Flexibl trip planning e A statewide trip planner

Flexibl trip planning e A statewide trip planner for Vermont Public Transit

Why are we talking about Vermont? • In 2014, Vermont Agency of Transportation moved forward with a statewide Google Transit implementation. • Every agency in the state (10 total) was live in ~6 months • Great move forward, but they encountered a problem… • Google didn’t display all their service! • In 2017, the FTA funded a MOD Sandbox project to help Vermont fix the problem, and the software developed by that project is now available to all, open source.

Timetables are tough step 1 (destination) step 6 step 2 (my house) step 3 (transfer point) step 5 (transfer timing point) step 4 (destination timing point) (transfer timing point) step 7 (origination)

Trip planners are easy: they revolutionized transit. All you need is GTFS to simplify customer info.

If you operate fixed route transit. • Google Transit and GTFS are very urban-focused. • They make assumptions about schedules, frequency. • They ignore flexible transit features. • Google and other apps are proprietary software. Changes can only be requested.

Open Alternative Google. An. Transit is Awesome GTFS – General Transit Feed Specification - we can build other apps off the same data OSM – Open. Street. Map - free, community-managed database of streets OTP – Open. Trip. Planner - software to generate trip plans

Open Alternative Google. An. Transit is Awesome Open data (GTFS and OSM) + Open source software (OTP) = a “Google Maps” that Vermont agencies have total control over, and can adapt in any way we see fit.

Project Phase 1—Finished February 2018 • Adapt OTP to read “GTFS-flex” (see gtfsflex. com) • Final trip planner shows all public agency services in Vermont ○ Scheduled (including hail-and-ride) ○ On demand (deviations, dial-a-ride) ○ Agency policies conveyed in trip planner • Work with agencies to refine and customize • Share data, software, lessons with developers and other agencies

Current Google trip planner

Same trip in OTP

Demonstration links • Poultney flag stop to Rutland Regional ○ https: //plan. govermont. org/#plan? from. Place=43. 53237152335956%2 C-73. 22799682617189&to. Place=43. 597441%2 C 72. 956709&date=04%2 F 16%2 F 2018&time=10%3 A 29%20 AM&arrive. By=false&max. Walk. Distance=804&mode=TRANSIT%2 CWALK&num. Itine raries=3&flag. Stop. Buffer. Size=50&use. Reservation. Services=true&use. Eligibility. Services=true&max. Pre. Transit. Time=1800 • Rural Sugar Hill Road DAR connection to Rutland ○ https: //plan. govermont. org/#plan? from. Place=43. 45291889355465%2 C-72. 92999267578126&to. Place=43. 607742266333425%2 C 72. 97908782958986&date=04%2 F 21%2 F 2018&time=7%3 A 29%20 AM&arrive. By=false&max. Walk. Distance=402&mode=TRANSIT%2 CWALK& num. Itineraries=3&flag. Stop. Buffer. Size=50&use. Reservation. Services=true&use. Eligibility. Services=true&max. Pre. Transit. Time=1800 • Flag stops South of Rutland to UVM for under $10 ○ https: //plan. govermont. org/#plan? from. Place=43. 52085861633252%2 C-72. 96196460723878&to. Place=44. 469916%2 C 73. 197479&date=04%2 F 21%2 F 2018&time=7%3 A 29%20 AM&arrive. By=false&max. Walk. Distance=4828&mode=TRANSIT%2 CWALK&num. Itine raries=3&flag. Stop. Buffer. Size=50&use. Reservation. Services=true&use. Eligibility. Services=false&max. Pre. Transit. Time=1800 • North of Manchester connection to Bennington ○ https: //plan. govermont. org/#plan? from. Place=43. 22312863266506%2 C-73. 01213264465333&to. Place=42. 87876305179742%2 C 73. 1930959224701&date=04%2 F 21%2 F 2018&time=9%3 A 29%20 AM&arrive. By=false&max. Walk. Distance=402&mode=TRANSIT%2 CWALK&n um. Itineraries=3&flag. Stop. Buffer. Size=50&use. Reservation. Services=true&use. Eligibility. Services=false&max. Pre. Transit. Time=1800

Project Phase 2—Began March 2018 • Collect feedback from users ○ Google Analytics and user feedback in-app • Define plan for integration into agency websites • Review with agencies and continue to refine • Integrate additional modes ○ Taxis ○ Vanpools ○ Private and intercity • Identify missing landmark names

Replicability, demonstrations, and next steps • Current projects in progress ○ plan. govermont. org ○ Nashville MTA (integration with Demand. Trans) ○ Denver RTD (Paul’s discussion) • Tools to create GTFS-flex • Hosted Open. Trip. Planner services • Clear policies defined • Relatively easy booking

Flexible Trip Planning Adapting Open. Trip. Planner to read GTFS-flex Thomas Craig General Manager thomas@trilliumtransit. com 503 -567 -8422 ext. 4