management.

HTTP is the underlying protocol used by the World Wide Web and defines how messages are formatted and transmitted, and what actions Web servers and browsers should take in response to various commands.

Internationalisation (sometimes shortened to “I18N, meaning “I – eighteen letters -N”) is the process of planning and implementing products and services so that they can easily be adapted to specific local languages and cultures, a process called localization. The numbers refer to the number of letters in the words (because it’s easier to type). In …

Some bus operators will split journeys into two sections, usually in half. This can be because: In this scenario, passengers would remain on the same bus. The driver might change. However, operators have to represent this in their schedule data, so they might show two half journeys even though it’s the same vehicle. This means …

The Internet is the global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a network of networks that consists of private, public, academic, business and government networks, linked by a broad array of electronic, wireless, and optical networking technologies. The Internet carries a vast range of information resources and services, such …

An IP address is used to identify computers on the Internet. It works like a return address would on a piece of mail. When your computer or device sends a request, like a search on Google, it tags the request with your IP address. That way Google knows where to send the response.

An Internet service provider is an organisation that provides services for accessing, using or participating in the Internet. ISP’s can be organised in various forms, such as commercial, community-owned, non-profit or privately owned.

The serial number encoded on a smart card but not known to a customer.

ITSO are the guardian of the ITSO Specification, which aims to make travelling on public transport throughout the UK seamless and easier by enabling smart ticketing technology.  The ITSO community is a membership of public sector authorities, transport operators and equipment and solution suppliers to the smart ticketing industry, who use the ITSO Specification to …

JSON is a text-based data interchange format designed for transmitting structured data. It is most commonly used for transferring data between web applications and web servers. JSON is often viewed as an alternative to XML, another plain text data interchange format.

Localization refers to the adaptation of a product, application or system to meet the language, cultural and other requirements of a specific target market (a locale). Localisation is sometimes written as l10n (where 10 is the number of letters in the English word between l and n). L10n covers translating and things like changing date formats, e.g. translating Cardiff …

In bus operations, livery is the uniform or branding worn by a person, object or vehicle that shows a relationship between the wearer and bus operator. Bus livery can include seat coverings, bus signs, wraps, uniforms and more! A comprehensive livery brings consistency to a fleet, while clear route branding ensures quick identification for passengers.

A bus service that uses public service vehicles to carry passengers who pay separate fares over short distances – usually less than 15 miles from the point of boarding.  Operators of Local Bus Services must register their services with the Traffic Commissioner and provide copies of the registrations to the local authorities the services pass …

Local transport authorities are partnerships of local authorities in England outside Greater London. There are 38 LTA’s. Decision making for major transport infrastructure spending is devolved to these bodies from the Department for Transport.

MaaS is a type of service through a joint digital channel that enables users to plan, book, and pay for multiple types of mobility services. The concept describes a shift away from personally-owned modes of transportation and towards mobility provided as a service. There is a great deal of debate about what MaaS is, with …

A computer language that uses tags to define elements within a document. It is human-readable, meaning markup files contain standard words, rather than typical programming syntax. XML is called the “Extensible Markup Language” since custom tags can be used to support a wide range of elements.

Serial number printed on the front of a smart card.

Metadata is a set of data that describes and gives information about other data and can be used for the purposes of discovery and identification.

Micromobility refers to a range of small, lightweight vehicles operating at speeds typically below 25 km/h (15 mph) and driven by users personally (unlike rickshaws). Micromobility devices include bicycles, e-bikes, electric scooters, electric skateboards, shared bicycles, and electric pedal-assisted (pedelec) bicycles.

National Access Points facilitate access, easy exchange and reuse of transport-related data to help support the provision of EU-wide interoperable travel and traffic services to end-users. They can take various forms (database, data warehouse, data marketplace, repository, web portal etc) depending on the type of data concerned. List of National Access Points.

