smartphone transit app discussion

[M II A II R II K]

Car-Pooling Makes a Surge on Apps and Social Media


July 4, 2012

By MICKEY MEECE

Read More: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/05/te...mid=tw-nytimes

.....

Long-distance travelers as well as commuters are connecting on sites like Zimride.com, Ridejoy.com, Avego.com, Nuride.com, Rideshare.com and eRideShare.com.

- This summer, a German company with a quintessential American name, Carpooling.com, will try to break into the United States market with a trial run in the Northeast. In June, the company announced that 30 million rides had been offered through its 10-year-old network, which now has 3.8 million registered users.

- “It’s been a tough sell in the U.S. for a long time,” said David Burwell, director of the energy and climate program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. “A lot is due to not only the fact that people have different places they want to go, but also safety and other concerns about going into a car with strangers.” What is different now, Mr. Burwell said, is the advancement of digital technology and social networking, “which removed a significant amount of barriers.” To that end, eRideShare, which was started in 1999, is testing a mobile app this week for iPhone and Android phones. “I see a lot of new entrants this year” as well as new technology, said its founder, Steven Schoeffler.

- Proponents of ride-sharing say that, by design, it is an effective way to reduce congestion and greenhouse gas emission, as well as to save money on gasoline and car maintenance. America’s love affair with cars is not fading into the sunset anytime soon. By Sunday, 42.3 million Americans will have journeyed 50 miles or more from home during the weekend after the Fourth of July, according to AAA estimates. That is up 5 percent from last summer. On any workday, however, most drivers are riding solo. The percentage of people car-pooling has hovered near 10 percent for several years, according to Census survey data. About 5 percent of commuters use public transportation, and 76 percent drive alone.

.....

[zilfondel]

I guess I'll stop bitching and post something useful:

Mobile site is really useful: m.trimet.org

Trimet app center: http://trimet.org/apps/index.htm

They list 45 web apps, iphone, android and other "apps" that bring transit info, many of which (Google Maps) are universally available. Definitely worth a look even if you are in a completely different city - as many aren't Portland-only!

[mrnyc]

something new for metronorth riders:


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07/11/2012 11:24 PM

MTA Plans Ticket App For Metro North Riders
By: NY1 News

Metro North commuters could soon buy train tickets on their smartphones.
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority and the mobile ticketing company Masabi are developing an app that will let passengers avoid ticket machines or having to use cash while aboard trains.

The MTA said the free app would allow commuters to buy electronic tickets that are scanned onboard by a conductor's handheld device.

The company will start testing the app with railroad employees next month.

If successful, the MTA said Metro North will look to expand the program to customers.


video:

http://www.ny1.com/content/news_beat...o-north-riders

[M II A II R II K]

Can Chicagoans Design The Perfect Transit App?


July 19th, 2012

Read More: http://www.fastcodesign.com/1670314/...ct-transit-app

.....

Designing Chicago will be a testing ground for their ideas. If funded, the duo will spend the next year leading a team of thousands as they gather data, propose ideas, and develop the groundwork for a transit app that will unite the city’s various systems of public transportation. “Since Rahm’s arrival, there’s been this hunger for everyone involved in local government," he adds. "It’s like a switch has been flicked.”

- Around 1,000 “Scouts” will gather ideas, commentary, and general information about their travels, and send that data back to the core team. Scouts are the bread and butter of Designing Chicago--anyone is welcome to join. Meanwhile, around 50 “Icons” will analyze the data generated by Scouts and work closely with the designers to develop the app itself. An advisory board of Chicago politicians, CTA officials, and designers--among them, the legendary MTA map designer Massimo Vignelli--will play a supporting role. It’s an unusual proposal, but the Ayes explain that rather than being an epic design-by-committee nightmare, they’re inventing new frameworks for citizens to contribute. “We’re trying to develop a more nuanced way to engage the public, in scripted, tailored, teacherly ways.”

.....

[cabotp]

Translink in Vancouver has gone with the mobile website instead of an app.

m.translink.com.

Best feature is the "live" next bus service. In text form or on a map. Text I found was the best it simply tells you how long until the bus arrives based on where it is from the last gps update. GPS is only updated every 2 minutes though.

[M II A II R II K]

OpenTripPlanner redefines public transit navigation


August 12, 2012

By Claire Lambrecht

Read More: http://www.smartplanet.com/blog/citi...avigation/4586

For traditional automobile commuters, the loss of public transit directions in Apple’s iOS 6 upgrade doesn’t cost much. For urban commuters who depend on the iPhone’s navigation system to make sense of public transit, however, the loss is significant — so much so that petitions to save public transit directions have been bouncing around the Internet since June.

- Fortunately, a solution may not be far off. OpenPlans, a New York-based nonprofit, is currently in the midst of a KickStarter fundraiser for an app that will fill the void — and then some. OpenTripPlanner won’t just deliver the public transit directions of Google Maps. It also gives users the ability to combine multiple forms of transportation in a single journey, said Kevin Webb, principal of transportation at OpenPlans:

- “One of the main motivations behind OpenTripPlanner is provide ‘multimodal’ directions. Right now this means combining transit, walking bikes and bikeshare. By combining modes we can present a unified view of transportation options. Rather than a user saying, ‘How do I get here by bike?’ or ‘How do I get here by train?’ we can ask simply, ‘Where do you want to go?’ and provide a variety options that allow comparison and combination of different modes.”

