Transit software

Route Match transit software in action. Source: http://www.laketransit.org/

Introduction

There are many vendors providing software for the transit industry for various applications. While the field includes a few large, well-known players, there are also smaller businesses providing customized solutions. One resource for discovering any vendors in the industry is to attend an American Public Transportation Association (APTA) Expo. APTA also provides a buyer's guide on their website which includes paid advertising as well as basic listings of vendors in various categories including software.

The software packages or vendors referenced in this article are provided as examples within the industry, not meant to be an exhaustive list, nor representative of any rating, ranking, or promotion of any vendor over another. Users and industry representatives are encouraged to add other active vendors to create a reference page. Promotional language or personal opinions are not acceptable.

Purchasing

As with procurement of almost anything in the public transportation business, transit software packages are typically not an off-the-shelf product. They typically require procurement using a pre-defined specification allowing for various firms to competitively bid. Bidding for software the first time for an agency can be challenging without expertise in the field. Small but growing agencies that need to move away from basic solutions towards more robust software can find themselves frustrated during software implementation if their specifications were not adequate to reach the final desired product. Even with a well-written specification, software implementation can be challenging because most packages are tailored to suit each agencies' need. Unlike consumer software such as Microsoft Office, which has been developed over decades of response with a huge user base, transit software has a much smaller audience and comparatively less development history.

Agencies are advised to consult other agencies for specifications and experience before setting out on a new software procurement.

Modules

Many vendors provide numerous software solutions which can incorporate various aspects of transit operations and planning into one procurement. Specificity about what your agency needs in a software package is crucial. Integrated software can be very helpful in providing comprehensive analysis, but adding modules to a procurement increases the price of purchase. Modules can include otherwise distinct software for dispatching, service scheduling, work (bid) scheduling, paratransit scheduling, fleet maintenance, fare management, and more.

Software

Service Scheduling and Dispatch

Some of the businesses providing scheduling and dispatch (often separately for fixed-route and paratransit as modules), include:

• RouteMatch
• Trapeze
• GIRO's HASTUS
• INIT
• CTS Software for paratransit (not to be confused with Cubic Transportation Systems)

Fare Media

Fare media vendors can include both hardware and software providers; some firms provide the software solution that can accompany varying hardware, while others provide a fully integrated proprietary product.

• RouteMatch
• Trapeze
• Cubic Transportation Systems
• MJM Innovations
• SPX Genfare (formerly GFI)
• AddTransit

GTFS Feed

Firms that create GTFS files and/or display GTFS data:

• Rome2Rio
• Transit Times App
• The Transit App
• AddTransit
• Google Maps

Other Resources

• APTA buyer's guide
• "Software Used in the Public Transit Industry" by Christopher MacKechnie for About.com