SMRT Corp will spend $12 million over the next two years fitting a dynamic route map and information system on its trains so travellers can better track their journey.

The user-friendly STARiS system is similar to others in Hong Kong and Japan but has an additional feature - it tells passengers which side of the train to exit from.

The mainboard-listed land transport company yesterday unveiled the new system on one of its trains. STARiS - SMRT Active Route Map Information System - indicates the direction of travel, next station, interchange stations and which side of the train to exit from in advance.

This information is now provided verbally but is not always audible because of noise. The new system comprises dynamic route maps and display screens that show multi-language transcripts of audio announcements, so passengers can receive the information visually.

Each train carriage will be fitted with eight dynamic route maps above the doors, while four ceiling-mounted display screens will be positioned along the centre of each carriage.

Yesterday, a train with STARiS installed was put into service to test the system for two months. SMRT will monitor its performance and reliability to address any technical issues before full-scale installation starts in January next year.

STARiS, which costs $20,000 per carriage, will be introduced at a rate of four six-car-trains per month. SMRT's entire fleet will be fitted by 2010, at a cost of $12 million.

'We are constantly looking to innovate and be responsive to changing customers' expectations,' SMRT deputy president and chief operating officer Yeo Meng Hin said yesterday.

STARiS was developed in-house by SMRT's communications engineers. Unlike train information systems overseas, it does not require track-side signals to trigger travel information. Instead, it uses distance travelled by the train to trigger the display of information.

This more cost-effective feature differentiates it from systems that rely on signals to provide information to route maps on board trains.

It also means the system can be implemented faster.

This article was first published in The Business Times on Nov 8, 2008.