The UK’s national dataset of public transport access points (bus stops, rail stations, airports, ferry piers, tram/metro/underground stops) is known as the NaPTAN database. It records approximately 400,000 bus stops across England, Scotland and Wales, as well as other transport terminals including rail stations and airports. NaPTAN consists of: A standard for identifying and naming …

The National Operator Code dataset (NOC) contains unique national operator codes that link to the local operator codes in the Traveline National Data Set (TNDS) and NextBuses API. NOC’s are primarily required for BODS and used for Passenger’s TXC and SIRI feeds. The NOC is also used to convert local regional operator codes that might exist in exports from the Traveline …

Native apps are made specifically for certain platforms. They only run on the platforms they were built for, and are stored locally on those devices.

In September 2019, the government set out how it would launch a revolution in bus services – delivering a better deal for bus users and committing to publishing a National Bus Strategy.

The National Coach Services Database (NCSD) consists of schedule (timetable) data for several mainland UK coach services not contained in the Traveline National Dataset (TNDS). It may therefore be regarded as supplementary to Traveline data, as opposed to being a dataset describing a geographically complete national coach network.

The multimodal data standard can transmit bus information, including routes and timetables, fares and tickets and real-time information. In 2019, the UK NeTEx profile was developed to standardise the publication of fare data within the UK bus industry for the Bus Open Data Service (BODS). NeTEx is a highly interoperable CEN standard representing various aspects …

An open API from Traveline. The API allows users to access live departure information by stop across Great Britain. Real-time information is provided where it is available and scheduled departures where not. The API is based on the SIRI standard, using the SIRI-SM function through a request/response communication mechanism. SIRI is an XML protocol that …

Often used for payments, NFC transmits data to enable two devices to communicate with each other. To work, both devices must contain NFC chips and be placed very close together.

The NPTG is closely associated with the NaPTAN dataset and contains details of every city, town, village and suburb in Great Britain. This dataset is based on usage of names, rather than legal definitions and so includes local informal names for places as well as their official names. As a topographic database of towns and …

Open data is data that has been made available to the public for personal, educational or commercial use. It is usually released under an open data license, such as the Open Government License Version 3.0. Many public transport operators release their data as open data. Certain datasets must be released to the public under UK …

Open Graph is a technology first introduced by Facebook in 2010 that allows integration between Facebook and its user data, and a website. By integrating Open Graph meta tags into the content of your pages, you can identify which elements of your page you want to show when someone shares your page.

Open source is a term that originally referred to open source software (OSS). Open source software is code that is designed to be publicly accessible—anyone can see, modify, and distribute the code as they see fit. Open source software is developed in a decentralized and collaborative way, relying on peer review and community production. Open …

An operating system is the most important software that runs on a computer. It manages the computer’s memory and processes, as well as all of its software and hardware. It also allows users to communicate with the computer without knowing how to speak the computer’s language.

Bike share can be broadly defined as any setting where bicycles are pooled for multiple users. Models include Public Bike Share (PBS) – self-service on-street docked or dockless stations – workplace pool bikes, train/bus station hubs, loans, lockers and peer to peer sharing. PBS schemes often make their bike and bay/dock locations available as a public API. …

PCI is an industry standard designed to make it safer to use credit cards online by making sure that business collecting credit card data transmit and store it securely.

PHP is a popular general-purpose scripting language that is especially suited to web development. The name PHP is a recursive acronym, originally derived from Personal Home Page Tools, but now stands for PHP: Hypertext Preprocessor.

PSD2 is a European regulation for electronic payment services. It seeks to make payments more secure in Europe, boost innovation and help banking services adapt to new technologies.

Offers retailers online services for accepting electronic payments by a variety of methods including credit card, bank-based payments such as direct debit, bank transfer, and real-time bank transfer based on online banking.

