News Release - August 24, 2006
Ontira Communications Pioneers Transit Industry’s First Spanish Speech-Enabled Trip Planning System
VANCOUVER, BC - August 24, 2006 - Ontira Communications Inc. (OCI®) has successfully implemented the transit industry's first Spanish-enabled speech recognition application for planning trips via the telephone. Launched by Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority of Austin, Texas, the trip planner is available to transit users via the Customer Service GO Line.
GO Line's Interactive Voice Response (IVR) is enabled with Automated Speech Recognition (ASR), allowing customers to speak naturally into the phone to plan transit trips in both English and Spanish. A caller simply speaks an origin and destination, which can be addresses, landmarks or intersections, and the trip planner generates an itinerary which is played back to the caller. GO Line is conveniently accessible 24/7 and is designed to support a wide range of pronunciations and regional dialects.
“We’ve been working to implement this technology for some time now, and we’re very pleased to see the results,” said Capital Metro Chief Information Officer Denise Du Charme. “Our primary goal was to enhance our service information delivery to our customers as well as to reduce the heavy load on our call agents. We believe that we’re getting those results already and hope to increase the benefits over time.”
Ontira's technology is enabling English and Spanish-speaking customers alike the ability to access the full spectrum of Capital Metro’s automated traveler information services 24/7. In addition to trip planning, GO Line also provides automated information on bus routes, schedules, and stop times in both English and Spanish. Since these features went into public service on June 15, 2006, Capital Metro's customer service center has experienced a 22% decrease in agent answered call volume within the first 40 days of implementation, compared to the same period in prior years. This figure is expected to further improve, as public awareness grows with Capital Metro's increased marketing efforts. By automating public access to transit information, the call center is improving its efficiency and agents are able to spend time on more complex inquiries.
Paratransit customers also benefit from Capital Metro’s automation of demand response information. By calling Capital Metro's Special Transit Service IVR, they can automatically confirm, cancel or book trips, without having to wait to speak to an agent. These features for Spanish speech recognition are also first-to-market in the paratransit industry.
"As the first to provide Spanish speech recognition for transit trip planning and paratransit information, Ontira continues to lead the industry in innovation for multi-modal, multi-media communications. Furthermore, Capital Metro's case shows that Ontira's solutions can significantly enhance customer service and increase operational efficiencies, while simultaneously supporting multiple languages," says Gerald Bachmayer, Director of Ontira Communications.
About Ontira Communications Inc.
Ontira empowers transit operators with solutions that enhance customer communications. Providing Automated Traveler Information Systems (ATIS) technology since 1984, Ontira has earned a reputation for reliable and user-friendly multimedia applications and superior customer service. Ontira’s information solutions enable transit users across North America and Australia to access traveler information via telephone, Internet, kiosk, fax, wireless technology and digital signage.
- For more information contact:
- Heather Liau
- Marketing & Communications
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