Welcome to BüFoBus, the community dial-a-ride service for Dettingen an der Erms. This handbook explains step by step how to use the app, even if you rarely use apps. Just read the chapter you need right now.
Good to know: Above the table of contents is the field Search the handbook. Type a keyword and you will see the matching sections with a short excerpt. A tap jumps there, and the matches are highlighted in the text.
1. First steps
What the community dial-a-ride service is
BüFoBus is run by volunteers for the people of Dettingen an der Erms. The operator is Bürgerforum Buchhalde Dettingen gUG (haftungsbeschränkt). The app is the way to book a ride, see your rides and receive messages about them. If you prefer to call, the coordination team is still there by phone; the number is on the start page and under More › Handbook.
Looking around without an account
You can read the start page, the stops, the information about the community dial-a-ride service and this handbook without an account. You can also choose the language without an account: at the top right of the header.
For anything concerning your own rides you need an account. The account is created along the way: you enter your mobile number and confirm it with a code sent by text message. You do not need a password.
Signing in with your mobile number
- Tap Sign in at the top right.
- Enter your mobile number, for example 0171 1234567, and tap Send code by text message.
- You receive a text message with a six-digit code. Enter it on the next page and tap Check code. On a phone the keyboard usually suggests the code by itself.
- Done. You are signed in and stay signed in on this device until you sign out.
The code is valid for ten minutes. After three wrong entries it becomes invalid; then tap Request a new code. A new code is available after one minute at the earliest.
Good to know: The app never reveals whether a number is already known. The response looks the same for new and known numbers, so nobody can check whether you are a passenger.
Creating an account
On the start page, Create account leads to a short form: Title (optional; Not specified is preselected, otherwise Ms, Mr or Mx), first and last name, email address, password and your consent to the privacy policy, which is linked there and opens in a new tab. Mobile number and Date of birth are optional; the date of birth helps us show whom the service reaches, for example in funding applications. You can change all details later under My account.
Signing in with email and password
If you have set a password in your profile (see the chapter Security), you can also sign in with your email address and password. On the Sign in page, tap Sign in with email and password at the bottom.
Signing in faster with a passkey
A passkey replaces code and password with Face ID, fingerprint or your device PIN. You set it up under My account › Security › Passkeys › Add passkey. Afterwards the Sign in page shows the button Sign in with passkey; many devices also offer the passkey directly in the mobile number field. As long as you have no passkey, the app offers one right after you sign in: tap Add passkey and confirm on your device; you do not need a password for this.
Two-factor sign-in (optional)
If you want to protect your account further, set up the Second factor (2FA) under Security; you need a password for this. The app then asks for a numeric code from an authenticator app on your phone in addition to the password. Keep the displayed recovery codes in a safe place: with them you can still get into your account if your phone is lost.
Forgot your password
On the Sign in page, tap Forgot your password?. You receive an email with a link that is valid for one hour. For security reasons the app does not say whether an account belongs to the address. Usually it is easier to sign in with your mobile number and the text message code.
2. The app on phone, tablet and computer
Adding it to the home screen
The app runs in the browser and can be placed on the home screen like an app: in Safari via Share › Add to Home Screen, in Chrome via the menu › Install app. After that BüFoBus starts without browser bars.
The easiest way is the page Install the app, which you find at the bottom of every page. It recognises your device and shows first what suits you: the App Store or Google Play as soon as BüFoBus is available there, for Android also Download the APK directly and for Windows Download the Windows package; below that, under Without a store: as a web app, the instructions for the home screen. On a computer the page shows a QR code: scan it with your phone and the page opens there. On Windows, BüFoBus opens after installation in its own window with an icon in the taskbar and Start menu; new features arrive automatically with every update of the site.
On a tablet and on a computer
On a tablet and on a computer you see the same content, only wider: on a computer a bar on the left lists all areas, and forms show their fields side by side. Everything you read here applies to all devices.
Larger text, light or dark
Under My account › My profile › Display and language you set the text size (normal, large, very large), light or dark and your language. The setting applies on every device you are signed in on. It is quicker in the account menu at the top right with Switch to dark mode or Switch to light mode; the choice is saved too. Without signing in, the app follows your device.
3. How the app is structured
The header at the top
On the left is the logo; a tap on it leads to the Overview with your tiles, or to the start page without an account. On a computer the Overview is also in the bar on the left. On the right are the language selection, the bell for notices and your picture (the avatar) while you are signed in; otherwise Sign in. Below that is the name of the page with a back arrow.
