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TransXChange is a UK national XML based data standard for the interchange of bus route and timetable information between bus operators, the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency, local authorities and passenger transport executives, and others involved in the provision of passenger information.
The format is a UK national de facto standard sponsored by the UK Department of Transport. The standard is part of a family of coherent transport related XML standards that follow UK GovTalk guidelines and are based on the CEN Transmodel conceptual model.
Although TransXChange is currently used mainly to exchange bus timetables, it may also be used for schedules for rail and other modes.
TransXChange is intended as a successor to the widely used ATCO-CIF format for bus timetables and was developed as a modernised representation of ATCO-CIF content, using an XML representation based on the Transmodel Reference model for Public Transport.
TransXChange is supported by all main UK suppliers of bus timetable systems and has also been used to exchange data for metro and other modes.
TransXChange provides a rich model based representation of a bus timetable that can be used for a wide variety of purposes. TransXChange documents can be used to exchange the following information:
TransXChange comprises:
Each version of TransXChange is versioned in line with UK GovTalk guidelines.
TransXChange is accompanied by a free tool, the TransXChange Publisher, which renders a TransXChange document into a human readable format, matrix and route map. PDF and html formats are supported.
Addition modules are envisaged to cover ticketing and fares through the proposed FareXChange standard. TransXChange can also be used for other modes of transport - it is already used for metro and tram systems, route and timetable data.
A bus stop is a designated place where buses stop for passengers to board or alight from a bus. The construction of bus stops tends to reflect the level of usage, where stops at busy locations may have shelters, seating, and possibly electronic passenger information systems; less busy stops may use a simple pole and flag to mark the location. Bus stops are, in some locations, clustered together into transport hubs allowing interchange between routes from nearby stops and with other public transport modes to maximise convenience.
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The Transport Direct Programme was a division of the UK Department for Transport (DfT) to develop standards, data and better information technology systems to support public transport. It developed and operates the Transport Direct Portal which is a public facing multi-modal journey planner. It also supports the creation and management of comprehensive databases of all public transport movements in the United Kingdom with Traveline. During 2010 two key datasets were released as Open Data and published on www.data.gov.uk.
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Transmodel is the CEN European Reference Data Model for Public Transport Information; it provides a conceptual model of common public transport concepts and data structures that can be used to build many different kinds of public transport information system, including for timetabling, fares, operational management, real time data, journey planning etc.
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