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How Google Is Remapping Public Transportation

Posted by Soulskill on from the eliminating-bus-stop-doubts dept.

waderoush writes "Google wants to 'organize the world's information,' but there isn't a marketplace or a category of knowledge it can organize without remaking it in the process. A case in point: public transportation. Largely outside the media spotlight, Google has wrought a quiet revolution over the last five years in the way commuters get schedule information for local buses and trains, and the way public transit agencies communicate with their riders. GTFS and GTFS-realtime, which Google invented, have become the de facto world standards for sharing transit data, and have opened up space for a whole ecosystem of third-party transit app developers. This in-depth article looks at the history of GTFS and Google's efforts to give people information (largely via their smartphones) that can help them plan their commutes on public transportation — and, not incidentally, drive a lot less."

7 of 187 comments (clear)

  1. Would be great... if it worked by MrEricSir · · Score: 5, Interesting

    After missing three or four timed-transfer connections, I've given up on Google Maps for transit.

    I'm sure it works sometimes, but since they've made it impossible to check their work (they don't give you access to the schedule data) it's a hell of a lot easier just to check the schedule myself.

    That said it does work okay for short bus trips, but I've already got an app on my phone that tells me when the bus is arriving base on real-time data. No need to bring Google Maps into the picture.

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    There's no -1 for "I don't get it."
    1. Re:Would be great... if it worked by rykin · · Score: 4, Interesting

      In my experience, the bus is never on time. However, because I am in a city, it tends to run every 10-15 minutes, so missing one bus isn't that big of a deal. Google has been nice for helping me get places in which I didn't know how or if I needed to transfer. It will give you directions such as "Ride bus 1 to this street, walk a block, then wait for bus 2". It has simplified the Public Transit process about as much as Mapquest* simplified getting from point A to point B in your car (before GPS was common). Sure, it can have errors, but more often than not, it's good.

    2. Re:Would be great... if it worked by txoof · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Where I live, the local bus company's web site is terrible. It's difficult to use, forces you to fill in forms over and over again when you make changes, can't figure out where you are or where you want to go half the time and frequently has issues figuring out transfers at all. Worst of all, the bus company never seems to have current route information posted at the bus stops.

      Since Google started supporting transit directions in Stavanger, Norway, my life has been so much easier. I especially love the Android (Gingerbread) integration. I have shortcuts on my home screen that will show me the best route and next three busses from wherever I am to my home, work and down town. It's amazing.

      If you regularly use public transit, it's worth your time to see if Google supports your city.

      Now the only thing missing is real time route information. I can't wait until that feature comes to town. Sadly the bus drivers are rarely on time and make a sport of speeding away when they're early and you're sprinting for the bus.

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      This one's tricky. You have to use imaginary numbers, like eleventeen... --Hobbes
    3. Re:Would be great... if it worked by definate · · Score: 4, Interesting

      In South Australia the transit services all use Google now, and it's really accurate. I'm at uni, so I'm using it all the time, and I've never had a problem. I have friends who have done more serious bus based travel, with multiple transfers, and they've had no problem. It's made their route planning a lot easier, and they can now minimize their wait times.

      I've had nothing but good experiences with the whole system.

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      This is my footer. There are many like it, but this one is mine.
    4. Re:Would be great... if it worked by Craig+Ringer · · Score: 4, Interesting

      I must second that - I rely heavily on Google Maps in Perth, and in fact it's helped me avoid needing a car for the last five years. I only recently got one to make it easier to get out of the city, go windsurfing, and get around on sundays.

      The only issue I've ever had with Google Maps transit in WA has been the odd special-occasion public holiday or special event where Transperth appears to have failed to inform Google of the schedule changes. That can be annoying. On the other hand, Google Maps had perfect data about all the New Years' Eve special and adjusted services, so they're clearly getting it pushed most of the time.

      I cannot possibly praise Transperth and Google enough for Google Maps Transit. It's fantastic, and it's a real shame that so few people seem to know about and use it. It was a real lifesaver when I last visited Auckland, too, as I could just use Maps instead of having to fart about with a different city's transit systems and timetables. Fantastic!

  2. Multi-Modal Trip Planning by eepok · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Google Transit is not news to those of us who work in transportation. I work in Sustainable Transportation/Transportation Demand Management and my job is to get people to do (practically) anything but drive a car alone. Since I also work at a University, it's also my job to convince students not to bring cars to school (at least for the first few years) and it would be SO MUCH EASIER if I could convince Google to jump into multi-modal trip planning. Why?

    Well, let's assume you're at my University and want to get somewhere 85 miles south without a car. You might be able to bus to the local train station, catch a southbound train, and then catch another bus to your final destination. However, the bus service here is contracting (sharply) due to budget constraints so a bus connection to a train will not always be an option.

    I often suggest biking to the train, riding the train, and then biking to the final destination, but since Google Maps treats transit (bus/train) and biking separately, my suggestion can only go so far. It requires some rather involved planning for a novice to get from our campus to the train station by bike.

    There are other options like OpenTripPlanner which, when coupled with a well-mapped OpenStreetMaps, can be an incredible way to plan multi-modal trips in addition to mapping out literally everything in an area from streets to bike lanes to sidewalks, stairs, and handicap accessible ramps... but it takes A LOT of work to perfect a local map and then to host an OpenTripPlanner server. It's relatively easy, but it's man-hour intense.

    So, come on Google, pretty please.

  3. Comment removed by account_deleted · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Comment removed based on user account deletion