The smart information hub, a stand alone sign that displays live arrival times, was developed by Cranbrook graduate Ted Hodge as part of the design and technology HSC subject. The project secured him a score of 99 for the subject, the highest mark in the state. Stress buster: Ted Hodge with his high-tech bus stop outside the garage of his family home. The project delivered him the top HSC score in the state for design and technology. Credit:Michele Mossop He is now in the process of having the technology patented and says he has been approached by a number of companies interested in developing it. He has also spoken to people within Transport for NSW about his idea. "I think they were possibly a bit flustered or maybe a bit quiet about their plans to roll out things like this," he said. "Because I was talking to them about it and they wouldn't say much but they were very interested in terms of knowing all the details surrounding my design and how the system works." He has called it URBBUS and a working prototype of the 2.4 metre pylon is stored in the garage of his parents' Queens Park home.

It displays real-time information about when buses will arrived using existing GPS technology and t Ted Hodge's bus stop design. It is white if the next bus is more than 8 minutes away, yellow when it hits the four minute mark and blue if it is set to arrive within two minutes. It also incorporates remote access CCTV, which he says is "in the best interests of the NSW Police, especially with recent events that have gone down in Sydney".

A spokeswoman told Fairfax Media Transport for NSW was "always interested in new and innovative ideas to improve services for our customers". But she would not comment on whether there were plans to introduce signs like Ted Hodge's. The design, which took six months to plan and one month to build, was inspired by the teenager's own experiences. He catches Sydney buses every day and says "probably 99 per cent of the time they would always be late in some way or another". "I want to change the perception of Sydney's transport system," the 18-year-old, who plans to study design and commerce at university next year, said. "We're meant to be one of the world's most liveable cities but why is our transport system so bad when it comes to the speed and the level of infrastructure?"