Transit Data

NYCDOT's annual scorecard, the Sustainable Streets Index, adds more information about how New Yorkers get around every year. In addition to regular statistical snapshots of the city's transportation system, like transit ridership or traffic speeds culled from GPS devices in taxis, this year's version adds neighborhood travel profiles. Compiled from interviews in eight neighborhoods, these profiles to show just how little New Yorkers rely on cars to get around.

From the Verrazano to Brooklyn Heights, passengers on the B63 can now make their rides more predictable. As of today, the MTA has launched a new bus tracking system that enables riders to find the location of every bus on the route either online or by text message. For riders who can send texts or check the internet from their phones, there's much less guesswork involved in determining, for instance, whether it will be faster to walk.

One of the encouraging trends for American transit riders, in an otherwise bleak landscape of service cuts and fare hikes, is the growing number of agencies experimenting with ways to bring better information to their customers. Last summer Streetfilms explored how open transit data is helping to make riding the bus or the train more convenient in several cities.

Since last August, New Yorkers waiting for a bus on 34th Street have been able to check electronic signs at bus stops to find out how long it will take for the next oneto arrive. As of yesterday, they don't even need to head to the bus stop. Riders can see the real-time location of every M16 and M34 bus on their computer or smartphone or track the buses via text message.

One of the simplest and best tools for promoting walkable development has branched out into the full range of car-free transportation. Walk Score, the website which measures how many neighborhood amenities are within walking distance of a given location, has added a wealth of information about other forms of travel, including transit and cycling. The improved Walk Score provides a more complete sense of what is accessible from your apartment or workplace. 

Ever find yourself waiting for the next bus, not knowing when it will arrive? Think it would be great if you could check a subway countdown clock from the sidewalk? Or get arrival times on your phone? Giving transit riders better information can make riding the bus or the train more convenient and appealing. And transit agencies are finding that the easiest and least expensive way to do it is by opening data about routes, schedules, and real-time locations to software developers, instead of guarding it like a proprietary secret.

At a conference at Google's Chelsea office last night, MTA Chair Walder said all the right things about working collaboratively with software developers, confirming the agency's dramatic turnaround on open transit data.

In January, the MTA took the long-awaited step of opening up its data to software developers, clearing the way for third parties to devise new and innovative ways to put current information in the hands of transit customers. Since then, the agency has received some 1,100 requests for data, reports AMNY. New apps provide everything from the location of the nearest subway stations, like acrossair, demonstrated above, to history trivia along bus routes.