Bus arrival times will soon be available by text message.

Brighton and Hove City Council is installing a system to let people know by mobile phone and on the internet when the next bus will turn up at any stop.

The innovation means passengers will no longer have to wait at bus stops in the wind and rain or late at night.

Brighton and Hove is expected to be the first city to implement the scheme across its entire bus fleet.

The service will eventually be available nationwide though it will take many years in some areas.

Sue Westwood, 39, traffic information expert at the council, is in charge of the project.

She hopes bus times will be available online from June and the mobile messaging service live by March next year.

Sue gets the number 5 bus home every weekday and is looking forward to using the online times.

She said: "I think it's a great scheme. I've got two children who will use their mobile phones to get bus times.

"It will be particularly useful for employers because people will not have to leave their work place so early.

"We will also provide access to the information at the library and in hospitals.

"All we have to provide is a computer screen.

"It will encourage more people to use the buses and that will reduce congestion in the city."

Roger French, managing director of Brighton and Hove buses, welcomed the move.

He said: "It is fantastic because it will give passengers excellent information about bus services.

"We hope the technology will be sorted very quickly so we can introduce it as soon as possible.

"It will make buses more convenient to use.

"The real time signs at stops have been popular and this will be another leap forward into the information age."

Passengers will be able to text the number of the bus and the stop they want to travel from and get an instant reply saying exactly when the next bus will arrive.

The cost is expected to be limited to the price of a text message and it will be run as a non-profit scheme.

Mobile phone firm Kizoom is behind the Brighton and Hove service and will use a nationally recognised system so people can use the technology anywhere in the country.

Business development director Malcolm Vernon said: "This is not rocket science but it has never been done before.

"It is bringing bus information and mobile phone technology together.

"Bus travel is not seen as very sexy but if people can use their mobiles it will make it much more attractive."

Monday May 17, 2004