On October 12, the TTC unveiled a couple new technical innovations that have long been awaited by those hoping to have a richer mobile relationship with the transit service.
One banner project that a spokesperson says has been in the works for some time (indeed, the announcement was scooped by
Torontoist after a soft launch last week
) is transit route functionality on Google Maps service. By pushing a small streetcar icon in the service's "Get Directions" mode, users can get
directions by TTC between any two points in the city. The service functions on Blackberry and iPhone, as well as other mobile devices that host Google Maps applications.
In a related announcement, the TTC will now be releasing its schedules and its live, real-time GPS streetcar, subway and (within about a year) bus routing information as XML files at the city's
Toronto.ca/open website. That service was launched in 2009 to provide municipal raw data in a format that allows private developers and citizens to use it for various forms of analysis and software applications. Just this month, toronto.ca/open earned an
Award of Excellence for the City government from ESRI Canada. In accepting the award, City Chief Information Officer Dave Wallace said that such apllications are "a catalyst for innovation," and that the project "supports Toronto's vision of
becoming an enabled City, where information technology is integrated
with City services to provide effective local government anywhere,
anytime, for everyone."
Author: Edward Keenan
Sources: Brad Ross, Communications Director, Toronto Transit Commission; Joy Chan, PR Specialist, ESRI Canada