REDYREF has proven that urban bus shelters can be not only highly functional, but beautiful as well.

This fall marked the debut of Kansas City Area Transportation Authority’s (KCATA) new modern, digitally-enhanced bus shelters along Kansas City’s MAX bus line, with kiosks designed and deployed by REDYREF Interactive and its partner Smart City Media.

“From the start, partnering with Smart City Media to create these interactive, ‘smart’ bus shelters for KCATA has been an incredible experience,” said Will Pymm, Managing Partner, REDYREF. “We couldn’t have been more pleased with the entire process, and are looking forward to seeing the project rolled out in its entirety.”

The new downtown Prospect Avenue MAX stations are designed to blend in with the area’s streetscape, making it easier for pedestrian traffic on sidewalks.

“We’re very excited about it,” said Richard Jarrold, senior vice president for strategic planning at the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority. “Twelfth and Grand pedestrian traffic is booming, we’re taking too much of the sidewalk.”

Each station features an interactive smart kiosk that gives riders real-time bus arrival information and access to a city-wide directory, as well as protection from the elements and enhanced lighting for improved safety and greater visibility.

KCATA project manager Linda Clark said she wants people to know the new MAX bus kiosks will also offer information about connecting routes, as well as a web-based portal that will allow community members to advertise events.

“If this community center were having an event, the kiosk out there on 27th and Prospect would tell you about the event. All you have to do is touch the icon,” she said.

Each interactive outdoor “smart city” kiosk features 55” touch displays and are fully ruggedized to be able to withstand the large variations in Kansas City weather. From 90+ degree heat to snow and freezing temperatures, the kiosks are built to continue operating smoothly and continuously. The digital kiosk displays also offer single- and dual-sided options, as well as additional components such as wireless capability, video cameras and all integrations needed to allow for ADA compliance.

For more information about Redyref kiosks or digitally-enhanced transit options, visit https://www.redyref.com.

If you asked ten people to define what “smart cities” are, you’d probably get 10 different answers. That’s partially because the idea of a truly intelligent city is still so relatively new.  It’s also because it depends much on who is being asked.  

For example, a smart city, to a city manager, may mean one that is connected and able to collect and transmit data about a variety of different subjects, from real-time reporting of environmental information (pollution) to traffic initiatives (red light cameras, speed zones) to the statuses of trains and buses within the public transportation system.

However, a city resident might define smart cities more simply as those that have deployed interactive kiosks that provide wayfinding and public wifi access. But ask the mayor, and she may consider a smart city to be one that has integrated aspects of e-governance, including enhanced communication with residents and streamlined access to city services.

What factors create a smart city?

Beyond the personal definitions of participants and adopters of smart city technology, there is actually some agreement in the academic community about what makes smart cities, “smart.”  And while it is still fairly broad, it does provide a basic framework from which many urban planners are operating.  According to an article in the Journal of Intelligent Buildings International: From Intelligent Cities to Smart Cities by Deakin & Al Waer, there are four factors that are of particular importance:

1. The application of a wide range of electronic and digital technologies to communities and cities
2. The use of Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) to transform life and working environments within the region
3. The embedding of such ICTs  in government systems
4. The territorialisation of practices that brings ICTs and people together to enhance the innovation and knowledge that they offer.

In plainer terms: Smart cities integrate technology into government systems to enhance the quality of life of people working and/or living in the region, ultimately helping bring them together so they may more easily share knowledge. 

Interactive kiosks are one way in which many regions are choosing to roll out smart city programs.  

How? Come back soon and find out in our next blog!  And If you’ve already decided interactive kiosks are the solution you’ve been looking for, contact RedyRef today at (800) 628-3603 or request a quote online and we’ll be with you every step of the way to ensure that your smart city kiosk deployment meets every one of your unique needs and goals.

Miami Metrorail Rolls out High-Tech Interactive Transit Kiosk

Miami-Dade’s Government Center lobby and second-floor transit station have rolled out the first of what’s planned to be many new high-tech interactive kiosks. The large (nearly 10’ tall!) kiosks offer a range of services, including the ability to charge cell phones, create personalized bus routes, and even take selfies that can be emailed to the user.

Each kiosk features a jumbo, dual-touchscreen monitor configuration. Visitors can choose a destination from the transit station location and calculate the most efficient route using county transportation to get there, including both buses and trains.

But what about that selfie option mentioned previously, you ask? A camera integrated into the kiosk has been configured to take a photo of the user from above, which is then superimposed on a palm tree (natch!) background by the operating system, and sent to them via email. According to Miami-Dade, email addresses are not captured and saved at this time and any such changes in the future to this policy, may they be made, will be clearly communicated.

NYC Subways Rolling Out Real-Time Transportation Information Kiosks

New York City subways are going digital with the deployment of interactive kiosks that provide travelers with real-time train and bus information, including not just arrival times, but also wayfinding maps, travel alerts and local area information. When kiosks are not actively in use, they are able to display digital content, including paid content from advertisers.  

The New York City Metropolitan Transportation Authority (NYC MTA) has launched the program, named “Time-and-Place,” in 42 stations across the city, and includes a countdown clock to provide live updates to passengers regarding transportation arrival times.

QSRs Find Interactive Kiosk Deployments Improve Customer Experience

A study by research firm Market Force Information states that 55% of today’s Quick Service Restaurant (QSR) consumers have used a tablet at the table or a smartphone app over the past 90 days to place an order. This is an enormous change from the previous time this poll was completed — in fact, it’s a 39% increase over 2015.  Consumers still appreciate the ability to order at the counter from an employee — just under half still prefer this option — but this number also marks a big change from two years ago, when 70% reported they would rather order the old-fashioned way.

