Living in New York, there are times when I plan my entire day around whether or not public transportation is going to be a pain to deal with. Unfortunately, online notifications and social media posts don’t always tell the full story, which means I often have to take a chance and hope for the best (along with millions of other New Yorkers). But Google’s latest addition to Google Maps might make all of our lives slightly less stressful.
This week, Google introduced crowdedness predictions in Google Maps. You can now see how crowded your train, bus, or subway is likely to be based on past rides. Now, rather than leaving my apartment and crossing my fingers, I can check to see if the subway I plan on taking is likely to be packed or not before I head out.
Google is also launching live traffic delays for buses “in places where we don’t already have real-time information direct from local transit agencies.” You will now be able to see if your bus is running late, how long it will take to arrive, and the resulting travel time based on live traffic conditions on the bus’s route. Google Maps will even pinpoint where the delays are occurring, so you will know exactly what you’re getting into.
Google says that both of these features have begun rolling out in 200 cities around the world on iOS and Android. If you want to know more about crowdedness trends from some of the biggest cities on the planet, check out Google’s fascinating blog post on the subject over on their site.
