Waiting for the bus will no longer be quite so boring as bulletin boards with TV screens will be installed at bus stops.

The screens will broadcast everything from entertainment programs and traffic news to weather forecasts and how long it will take before the next bus arrives, the Shanghai Urban Transport Bureau announced yesterday.

The screens will be installed at more than 3,000 stops and the project will be completed by 2007.

As traffic conditions fluctuate, passengers can not expect time estimates to be as precise as in metro stations, said Liu Min, bureau information office chief.

"It can relieve anxiety during the wait and give people a rough idea when their bus will arrive," Liu said.

The information will be refreshed every five minutes or every 300 meters the bus moves.

A GPS transmission device will be installed on all buses, which sends its location and speed to an information center, said Yan Keqin, vice general manager with Shanghai Media Group Technology and Development Co, the project constructor.

According to Yan, it will cost about 300 million yuan (US$37 million) to install the TV screens, GPS on the buses and some support platforms.

Officials also announced yesterday that 20 kilometers of bus-only lanes in downtown will begin trial operation on tomorrow. The lanes are expected to raise bus speeds from below 15 kph to 20 kph during rush hours. Previously the city had only 15 kilometers of bus lanes, mostly on Yan'an Road.

(Shanghai Daily November 25, 2005)