HASTUS

HASTUS
Name	HASTUS
Developer	GIRO Inc.
Initial release	1980s
Latest release	(varies)
Operating system	Windows, Linux
Genre	Transit scheduling software
License	Proprietary

HASTUS

HASTUS is a proprietary transit scheduling and operations software suite developed by GIRO Inc. used for public transit planning, scheduling, rostering, and operations. It is applied by agencies and operators to manage bus, tram, rail, and paratransit services, integrating with systems from vendors and agencies such as Siemens, Bombardier Transportation, Alstom, Thales Group, and ABB. Agencies across cities like New York City, London, Toronto, Paris, and Sydney have implemented scheduling solutions alongside other products from firms including IBM, Oracle Corporation, Esri, and Trimble.

Overview

HASTUS provides modules for timetable creation, vehicle scheduling, crew rostering, and day-to-day operations used by transit authorities such as Metropolitan Transportation Authority, Transport for London, Société Nationale des Chemins de fer Français, Réseau de transport de la Capitale, and TransLink (British Columbia). The suite connects with passenger information platforms from Google Transit, HERE Technologies, TomTom, and AVL/ITS systems supplied by Cubic Corporation, Siemens Mobility, and Hitachi. HASTUS supports multimodal networks including buses, trams, metro, and commuter rail in municipalities like Chicago, Los Angeles, Montreal, Madrid, and Berlin.

History and Development

GIRO Inc., founded in Montreal with roots in operations research and optimization, developed the HASTUS product line from scheduling research dating to the 1970s and 1980s, contemporaneous with breakthroughs at institutions such as Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Stanford University, University of Toronto, and INRIA. Early commercial deployments paralleled advances by firms like RATP Group and Vancouver TransLink as transit operators modernized planning tools during the late 20th century. HASTUS evolved alongside competing systems from Trapeze Group, Scheidt & Bachmann, and Conduent, integrating new modules and interoperability standards driven by initiatives from organizations like the International Association of Public Transport and standards bodies including IEEE and CEN.

Features and Functionality

HASTUS offers timetable editing, pattern and block construction, run-cutting, driver rostering, and resource allocation with optimization engines comparable to methods used in operational research by groups at Cornell University, École Polytechnique, and University College London. The suite supports scenario analysis, performance reporting, and constraints management integrating data from agency fare systems like Cubic Transportation Systems and vehicle fleets by manufacturers such as Volvo Group and New Flyer. Day-of-operations modules synchronize with real-time systems from PTV Group, Swiftly, Moovit, and dispatch platforms used by transit operators including SNCF, DB Regio, and Keolis.

Deployment and Platforms

HASTUS is deployed on-premises and in hosted environments, interoperating with enterprise stacks from Microsoft Corporation, Red Hat, VMware, and cloud providers including Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud Platform. Integrations use standards and protocols championed by Open Geospatial Consortium, GTFS-Realtime, and messaging middleware by Apache Kafka and RabbitMQ. Deployments often coordinate with city agencies and authorities such as Metropolitan Transportation Authority, Transport for Greater Manchester, and Sydney Trains for large-scale scheduling across urban and regional networks.

Industry Adoption and Use Cases

Transit authorities and private operators adopt HASTUS for planning, labor compliance, and cost control in contexts including urban bus networks in London Buses, commuter rail services by SNCF Voyageurs, light rail operations like Manchester Metrolink, and paratransit services for agencies such as MTA Bus Company and Société de transport de Montréal. Use cases include timetable reworking for events like the Olympic Games in host cities, service restructures similar to Bus Network Redesigns in Houston and Toronto, and integrating with traffic management centers tied to agencies like Transport for NSW and New South Wales Police Force for incident response.

Technical Architecture

HASTUS architecture typically comprises client applications, server-side scheduling engines, and databases compatible with systems from Oracle Corporation, Microsoft SQL Server, and PostgreSQL. Optimization routines employ algorithms and techniques influenced by academic research at INRIA, Princeton University, and ETH Zurich, and may use combinatorial optimization, integer programming, and heuristics similar to solvers by CPLEX (IBM), Gurobi, and open-source projects like COIN-OR. Connectivity layers integrate with geographic information systems by Esri and AVL/GPS feeds from telematics vendors such as GE Transportation and TomTom Telematics.

Licensing and Commercial Model

HASTUS is offered under proprietary licensing by GIRO with commercial agreements that include software licenses, maintenance, support, and professional services comparable to procurement models used by agencies purchasing systems from Accenture, Capgemini, and Atos. Contracts frequently involve procurement processes guided by public-sector frameworks used by bodies like Crown Commercial Service and regional procurement authorities in Ontario and Île-de-France, with long-term service agreements tailored to large operators including Keolis and SNCF.

Category:Public transport software