.....

[M II A II R II K]

The best Chicago transit apps for iOS 6 devices

Read More: http://gridchicago.com/2012/the-best...rid+Chicago%29

If you upgraded your iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad this week, you’ll find yourself without transit directions in the built-in Maps application. Wednesday was the first day you could download and install the latest version of iOS 6, your iDevice’s operating system. The Maps app was previously powered by all things Google but in iOS 6 the app is powered by Apple-owned technologies and partner companies’ data. It’s been known for months that the new Maps app wouldn’t come with transit directions.

.....

[mrnyc]

new mta arts for transit app:

download the app and see the art up and around subway stations
-- its pretty nifty:


http://www.mta.info/mta/aft/


***

and mta is working on a countdown clock app:


The Metropolitan Transportation Authority's countdown clocks could soon be just a click away.

The agency is working on an app allowing riders on numbered subway lines to find out when their train will arrive using their smartphone or computer.

Transit officials hope to have the app running by the end of the year.

The agency is once again reaching out to the private sector for help, by allowing developers access to arrival information so they can come up with their own apps.

Countdown clocks are in place on nearly all numbered lines and the L line.

The agency hopes to offer the same information on lettered lines in three to five years.


http://www.ny1.com/content/transit/1...k-app-on-track

[mrnyc]

for those struggling with the iphone ios6 maps issues,
below is an article with a few transit app suggestions:

waze
hopstop
scout
maps+

http://maketecheasier.com/4-fixes-to...aps/2012/10/19

[mrnyc]

thinking about doing the helsinki/tallinn/st. petersburg trip in the spring, if anybody has any app or transit site suggestions i would like to hear about them - tia!

[mrnyc]

as promised, the mta subway countdown app has arrived:


Updated 12/28/2012 01:29 PM

MTA Unveils App For Riders To Track Subway Arrival Times
By: NY1 News



The Metropolitan Transportation Authority unveiled a new app Friday that lets you see when your train is coming before going underground.

The app will give riders on some lines up-to-the-minute arrival times.

"Subway Time" will make its debut along the 1 through 6 lines and the 42nd Street shuttle.

iPhone and iPod Touch users can download the app, which is similar to countdown clocks already installed at stations along these lines.

Android and Windows versions are being developed and the MTA is also looking to include real-time arrival info on its website.

To view train times on the Web, visit apps.mta.info/traintime.

[mrnyc]

all your apps belong to us!

mta puts up a webpage full of useful apps -
it's all here in one place for you:

http://www.mta.info/apps/

[mrnyc]

no e-cab for you!


05/01/2013 07:04 PM

State Supreme Court Halts City's "E-Hail" App For Taxis
By: NY1 News

The city's pilot program to allow riders to hail yellow taxis with a smartphone app was halted once again in New York State Supreme Court on Wednesday.

The experimental service officially debuted on Tuesday and was supposed to have be offered for a year.

City officials say the program gives riders more choices, but opponents of the app, including livery car owners, say it breaks a law that prohibits drivers from refusing passengers without grounds.

The City Law Department says it is disappointed by the appellate ruling and Taxi and Limousine Commissioner says in a statement, "It is appalling that narrow commercial interests continue to try to block passengers from using the latest technology. You can't stop progress, and these obstructionists shouldn't be trying. We're confident this program will move forward."


http://www.ny1.com/content/transit/1...-app-for-taxis

[mrnyc]

a good, simple idea!



10:09 AM
"Hackathon" Gives Tech Designers A Chance To Create Apps For MTA
By: NY1 News


Want better information on your subway train or bus? There could soon be an app for that.

Tech whizzes are taking part in a two-day "hackathon" in Brooklyn to develop mobile apps for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

As more Wi-Fi becomes available on public transit, the MTA says it's relying on creative developers to keep straphangers updated.

"One of the next frontiers is the creation of intermodal apps, rather than having to have a separate app for the LIRR, a separate app for subway lines, a separate app for buses," said Ernest Terson, chair of the MTA Open Data Task Force. "So there are a lot of creative apps that could come out of today's competition."

"What we want to do is kind of help the MTA, at a planning level, understand how to make more efficient decisions for folks who live in the outer boroughs, who don't necessarily have the same transit options as folks who live in Manhattan or some of the other areas," said Aileen Gemma Smith, CEO of Vizalytics Technology.

The winners get $5,000 and go on to compete this summer in the 2013 App Quest.

[mrnyc]

a rundown of 16 apps to get you around:


http://mashable.com/2013/05/15/transit-apps/

[mrnyc]

track your busses - bus time finally rolls out in manhattan:


http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/08/ny...ttan.html?_r=0

[mrnyc]

millions using mta bustime app:

http://nypost.com/2014/03/19/million...ack-nyc-buses/

[cityscapes]

I used CityMapper in London and in Berlin and it's great. I think the app only has NYC, London, Paris and Berlin so far so if you live in or are visiting one of those cities it's a great app to have. If you're out and don't have mobile data either because you're in a foreign country or in a tunnel or something you can access offline transit maps for the cities in the app.

[mrnyc]

finally! mta smartphone ticketing app is on the way for commuters:

http://m.nydailynews.com/new-york/mt...icle-1.1772049

[mrnyc]

helpful dart apps for dallas:

http://m.dart.org/