The Belgian public transport operator De Lijn explored replacing paper timetables at bus stops with digital alternatives but ultimately decided to retain paper schedules after a pilot project showed significant limitations.

Lijn has approximately 27,000 bus and tram stops in Flanders, most of which display paper timetables. These must be replaced regularly, at a cost of 15 euros per stop, resulting in an annual expense of  about €375,000. To reduce costs, the public transport company wanted to test whether the paper timetable could be replaced by a digital one.

To this end, the paper schedules at the stop were replaced with a QR code and a phone number. Passengers who called that number heard a robotic voice announcing the services or were connected to a customer service representative.

Combined information

During the experiment, which lasted about three months (from March to mid-May), about 150 people called that phone number. The test also highlighted that the digital alternatives were not widely used.

The conclusion was that QR codes and phone-based systems cannot fully replace paper timetables without excluding part of the public. In other words, the experiment showed that a combination of paper and digital information would be the best solution.

“Not everyone always has a mobile phone on them,” Flemish Parliament members Sofie Mertens and An Christiaens (CD&V) report. “The battery can be dead, or there’s no signal. With this combined information, travelers have a choice, and everyone can get the necessary information.”

As a result, paper timetables will be maintained alongside digital tools to ensure accessibility for all passengers.

In neighbouring countries and other cities abroad, digital information works best where physical displays with real-time information are installed at stops.

These systems succeed because they provide live departure times and delays, are visible to all passengers without a smartphone, often include accessibility features such as audio output, and use energy-efficient technologies like e-paper and solar power.