The bar at the bottom
At the bottom of the screen is the bar with the most important areas and More. Under More you find further areas, the handbook and the legal texts. On a computer the same is shown in the bar on the left.
The avatar menu
A tap on your picture at the top right opens My account with My profile, Security, My data and Sign out.
What’s new
Under More › What’s new you read what has changed in the app. A small dot on the entry shows that something was added since your last visit.
Choosing the language
At the top right you choose the language of the app. When signed in, the app remembers your choice in your account. Legal texts are binding in German; the other languages are translations.
News, questions and other content are translated into your language automatically. Such texts carry the note Automatically translated; tap Show original to read the German text and Show translation to return to your language.
4. My account
My profile
Under My account › My profile your details are shown in cards:
- Profile picture: optional; drivers see it in the passenger list.
- Personal details: salutation, first name, last name, date of birth.
- Contact channels: mobile number (with confirmation), landline, email and the channel on which you want to receive messages. You add or change your email address right here; you confirm a new address via the link in the email, and Send link again sends it once more.
- My home: your address; it is suggested as the starting point when you book as soon as the app has found it in the street directory. Below the address you see whether that worked; if not, check spelling, house number and postcode.
- Support and emergency: notes for the drivers (for example a walker) and an emergency contact person.
Tap Save at the bottom when you have changed something.
Confirming your mobile number
If you change your mobile number, the new number has to be confirmed. In the Contact channels card, tap Request code by text message and enter the code from the text message. Only then do messages about your rides go to the new number.
Profile picture
In the Profile picture card, tap Upload image. You can take a photo or choose one from your gallery. Then crop it: move the frame or drag its corners, rotate if needed, then Apply. The image is stored in reduced size; location data from the photo is removed. Remove image takes it out again.
Security
Under My account › Security you see your ways of signing in:
- Set password or Change password. It must be at least eight characters long; well-known passwords, your own name and the name of the dial-a-ride service are rejected. A phrase like "Gerda's rose garden 7" is easy to remember and secure.
- Add or remove passkeys.
- Set up or switch off the Second factor (2FA), generate New recovery codes.
The app confirms every change to your sign-in methods with a message to you. If such a message arrives without you having changed anything, contact the coordination team.
My data
Under My account › My data, tap Request data copy. The app compiles a ZIP file (account, sign-in methods, log and everything other areas have stored about you) and notifies you as soon as it is ready. Then Download ZIP appears. The link is valid for seven days; a new copy is available once a day.
Deleting your account
On the same page you find Delete account. The app asks for your password or a fresh sign-in; with Schedule deletion it signs you out and schedules the deletion. For fourteen days you can change your mind: simply sign in again and the app asks whether the account should stay (Cancel deletion). After that it is gone for good. Open rides must be cancelled beforehand, otherwise the app refuses the deletion.
Signing out
At the very bottom of the avatar menu is Sign out. On a device that is not yours, it is best to always sign out.
5. Notifications
The list of notifications
At the top right of the header is the notifications icon. A number on it shows how many notifications you have not read yet. A tap opens the list Notifications: new entries are highlighted, a tap on an entry opens the matching page and marks it as read. Mark all as read clears the list. Remove read deletes all read entries from the list. Every notification about your account and your rides lands here, whatever other way you receive it.
Notifications on your phone
Notifications to your phone appear on the lock screen even when the app is closed. In the app from the store, BüFoBus asks on first start whether it may send notifications. In the browser you turn them on under My account › Notifications with Turn on notifications to your phone; the browser then asks for your permission once. On iPhone this only works after you have added the page to the home screen (chapter 2). Send test notification checks that everything arrives.
SMS and e-mail as a substitute
If notifications to your phone are not turned on on any of your devices, BüFoBus sends important messages by SMS to your verified mobile number, otherwise by e-mail to your verified address. You control both under Notifications with Allow SMS and Allow e-mail. Only urgent messages about your account or your ride always arrive, for example when your password changes.
What you can turn off
Under My account › Notifications each area has a switch Instantly or Off. Below it you read what that currently means for you: to your phone, by SMS, by e-mail or only in the list of notifications in the app. What is listed under Always arrives cannot be turned off.
Good to know: If you sign out on someone else's device, that device no longer receives your notifications to your phone.
6. Hop-on stops
What a hop-on stop is
The BüFoBus drives a fixed loop through Dettingen an der Erms with stops marked by a bench or a sign. There you can board without booking when the bus is on its way, or book a ride from there. Every stop's page has Book from here and Book to here for this; the stop is then already entered in the booking. Under Stops in the bar at the bottom you see all stops in the order of the loop, with the driving time to the next one. At the top is the loop: how many stops, how many kilometres, how long one round takes.
List and map
On the phone, switch between both views with List and Map; on tablet and computer they sit side by side. Tap a stop to open its page with address, side of the street, picture, description and the map with the way to the next stop. Start and end is the stop where every round begins and ends.
The QR code on the sign
Every sign carries a QR code. Scan it with your phone camera and the stop's page opens, even without signing in. There you tap I am waiting here or Book a ride from here (chapter 7); the phone number is there too. If the code shows This sign is no longer valid, the sign was renewed; you still find the stops in the app. With Report a problem you tell the coordination team when something at the stop is wrong (bench damaged, sign missing, access blocked); a callback number is optional and is deleted as soon as the report is handled.
7. Booking rides
Ordering a ride
Tap Book at the bottom. Everything is on one screen: From and To (type an address or a stop; signed in, the empty From field first suggests My home), When? with As soon as possible or At a time with date and time, Who is travelling? with People, Walkers and Companion. While you type, the app checks shifts and space and shows at once: “The bus can be with you on … between 10:00 and 10:15.” If the time does not fit, it names the next free times to tap or the phone number. You can book at the earliest 30 minutes ahead and up to two weeks ahead. You cannot choose more people or walkers than our largest vehicle can take; for larger groups, call the coordination team. Continue takes you to the confirmation. At the top of the page you see the next available time, and for a set time you can only choose days when the bus is running. If no bus is scheduled for the next two weeks yet, the start page and Book show the notice No bus is running at the moment with Become a driver now instead of the form.
If start and destination are at the same spot, the app asks for a different destination. If the route is very short, it says “Short distance”; you can still book the ride.
Confirming
Here are the passengers with name and walker, notes for the driver (“back entrance”) and the consent to the conditions of carriage and the privacy policy. Without an account you enter your name and mobile number and tap Send code by SMS; enter the code and tap Check code. If no SMS arrives, tap Request a new code after a minute; Change number fixes a typo. You do not need a password: only the correct code creates your account for this number, and you stay signed in on this device. Book now completes the booking. If there is a shift, the ride is Confirmed at once, with number and pickup window; you see driver and vehicle after the confirmation. Without a fitting shift the ride stays Requested; the coordination team looks for a driver and gets back to you.
My rides
Under My rides you see your rides in the tabs Upcoming, Past and Cancelled; New ride leads to the booking. Every ride has a page with status, pickup window, From and To on the map, driver and vehicle. The ride is free of charge; the BüFoBus is happy about a donation.
Changing the time and cancelling
On the ride's page, Change time changes the appointment; the app checks the new time at once and otherwise shows free times. Cancel cancels the ride; driver and coordination team are told, and you get a confirmation. Both work until 60 minutes before pickup; after that tap Call coordination. Further buttons depending on the state of the ride: Call the driver while the bus is on its way to you or has arrived; Add to calendar creates a calendar entry with the pickup window; Share sends the link to the ride to relatives; Return trip opens the booking with From and To swapped; Book again with the same places. With Change time you choose, as when booking, only days when the bus is running.
I am waiting here
If you are at a stop, scan the QR code on the sign and tap I am waiting here: number of people, destination (or To the terminus), your mobile number if you like, then Inform the driver. If a bus is on the road, it comes within a few minutes and you see the waiting time; otherwise the coordination team gets your request. Book a ride from here opens the booking with this stop as the start. If no bus is running for the next two weeks, the notice No bus is running at the moment and Become a driver now appear there instead of I am waiting here and Book a ride from here, so you do not wait in vain.
Where is the bus?
Under More › Map you see the stops and the vehicles that are on the road in a shift right now, with “On the road since” and the next stop. If the bus is on its way to a passenger, the map only says “On the way to a passenger”, never an address. Outside the shifts the map shows no position but when the bus runs again. You see the bus for your own ride on the ride's page as soon as the driver has started the tour: with its position on the map and the expected arrival, until you have boarded.
Messages about your ride
The BüFoBus gets in touch to confirm, the evening before as a reminder, with The bus is coming as soon as the bus is on its way to you (about 20 minutes before arrival, at the latest half an hour before the pickup window; if the bus is tracked, the expected arrival time is included), with Bus is here when it pulls up (it is then shown large on your ride's page too) and whenever something changes: new driver, new time or a cancellation with reason and phone number. You set push, SMS or email under Notifications (chapter 5).
How was the ride?
After the ride, BüFoBus asks How was the ride? in a message. On the ride's page you tap All good or Report a problem within 48 hours and briefly write what happened; the message goes to the coordination team, who get back to you if needed. There are no star ratings.
8. Help with problems
I do not receive a text message code
Check the number for typos and whether your phone has reception. A new code can be requested after one minute. The app does not accept landline numbers; without a mobile number, sign in with email and password or ask the coordination team for help.
I have a new mobile number
Sign in with email and password or with a passkey and enter the new number under My profile. If you have neither, the coordination team helps and enters the new number for you.
I lost the phone with my authenticator app
Use one of your recovery codes. Each code works once. Afterwards set up the second factor again so that the old authenticator app no longer works.
The text is too small
Under My profile › Display and language set the text size to large or very large. The text size of your phone applies as well.
I do not receive notifications on my phone
Check under My account › Notifications whether notifications to your phone are turned on for this device and tap Send test notification. If the browser blocks notifications, the page shows step by step how to allow them again. In the app, check notifications in your phone's settings.
Who can help me?
The coordination team of BüFoBus can be reached by phone; the number is on the start page and on the Handbook page. For errors in the app a short description is enough: what you did, what happened, on which device.
9. The website
Pages for everyone
Even without an account BüFoBus shows everything important: under More you find About us, Hop-on benches and Become a driver, plus Our team with the drivers who published their profile (first name and picture only), Our vehicles and the Service hours of the next seven days. For guests the home page is a welcome page: the picture at the top, the Book a ride and Create account buttons, then How it works in three steps, service hours, stops, news and events, Join in and finally the invitation to create an account. All pages exist in every language of the app; if a translation is missing, the German text appears with a note.
Notices above the pages
If there is something important, for example an outage or a campaign, a coloured notice appears above all pages. Close it with the cross on this device; a new notice appears again.
10. News
Reading posts
Under More › News you find posts of the community dial-a-ride service: launch, new stops, drivers wanted, thanks to supporters. The home page shows the latest posts; Load more fetches older ones, Share passes the link on. Posts exist in every language of the app; if a translation is missing, the German text appears with a note.
Notification about new posts
If you want to be informed about new posts, set the group News to “Instant” under My account › Notifications. Without this setting passengers get no message; drivers and coordination are notified when coordination decides so for the post.
11. Questions and answers
Finding answers
Under More › Questions and answers you find the frequent questions by topic, for example about booking, service hours, costs or riding along with a rollator. At the top you pick a topic (in the bar on a phone, in the left column on a computer) or All questions; the number next to it tells how many questions there are. Tapping a question opens the answer right below it. Type two letters into the search field and matching questions appear immediately; the home page has the same search field under “How can we help?”. Some answers have files to download, such as a form.
Asking a question
If an answer is missing, tap Ask a question: enter the question, optionally your name and e-mail address, confirm the privacy notice, send. Coordination reads the question and publishes the answer here for everyone; with an e-mail address you get a message as soon as the answer is there. Name and e-mail are not published.
12. Events
Viewing events and replying
Under More › Events you find the upcoming events of the community dial-a-ride service by month: parties, info evenings, meetings. Without an account you see public events; signed in also those for all members. An event shows date, time, location with map, description, images and attachments; Add to calendar puts it into your calendar. At the bottom you reply with I will come, Maybe or Decline, with companions and a comment; if registration is required, the deadline and the maximum apply. Under My events you find your replies, past ones collapsed; the filter For me shows only events with your reply. If the event is full, it says The event is full. and I will come is disabled.
Reminders
Whoever replied is reminded a few days before, also when an event is moved or cancelled. Reminders for all events you only get if you set the group Events to “Instant” under My account › Notifications.
13. Advertising spaces on the bus
Viewing spaces and prices
Under More › Sponsoring you see the bus from the right, the left, the front and the rear with all advertising spaces: green is free, yellow reserved (a booking is waiting for payment), grey booked with the date until which the space is taken. Tap a space and BüFoBus shows its label, size and yearly price. Below you find the price list per type of space, the terms (minimum term, renewal, notice period, discount for left and right) and the contract text. All prices are per year plus VAT; production and mounting of the foil are included.
Booking and paying for spaces
With Book spaces (you need an account with an email address) you choose in four steps: the spaces on the views, Start and Term in months, then Company or association, Contact person, billing address, VAT ID and your Logo as PDF or PNG, and finally the contract text, which you accept. The bar at the bottom always shows the yearly total and the gross amount. With Book bindingly your spaces are reserved and you go to the payment: Bank transfer shows the bank details and reference to copy, PayPal books immediately. Once the payment has arrived you receive the confirmation with the invoice as PDF; if no payment arrives, the reservation expires after 14 days and the spaces are free again.
Term, renewal and notice
Under My account › My advertising spaces you find your bookings with spaces, term, price, payment, invoices, logo and the state of production (layout preview, approval, mounting). Billing is yearly in advance; before every further contract year you receive a new payment request. Without notice the booking renews automatically by twelve months after the minimum term; one month before the notice period ends, the app reminds you. With Give notice the booking ends at the end of the term, until then your spaces stay booked.
14. Donating
Ways to donate
Under More › Donate you find all ways to support the free community transport: Donating on the bus (the donation box on the bus and the card terminal with the driver), By bank transfer with the operator's bank accounts and Donate online with buttons to PayPal and similar services. Every button opens the provider's page; BüFoBus itself takes no payment details. At the bottom you read from which amount you receive a donation receipt.
Scanning the GiroCode
Next to every bank account there is a GiroCode. Open your banking app, choose "transfer by QR code" and scan it: recipient, IBAN and reference are filled in already, you only enter the amount. With Copy IBAN you take the IBAN without spaces to the clipboard. Copy BIC does the same for the BIC.
Donation platforms and crowdfunding
Donation platforms such as betterplace or WirWunder appear with their logo on the donation page; a tap shows the description and the buttons To the project and to the platform. While a campaign for a specific project is running, the entry Crowdfunding appears under More with all running campaigns and their period. The short donation appeal in the footer of every page leads here as well.
15. Needs
What is missing right now
Under More › Needs you find the things the community transport needs right now: winter tyres, child seats, a ramp, sometimes a whole vehicle. Every need shows an image, a description and, where known, the price: one-off, per month, per year or as an estimate with "approx.". Fulfilled needs stay visible collapsed, with thanks to the helpers. BüFoBus also shows up to three open needs on the start page as We need ….
I can help
If you can take over, contribute or obtain something, tap I can help: name, email or phone and a short message about how you can help. You do not need an account. The coordination team receives your offer immediately and gets back to you; with an email address you receive a confirmation of receipt. Some needs also have a button to an offer or a fundraising campaign outside the app.
16. Places at the stops
Finding places
Under More › Places you see what you can reach at the stops: shops, practices, restaurants, banks, authorities, leisure and education. At the top you filter by category, below the map shows all places with a coordinate, the list names category, address, short text, the stop with distance, today's opening hours, website, phone and Ride here. Only a place with a description or picture has its own page; then a tap on the tile opens it. Every stop page also has the section Nearby with a radius of 25, 50 or 100 metres.
A place in detail
Tapping a place shows logo or image, description, the opening hours as a weekly table with today highlighted, features such as "Wheelchair accessible", phone, website, contact person (only with consent) and the nearest stops with distance. With Ride here BüFoBus opens the booking with the nearest stop as destination; in the booking you can also enter the address yourself, often the name of the place is enough.
Where the data comes from
The coordination team maintains the places; some come from OpenStreetMap (note "© OpenStreetMap contributors" at the bottom of the page). If a place is missing or something is wrong, report it under Questions and answers › Ask a question or by phone.
17. Costs and funding
What the service costs
Under More › Costs and funding you see what the community transport costs per year and what the total is made of. At the top are Costs per year, Cost per ride and Cost per kilometre. Below, each project vehicle shows its calculation: Energy from consumption, price and yearly kilometres, plus the fixed items insurance, service, repairs, tyres, roadworthiness test and supplies. On the phone you tap a vehicle open, on the computer the vehicles stand side by side in a table. The kilometres come from the tour reports of the last twelve months; as long as these do not go back that far, BüFoBus uses an assumption per vehicle and says so.
Volunteering and donation
Our drivers are volunteers. The section Volunteering names the volunteer allowance, the minimum wage and the mini-job limit for comparison, never amounts of individual people. Under How your donation helps you read what a ride and a kilometre cost on average, with links to Donate and to the advertising space on the bus. On your ride page you also see what your ride costs the operator; for you it stays free of charge.