TransLink’s iPhone app: an interview with the folks behind it
TransLink's iPhone app - a mobile site optimized for the iPhone
TransLink’s iPhone web application has been out for a while, but since it launched before the blog, I never really got a chance to spotlight it here – until now!
In case you haven’t seen it, just point your iPhone to m.translink.ca. You’ll reach a lovely mobile site where you can access transit info on the go. There’s schedules and maps for all TransLink services, a yellow bar at the top with details on any major service disruptions, and full Metro Vancouver transit maps (just tilt your iPhone sideways).
And you can also access this site from other mobile devices—it’s just optimized for iPhone customers.
I talked to Igor Faletski from Handi Mobility about the development behind the iPhone app and what’s next for it, as well as a bit about his company. Handi Mobility is the company who developed the iPhone application for us, as well as the Next Bus SMS tool and our Facebook application.
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How did you get involved with TransLink?
It was in February of 2007 when John Boxall and I made our first system for getting transit schedules on mobile phones. The inspiration behind it was the fact that we kept missing our bus up to SFU. We were in our final year of Computing Science there and when we graduated shortly afterwards Handi Mobility was formed. TransLink became interested, and after a while they got to work with us on some projects. That first system evolved into the Next Bus text service. Later on, we also developed the Facebook application for TransLink and a mobile website.
Why did you think of developing a TransLink application for the iPhone?
Our company is focused on mobile internet and its applications. We were just waiting for the day that Vancouver could get affordable data rates so more people could access our services. Then the iPhone launched, had affordable rates, and provided a rich visual experience. Put together, we needed to make sure TransLink could get to that audience.
How popular are the TransLink mobile services you provide?
In terms of actual statistics, Next Bus SMS serves up to 16,000 text messages a day. When we launched the iPhone portal, traffic to that application grew 300 percent in one month. There are more than 1000 users on it every day and the number keeps growing.
What’s next for the iPhone application?
In early November, a version will be available through the iPhone app store. A key feature that we will be adding is location awareness. Just by starting the app, you can find bus stops close to you and eventually, be directed to them through Google Maps. One of our goals is helping to create a community around public transit. To address that, we will provide access to the Buzzer blog, so riders can comment and socialize.
Thanks Igor!
If you have any feedback or feature requests on the TransLink iPhone app, feel free to add your comments below or e-mail Handi Mobility at team@handimobility.ca. I’ll be sure to update the blog with any news about the app as we go forward!
10 Comments
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The Buzzer blog » Version 1.1 of TransLink’s iPhone App is now out — January 13, 2011 @ 10:05 am
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By Graham, November 15, 2009 @ 5:01 pm
Great application, I quite like it. I can find the bus stop information and the location on the map…. where are the schedules and routes. Where I live there are multiple bus stops. Where in the application are the routes?
Thank you
Graham
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By Brandon, August 23, 2010 @ 9:26 pm
The iPhone app isn’t accessible for those who use Voice Over, Apples screen reader on the iPhone. Can this please be fixed? Would be really useful when I’m in a hurry. Also, your captcha on this page does not have an audio equivalent. It’s just a minor inconvenience, now a days, because there’s services that will solve the captcha for you, but I thought I’d bring that to your attention.
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By Jhenifer Pabillano - Buzzer Editor, August 24, 2010 @ 9:56 am
Brandon: I’ve passed your feedback on to our iPhone developer and the web team behind the blog. Thanks!
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By Chad, April 6, 2011 @ 4:44 pm
Any plans to release an app for Android in the near future?
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By Jhenifer Pabillano - Buzzer Editor, April 11, 2011 @ 12:18 pm
Chad: Not at the moment. As I understand it our goal is to make our web-based mobile site better, so it can be accessed by any type of smartphone.
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By Chad, April 11, 2011 @ 1:04 pm
Thanks for the reply. I am really looking for a better mobile option for getting Translink information on my Android phone and haven’t really found anything beyond the SMS Next Bus service (which I use extensively). But, I think there is a lot more potential for the Android market beyond simply providing access via the mobile website.
If you could pass a couple comments on to the Translink mobile development people, that would be great.
- The trip planning on the mobile site is not particularly user friendly when I use Opera Mini on my Android phone. I haven’t really tried other browsers with it, but I assume they would be similar.
- The main reasons I would like an Android app as opposed to mobile website access are to use GPS for finding nearby stops and the to have the ability to create a list of favourite stops so i can get the next bus info without having to remember stop numbers. Also, easy-to-use trip planning is always nice to have, though I currently use my Google Maps app and it does the job quite nicely.
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By Jhenifer Pabillano - Buzzer Editor, April 11, 2011 @ 1:29 pm
Thanks Chad — I’ll pass that on!
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By ;-), April 11, 2011 @ 5:52 pm
On Android? Check out Google Maps…. Google Maps works great on my Blackberry (includes GPS functionality) for transit information and there’s even more features for Android.
http://www.google.com/mobile/maps/
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By ;-), April 11, 2011 @ 8:10 pm
I should add that I just need to touch a bus stop and the next upcoming buses arriving show up on Google Maps on my Torchie. Very handy when you miss a connection because of heavy traffic.
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