TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Online Service Can Help Cut Transit Costs

ADVERTISEMENT

By SHARON HARVEY ROSENBERG McClatchy Newspapers

The Tampa Tribune

Published: September 18, 2008

Want to find an extra $8,000 a year for home improvement projects? Consider taking public transportation. The American Public Transportation Association estimates that the average driver can save $672 a month. Traveling by city bus or rail has become easier thanks to a new trip-planning service from Google that provides customized mass transit information and traveling routes for cities around the world.

Located at www.google.com/transit, the free tool displays a Google map of your travel plans and draws from transit authority information for 50 cities in the United States, including Tampa, Miami-Dade, Atlanta, Baltimore, San Diego, Dallas and Chicago. (Pinellas County is not yet in the lineup.) From abroad, Google also links to rail, bus and ferry services in Canada, Japan, Russia, Italy and Switzerland, among other locations.

To use the service, supply a starting address, destination, travel dates and preferred times. Once the information is entered into the system, the service will provide an itinerary with alternative routes, stops and estimated travel time. Details include any available mass transit information, such as pertinent bus stops and bus arrival times.

If you're already on the move, Google has a mobile option that lets travelers tap into transit information from subways, buses and trains. Maps and trip information can be downloaded to java-enabled cell phones and Blackberry phones.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT