VerintSystems Inc. announced that the Metropolitan Council in Minneapolis / St. Paul is implementing the Nextiva Transit video solution from Verint Video Intelligence Solutions. The Metropolitan Council, which oversees transit operations in the Twin Cities' seven-county metro area and already leverages Verint's Nextiva Transit on its Metro Transit bus and rail system, invested in the video security technology in August 2009 to help enhance passenger and operator safety onboard its para-transit Metro Mobility fleet and other contracted bus routes.
The Metropolitan Council is the premier planning agency for the Minneapolis-St. Paul region and is responsible for planning and operating the majority of the transit system in the metro area. In total last year, Metro Transit provided nearly 82 million rides; Metro Mobility provided 1.2 million rides; and other contracted routes provided 3.4 million rides.
Transit riders have grown in recent years in the Twin Cities area. To help keep pace with demand, the Metropolitan Council recently launched a modernisation initiative focused on crime prevention and safety. As part of the agency's efforts, it selected Verint Nextiva to help update selected portions of the transit system's security infrastructure - replacing existing analogue recorders with a reliable, scalable and flexible IP video platform. In the initial phase of its planned multi-phase fleet-wide initiative, the Metropolitan Council is deploying Nextiva Transit onboard 257 buses.
"The Verint solution will provide state-of-the-art surveillance capabilities to the region's fleet," says Arlene McCarthy, Metropolitan Transportation Services Director for the Metropolitan Council. "Most importantly, the video security solution will support the Council's commitment to providing best-in-class safety and service to our customers."
With its sophisticated video quality, automatic system health check monitoring and proactive problem notification, Nextiva Transit will deliver a comprehensive view of onboard events. Further, the solution will provide the Metropolitan Council's transit operations with greater situational awareness and improved emergency response times, allowing the region's transit system to better safeguard passengers and operators.
"We are pleased to be working with the Metropolitan Council and supporting its fleet modernisation and security initiative," adds Elan Moriah, president Verint Video Intelligence Solutions and Verint Witness Actionable Solutions. "Verint Nextiva Transit is designed to help outstanding organisations, like the Metropolitan Council, increase security, mitigate risk and enhance the effectiveness of their operations."
