Import stops, routes and riders from a spreadsheet
Bring your stops, routes, each route's stops with their times, and your riders in from one Excel workbook. Every row is checked first; with a single error nothing is written, and you get the workbook back with the errors marked.
PLANSEvery plan
The problem it solves
- Typing 600 riders and 40 routes by hand takes a week, and mistakes creep in.
- Half an import goes in, then it fails, and nobody knows which rows made it.
- A stop is spelt two ways, and riders end up on a stop the bus never visits.
- At the start of each term routes change, and the whole list has to be typed again.
How it works
- We open a new import with you and download the template for your Entity. It has an Instructions sheet listing every sheet and column.
- Fill the sheets Stops, Routes, Route Stops and Riders. Columns marked * are required; keep the header row as it is.
- Upload the workbook and press Check. Every row of every sheet is checked before anything is written.
- If anything is wrong, nothing is imported. Download the workbook with the bad cells highlighted, correct it and upload again.
- When the check says No errors, press Import. Everything goes in, in order, in one go.
- Later, upload the workbook again to change records: rows are matched on their key, and nothing is deleted.
Everything it does
Sheet Stops
- Stop (the key: the name), Latitude, Longitude, Radius (m) (100 when empty), Address
Sheet Routes
- Route Code (the key, used by the other sheets), Name (required), Kind: Pickup, Drop or Shuttle
- Vehicle Number: the licence plate of a vehicle already in Transport; vehicles are not loaded here
- Driver Login and Helper Login: a login, or an employee code from the Employees sheet with App Login = Yes
- Capacity (empty: the vehicle's seats)
Sheet Route Stops
- One row per stop of each route: Route Code and Stop (together the key), Order, Time as HH:MM such as 07:35
Sheet Riders
- Exactly one of Register No (with SmartMy Campus), Employee Code (with the Employees sheet) or Login
- Pickup Route and Pickup Stop, Drop Route and Drop Stop; a route and its stop go together
- The stop must be on that route in Route Stops; each rider needs a pickup route, a drop route or both
- Service (empty: taken from the routes given) and Boarding Card
- With transport fees (SmartMy Campus): Fee Plan and Fees From
- A student without a login gets one when the row is imported
Checks and records
- References may point to rows of the same workbook or to records already in the system
- A driver or helper who is neither a login nor an employee code is refused
- Status: Draft, Checked, Has Errors, Imported; each import keeps the file, who ran it and when
- A workbook already imported is uploaded again in a new import
Not in the workbook
- Vehicles, riding days, route working days, the people told about a rider and no-transport days
- A new rider rides every day; a new route works Monday to Friday; parents of students are added by themselves
Who uses it
Transport officeFills the workbook from its current lists and fixes the rows the check marks.
Our implementation teamOpens the import with you, runs Check and Import into the right Entity.
Transport administratorChecks the routes and riders after the import and ticks weekend days on the routes that need them.
Where you use it
- Web: Settings > Data Import, which our team holds; you can fill the workbook yourself before we open it with you
- Excel workbook (.xlsx): the template comes from the import screen
- Not in the phone apps
What you control
Settings
- The Entity the data goes into, chosen on each import
- Empty Radius (m): 100; empty Capacity: the vehicle's seats; empty Service: from the routes given
Works with
SmartMy CampusRiders named by register number; the student's login and parents are used, and the same workbook carries the student and fee sheets.
SmartMy HRMSRiders, drivers and helpers named by employee code from the Employees sheet.
Questions
What happens if one row is wrong?
Nothing is imported. You get the workbook back with the wrong cells highlighted and the reason, correct it, and upload again.Can we use the same workbook to make changes later?
Yes. Upload it in a new import. Rows are matched on their key (the stop name, the route code, the rider) and updated. Nothing is deleted.Can we import the vehicles too?
Not in this workbook. Add the vehicles in Transport first; the Routes sheet then finds each one by its licence plate.Can we import the parents of non-student riders?
Not yet. Add them on each rider under Told About This Rider. Parents of students come from the student record by themselves.Can we run the import ourselves?
The import screen sits under Settings, which our team holds. Prepare the workbook yourself; we open the import with you and run it.Related features
STOPS, ROUTES, RIDERSStops and routes with planned timesPut every stop on the map with a radius. Build pickup, drop and shuttle routes with the stops in order and a planned time at each. Each route has its usual vehicle, driver, helper, working days and seats.STOPS, ROUTES, RIDERSRiders with their route, stop and daysEach rider has their service (pickup, drop or both), the route and stop for each leg, and the days they ride. You choose who is told about each rider, the rider, a parent or a guardian, topic by topic.WITH SMARTMY CAMPUSStudents as riders, with transport attendanceWith SmartMy Campus, a student becomes a rider from their own record, with class and admission number. In a school the parents are told, in a college the student and the parents. Transport attendance shows each student by class, day and leg, and parents see a Transport card on each child's page.WITH SMARTMY HRMSDrivers from SmartMy HRMS, trips as attendanceWith SmartMy HRMS, employees become riders in one pick. A run whose driver or helper is on approved leave is flagged, with a to-do for the transport office. Starting and ending a run or a booking trip counts as the crew's attendance.PEOPLE AND ACCESSSeparate access for each roleThe transport administrator, the transport office, drivers and helpers, riders and parents each get their own access. Each person sees only the Entities they work in and the records that are theirs.
See your own routes on the map.
Send us your stops and routes and we will show you a demo with them.