Freeway Gets the Go-Ahead in Ireland

Bus operator, Go-Ahead Ireland, is launching Freeway Fleet Systems’ bespoke fleet management software into its Irish operation.  The system implementation began in March at Go-Ahead’s Ballymount Depot, which is expected to continue for around 8-12 weeks.  At the end of the implementation, Go-Ahead Ireland will have full web app functionality, allowing all engineers to complete inspections, raise defects and request parts digitally, removing the need for any paper-based forms.  It is Go-Ahead’s intention to later roll Freeway out to all other Irish depots that are planned to open in the coming months.

Go-Ahead is Ireland’s newest bus company which is quickly becoming a familiar site on Dublin’s roads.  With a depot in Ballymount (Dublin 12), the organisation already employs nearly 300 people and has a fleet of 125 single and double deck buses. Go-Ahead bus services went into operation in Ireland in September 2018.

Following an enquiry received by Freeway Fleet Systems in August last year from Chris Stringer, Head of Fleet Engineering at Go-Ahead Ireland, Freeway and its local sales and implementation partner, Genie Insights Ltd, have been working on a bespoke specification of Freeway for the bus operator.

Over the last six months, Freeway and Genie Insights have met with various Go-Ahead Ireland and Go-Ahead Group divisions including Finance, IT and Engineering in order to design a system that can handle Go-Ahead’s unique organisational intricacies.  Although based on the core Freeway system, the software company has been able to use its team of developers to create new, tailored solutions to meet Go-Ahead’s needs.

As a result, Freeway Fleet Systems has successfully developed a number of solutions for complex integrations including a remote authorisation process for all procurement to be handled in Newcastle, UK.  Freeway has managed to provide an integration solution into Go-Ahead Group’s accounting system, Oracle, whilst also handling the VAT complexities that an operation in Ireland created.

Chris Stringer, Head of Engineering at Go-Ahead Ireland commented: “Having researched the market and having invited a number of providers to engage with us, we ultimately selected Freeway Fleet Systems for a number of reasons.  The system’s impressive customer portfolio, coupled with the company’s interest and ability in getting the solution right for us, gave us confidence that it could handle the specific complexities of our industry and organisation.  From the outset, Freeway showed a high level of professionalism and patience with the specification taking a number of months to finalise”.

Matt Reeve, Director at Genie Insights added: “Freeway Fleet Systems has established a reputation for developing solutions to meet even the most complex of requirements.  Go-Ahead Ireland is a prime example of how we don’t just deliver an ‘off-the-shelf’ product.  We’ve really listened to the various Go-Ahead departments to understand what they all need the system to do.  This contract is also a testament to Freeway’s development and customer support team, who accept every challenge thrown at them. This is a really exciting project for Genie Insights as the Irish partner for Freeway.  Having already implemented Freeway into a number of large transport operators on the Island or Ireland, it was about time we entered the passenger carrying market”.

The Go-Ahead installation adds to Freeway’s strong portfolio in the passenger transport industry with operators such as Abellio, CT Plus, Reading Buses, Trentbarton, Tower Transit, Hackney Community Transport, RATP Yellow Bus, Rotala and Ascendal all being existing Freeway users.