NASHVILLE, TN – Orbital Sciences Corporation’s Transportation Management Systems (TMS) division has been awarded a $7.3 million letter contract by the Nashville Metropolitan Transit Authority (Nashville MTA). Upon contract finalization, Nashville MTA will receive Orbital’s latest Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) and Automatic Vehicle Location (AVL) system, known as OrbCAD XP, along with new features to help the transit authority improve the effectiveness of its fixed-route bus service and its AccessRide paratransit service.

Orbital will supply Nashville MTA with a suite of real-time and analytical tools that will assist in overall operations management of its 199-vehicle fleet of buses, as well as its 25 supervisory and support vehicles, according to Telematics Journal.

Orbital will deliver the entire system during a 24-month period based on a timeline requested by Nashville MTA. The company will begin with the installation of the fixed-end and onboard equipment. Later, Nashville MTA’s entire fleet of fixed-route vehicles will be equipped with automatic passenger counters for more efficient service planning. Additionally, MTA’s fare collection system will be integrated with the OrbCAD system to improve automation and simplify operations.

Orbital will also supply its OrbStar Mobile Data Terminal (MDT) in Nashville’s AccessRide paratransit vehicles. The OrbStar color-display MDTs will provide detailed turn-by-turn navigational directions, along with updated, real-time manifests to AccessRide drivers throughout the service day as adjustments are made to passenger pick-up and drop-off times.