Cedar Rapids Bus Party

You asked, and someone listened! Cedar Rapids has had a new website since this summer and, at least for the transit section, a lot of the feedback we gave was incorporated. There is more information than the previous site provided including instructions on how to use the bike racks, a section with news and updates on what is happening in the metro area transit world, and more information about the routes (points of interest, woo hoo!). The change is definitely an improvement. There is even a section listing the current route detours so you can limit the surprises you’ll get on your next ride, if you remember to check.

While you can tell that other areas of the Cedar Rapids site were simply copied and pasted, I think the transit site has actually made a step forward. I can’t say that I’m a fan of the general look and feel of the site, but I am pleased as punch that they finally have a map of all the routes, and I’m a firm believer in incremental improvements, so I’ll take what we can get this round. My major complaint with the transit site as is… the FAQ page still has “To-Do stubs” in place of links to the answers. Maybe the staff is still learning how to use the Share Point back-end, and I can understand that, but let’s get this seemingly simple task checked off!

So with the praise out of the way, how about a list for the next round of improvements? Users are starting to get many of their basic technology needs met with the site. Updates, comprehensive map, and all stops listed for each route go a long way for making it easier on us. That means it’s time to up the ante and start making CR Transit a top-notch, user-friendly, communication savvy service. I know that sounds like a tall order considering the state of things, but many of the items below are completely in reach. Or you can feel free to argue differently.

1. Google Transit. My completely valid love for Google aside, this is the obvious next step to move CR Transit up the food chain in the transit world. We have a comprehensive map, but planning a trip still takes multiple trips between multiple PDFs and is even frustrating for a veteran like myself. I recently took a friend on her debut using CR Transit for a day, and was disheartened by how complicated it was for me to navigate timetables and stops for routes I wasn’t as familiar with. Sharing a little secret now, I have been working on converting CR Transit data to Google Transit formats, but I could use some help with the last push to clean up, validate, and tie up loose ends. If you’re interested in helping, please leave a comment and help give me the encouragement I need to finish this project up!
2. Limit the clicks. This is getting into the experience of using the site, but since we’re going for top-notch, this needs to improve some more. Transit sites aren’t known for their ease of use or good looks. In fact, I would love to see an example of a great transit site, so please share links if you know of one! I dread looking at sites for cities I’ll be visiting because they tend to be so bad. This has been excusable in the past since more money should be spent on improving transit services, but more and more the technology is part of the service. Enough of the ranting, and on with a suggestion. CR Transit’s site now has a lot more information on it and it has been segmented into separate pages. The information is great, but the increased number of clicks is annoying and can make it hard to find the information that is now there. There certainly could be a way to better organize this site.
3. Real time updates. Posting information like the detours on routes is great! The next step to make this useful? Let us know in real time! I’m not going to check my route’s site every day to find out if there is a detour, and so far I haven’t remembered to check other routes when I need to deviate from my usual schedule. But using a tool like Twitter or RSS so I can subscribe to these changes, now that is top-notch! Now I can get the alert and check the site later if I need more information. Oh, and if you update the Google Transit information to show this temporary change on the map, WOW, now you’re talking!
4. GPS bus tracking. Yes I know I need to show up early for the bus. Yes I like to use every last minute before going to wait for the bus. Therefore, I want to know if I’m patiently waiting for the bus, or if I cut it too close and need to use one of my backup plans. This item is very important to becoming a top-notch transit service, but provide the other three above and I’ll patiently wait on this one.

Those are my top 4 requests for CR Transit’s next steps in technology, but what am I missing? Are there steps that should come first or more that are farther in the future? How would you prioritize the requests? Should a mobile app or mobile friendly site be included? Share your thoughts!