The powers of the Equality Act 2010 allow the government to make regulations requiring all new land-based public transport vehicles (trains, taxis, buses and coaches) to be accessible to disabled people, including those who need to remain in wheelchairs. The regulations that govern access to buses and coaches are known as PSVAR. PSVAR has been applied to all …

A Public Transport Authority is a local authority or government authority that runs public transport services in a region. A PTA decides the schedules and manages the customer experience, including retailing the ticket to the passenger. Where a UK network is Franchised, as it is in London (under Transport for London) and Manchester (under Transport …

A Public Transport Operator is a business that runs public transport services. They operate commercially, charging the customer directly for a ticket to travel for their services. Or they run contracted services for a PTA (Public Transport Authority). In this case, the PTA usually decides the schedules and manages the customer experience, including retailing the …

The maximum number of buses required to keep a service (or groups of services where they share vehicles) operating correctly. This can usually be calculated through careful observation of the timetable; a service that runs every 15 minutes and takes 40 minutes from end-to-end would usually have a Peak Vehicle Requirement of six vehicles (with …

The trademark for a type of matrix barcode (or two-dimensional barcode) first designed in 1994 for the automotive industry in Japan. A barcode is a machine-readable optical label that contains information about the item to which it is attached.

The practice of designing websites so that they adapt easily to different-sized devices like phones, tablets, wearables etc. If you’re able to visit a website on your phone and it looks just as proportional and pretty as it does on your computer, it’s an example of responsive web design.

Provides you with information about public transport services in ‘real time’. This allows you to see which services are due to arrive at stops and what time they are expected.

A number used to identify the specific duty any one bus is following for a day, with variations across the country. Other names are sometimes applied, such as car number, carriage number, car run, diagram or duty. Running cards are allocated to vehicles to identify its service for the day and may or may not …

Software as a service (SaaS) is a software distribution model in which a cloud provider hosts applications and makes them available to end-users over the internet. This differs from more traditional models of accessing software, such as installing it onto a computer from a CD/DVD or download. The software is usually accessed via a web …

SCA is a requirement that electronic payments are performed with multi-factor authentication, to increase the security of electronic payments.

The process of optimising your website to get more organic or un-paid traffic from the search engine results page. As a term, SEO is almost now a generic way to talk about ‘making it appear in searches at the top’.  The challenge with this is that it’s a constant cat and mouse game as Google, …

The list of web pages served to users when they look for something online using a search engine, such as Google. The user enters their search query (using specific terms or phrases known as keywords), upon which the search engine presents them with a SERP.

In order to make real-time transport information compatible between different systems, several European countries joined efforts to create a standard protocol known as Service Interface for Real Time Information (SIRI). This protocol describes (at length!) how different systems can share real-time passenger information, allowing different suppliers, operators and local authorities to work together without costly …

A feed for the estimated time of arrival of a vehicle to a particular stop. SIRI-SM can also include further information about vehicles such as the vehicle’s location.

SIRI-SX is a data format that allows the exchange of structured messages relating to public transport services and networks. It is commonly associated with disruption information and is used to communicate changes to customers.

Providing a map with live tracking of vehicles is possible thanks to the SIRI-VM feed. SIRI -VM can also include further information about upcoming stops, such as the vehicle’s ETA.

Sitemaps are outlines or maps of the pages that make up a website. They show the relationship between the pages and links, apps, videos, or other components, and can take the form of a document or its own page on the website.

Software is a program or set of instructions that tells a computer, phone or tablet what to do. Software includes individual applications (web browsers or word processors) as well as system software like operating systems (Microsoft Windows), drivers (software that allows operating systems to communicate with hardware like printers) and utilities (tools like anti-virus programs …

Tap & Cap is one of several names given to the type of Contactless Model 2 payment method. It allows you to simply “tap” your contactless payment card (or device) onto a reader at the start of your journey. What you are charged for the journey is calculated later and then automatically from your account. …

A point on any bus service, usually but not always represented by a bus stop, at which buses are expected to arrive and/or depart at the time indicated. Notwithstanding exceptional circumstances such as roadworks, operators are required to ensure that 95% of services serve all timing points within the window of not more than one …

The standard security technology for establishing an encrypted link between a web server and a browser. This link ensures that all data passed between the web server and browsers remain private and integral. TLS is an industry standard and replaced SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) in 1999. SSL (now considered insecure) is still in use as …

The Traveline National Dataset (TNDS) contains public transport timetables for bus, light rail, tram and ferry services in Great Britain. It does not include national rail services. TNDS (v2.1) includes coach data from the National Coach Services Database (NCSD). It is managed by Traveline, which works with local authorities to combine all public transport timetables …

Tap On, Tap Off is one of several names given to a type of Contactless Model 2 payment method. It allows you to simply “tap” your contactless payment card (or device) onto a reader at the start of your journey and “tap” again on a reader when you complete your journey. What you are charged …

A Government official responsible for overseeing bus services throughout their respective regions. They have the power to summon and discipline bus service providers whom they deem to be providing an inadequate service, especially where services run unreasonably poorly and/or are changed without permission. In exceptional circumstances, they can withdraw operators^ licences to provide services.