With more QSRs adopting this technology in different formats, from mobile apps to delivery services to interactive kiosks, customers are clearly becoming more comfortable with self-service technology with this continued exposure. As consumer acceptance grows, it is likely the foodservice industry will continue the accelerated deployment of these types of technology into the market over the next several years.

Want to learn more about interactive kiosk solutions in QSR or transit environments? RedyRef has you covered. Request a quote today or call (800) 628-3603 for more information, and our experienced team will be there every step of the way to ensure your company’s unique kiosk needs and business goals are met.

RedyRef enGAGE 360: The Future of Self-Service

RedyRef’s enGAGE 360 concept pays homage to our vertically-integrated philosophy. As one the few companies that designs, engineers, fabricates, develops software and provides ongoing support of interactive kiosks, we are able to create complete kiosk solutions all in-house, from concept to deployment. And because these kiosks have evolved over time to be complex, digital systems, none of them would be complete without the sum of all these parts.

RedyRef’s engineers and developers are constantly reviewing and updating our range of kiosk enclosures and software platforms as technologies evolve. This includes customizing applications for our clients as required by their specifications, as well as creating fully custom solutions as those needs arise. We invite you to explore our full line of kiosks and software solutions on the newly-redesigned RedyRef.com.

VisitorCheck: Self-Service Visitor Management

Lobbies are often the first real touchpoint and physical “first impression” visitors have. Just as a well-designed website is a powerful tool to communicate a brand message, a lobby can do the same in the physical realm. Beyond their image-enhancing capabilities, lobbies also serve as a security checkpoint in an increasingly safety-conscious world.

That’s why we developed VisitorCheck  — the evolution of digital visitor management. This system combines the most important aspects of visitor management in a streamlined, easy-to-use and secure package. The solution is simple: visitors entering the lobby approach the touchscreen, enter their name and mobile number, the kiosk takes a picture of the visitor and then sends a text to the staff member. The staff member receives the text with all the visitor information including their picture. The staff member can respond without downloading an app and the visitor will never see the employee’s mobile number.

Request a proposal to find out how VisitorCheck can help your company streamline the visitor management process.

(Current customers who utilize RedyRef’s legacy visitor management software and wish to migrate to VisitorCheck, please contact us for more information.)

Featured Kiosk Project: World War II Memorial

RedyRef is proud to have been selected to design and deploy the new interactive, outdoor kiosk at the WWII Memorial in Washington, D.C. It features curated information about the memorial, including material from the National Archives, a searchable database of those who served and details about the war and its impact on everyday individuals. Because of its geographic location, the kiosk has been engineered to withstand the elements of rain, snow, and various temperature fluctuations.

Featured Blogs

With the release of our new visitor management software, VisitorCheck, we published several articles detailing why moving to a digital visitor management system is often the right choice. You can read the three-part series on our blog via the links below:

• Digital Visitor Management as a Best Practice: Part I
• Digital Visitor Management as a Best Practice: Part II
• Digital Visitor Management as a Best Practice: Part III

When we think of interactive, self-service kiosks, what first comes to mind tends to be those that involve foodservice and retail. This is for good reason; these types of digital kiosks are the ones in the news because they are consumer-oriented and have been at the center of controversy (see also: McDonald’s vs. the $15 minimum wage) or are on the very cutting edge of technology (especially in flagship stores like Burberry, Nike and Tommy Hilfiger).

While these consumer-facing kiosks may be sexier, there are plenty of self-service kiosks that don’t get the attention they deserve, including human resources kiosks. Sure, they are more functional than fun, but human resources kiosks work behind the scenes to help companies make their employees’ lives easier from the very start. How?

Hiring and Job Application

Companies like Wal-Mart and Target have known for years that interactive human resources kiosks are a great solution to encourage job-seekers to apply for jobs.  These kiosks handle all of the intake information a paper form would, only it can now be conveniently saved to a central database.  That means that if there is no current position available in the store at which an individual applies, they can let the potential employee know of other jobs available in the area, as well as hold on to that information for future hiring purposes. This frees up store managers and HR specialists to handle other important tasks, rather than dealing with the initial intake of paper applications.

New-Hire Orientation

Is there a single person who has ever looked forward to this day?  It’s often unnecessarily long, boring and far from self-paced; possibly the least enjoyable way to start the exciting journey of a new job. And let’s face it — often, it has nothing to do with the new job itself. Interactive human resources kiosks allow employees to work through new-hire forms independently without killing trees made from piles of paper. Instead of being handed massive packets of company information, they can read through all of it on the kiosk, and choose to have a paperless version emailed to them for later reference.  Kiosks are also helpful when managing resources for orientations, especially for larger companies.  If there are 50 people starting one week, but only 5 the next, it may not make sense to allocate assign the same number of HR staff to cover it.  Self-service kiosks can take the place of those who would be more productive if left to handle other tasks.

Think interactive human resources kiosks and are right for your company’s employees?

Come back next week when we’ll continue to discuss their advantages for internal use. If you’ve already decided self-service kiosks are the solution you’ve been looking for, contact RedyRef today at (800) 628-3603 or request a quote online and we’ll be with you every step of the way to ensure that your self-service kiosk program meets every one of your business’ unique needs and goals.