Requirements checklist
What to ask for when choosing software for intercity bus operators.
A checklist built from how intercity bus operators work, to print or save as a PDF and bring to any supplier meeting.
What the software should cover
Tick each one that matters to your business.
- Route, departure and seat chart
- Counter and agent booking
- Coach, driver and conductor roster
- Passenger manifest and luggage
- Permit, fitness and insurance dates
- Workshop, tyres and spares
- Fuel and trip accounts
Roles that need their own access
Who logs in, and what each person may see or change.
- For owners
- For booking clerks
- For depot managers
- For conductors and drivers
- For workshop foremen
Reports to ask for
Ask to see each one with your own sample data.
- Seats sold and load factor by route and departure
- Agent sales, cancellations and commission due
- Crew duty and rest hours by driver
- Permit, fitness and insurance dates due by coach
- Tyre fitment, wear and retread cost by coach
- Diesel, kilometres and cost per kilometre by route
- Conductor cash settlement and shortfalls by boarding stop
Systems it may need to connect to
Note which ones you already run.
- Online ticket sellers
- SMS
- WhatsApp or other messaging
- Payment gateway
- Accounting export
Questions for any vendor
Put these to every supplier you are comparing.
- Can all sellers share one chart?
- How does it count crew rest?
- What warns us before a coach paper expires?
- Can an agent see only their own sales?
- Does the conductor need signal?
- Can we track a coach on a map?
- How is tyre cost read for each coach?
- Can charter bookings be handled?
- What do the demo and quote cover?
- How do we move our records out?
Where the work usually breaks today
Circle the ones you recognise. They set the order of the project.
- Seat charts disagree between sellers
- Crew duty hours are guessed
- Permit and fitness dates lapse quietly
- Agent commission is argued over
- Tyre and fuel cost is not tied to a coach
Prefer to talk it through? See the intercity bus operators page.