Traveline Information Ltd (TIL) is a service funded by public transport companies across the country. It aims to provide comprehensive information on bus services on a regional basis to assist passengers in getting where they need to go. It also provides information on other forms of public transport. Its information is relayed to councils, who …

The UK national standard for exchanging bus schedules and related data. It is used for: the electronic registration of bus routes the Traffic Area Network the exchange of bus routes with other computer systems such as journey planners and vehicle real-time tracking systems. www.gov.uk/government/collections/transxchange

Also known as the BODS TransXChange Profile, TXC-PTI is a set of additional guidance to the TransXChange schema. The profile lays out how TransXChange must be produced for use in the BODS. https://pti.org.uk/bus_open_data

User interface includes all the parts of a website, app, computer, smartphone, etc. that the user can manipulate and interact with. Display and touch screens, website menus, keyboards, your cursor—these are all part of a user interface.

Uptime and downtime describes how long a website, computer, or other system has been working (uptime) or not working (downtime).

A URL (colloquially termed a web address) is a reference to a web resource that specifies its location on a computer network and a mechanism for retrieving it.

User Experience describes the emotions, attitudes and ease of use a person has when using a product or service.  UX Design is the use of design to improve communication between a product and its user to enhance the user’s overall experience. It is not simply about how something looks. In the context of transport, a good …

The Government agency responsible for dealing with certain kinds of commercial road-based operators, including bus service providers. Companies are required by Law to submit confirmed changes at least 56 days before said changes are implemented, although in special situations that can be relaxed.

An isolated network of computers using existing infrastructure, such as a Local Area Network (LAN) or Wide Area Network (WAN or Internet) to securely connect to each other. When you use a public WiFi network, for instance, your device and data are theoretically accessible by everyone else on the network. When using a VPN, you’re still …

A WAF filters, monitors, and blocks HTTP traffic to and from a web application. A WAF is differentiated from a regular firewall in that a WAF is able to filter the content of specific web applications while regular firewalls serve as a safety gate between servers.

Transport for Wales is developing a Welsh Bus Data Service (WBDS) to provide better quality information on bus services nationwide. The WBDS covers operational and financial data on buses in Wales to support passengers, public sector decision-makers, third-party services, and researchers. It will replace the systems currently used by the Traveline journey planner. TfW will …

The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) is focused on providing an international technical standard for web content. It has guidelines that are organised under four principles: perceivable, operable, understandable, and robust. The guidelines each have testable success criteria at three levels: A, AA, and AAA.

Web servers are computers used to store websites, online apps, documents, pictures or other data, and can be accessed through the Internet by way of applications like web browsers or file transfer protocol (FTP) clients. When you visit a website with the browser on your computer or phone, you are requesting it from a web …

Wireframes are sketches of the key information that goes on each page of a website, essentially showing the site or page’s “skeleton.” Designers can then use this sketch as a starting point for laying out a website.

An information system where documents and other web resources are identified by URLs, such as https://www.discoverpassenger.com, which may be interlinked by hypertext, and are accessible over the Internet. The resources of the WWW are transferred via the Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) and may be accessed by users by a software application called a web browser.

A markup language that defines a set of rules for encoding documents in a format that is both human-readable and machine-readable. 

The goal of XML Protocol is to develop technologies which allow two or more peers to communicate in a distributed environment, using XML as its encapsulation language.

A human-readable data-serialization language. It is commonly used for configuration files and in applications where data is being stored or transmitted. YAML is a recursive acronym for “YAML Ain’t Markup Language”.

A common type of file compression. Zipping one or more files creates a compressed archive that takes up less disk space than the uncompressed version. It is useful for backing up files and reducing the size of data transferred over the Internet.