Olympics transport worth some medals, but information still behind the pace

London’s rail system coped pretty well with the crowds getting to and from the games, but the information offered did not grasp all the potential of the new media

Jonathan Raper is CEO of the data-as-a-service company Placr Ltd. and Visiting Professor at City University London.

Jonathan Raper is CEO of the data-as-a-service company Placr Ltd. and Visiting Professor at City University London.

An invitation to contribute to New Transit from my perspective as an information and systems design specialist came just as Britain’s transport network was being put to a significant test in the form of handling the intensive movement needs of the Olympics.

It was a perfect showcase for a whole range of issues affecting transport in the new digital information era - and the implications for those who run the system, and travel on it. So I can’t resist the opportunity to look at the...