APTA’s public transit agency members are working to repair their systems and improve the rider experience at the same time. To that end, agencies are investing in new technologies that tell riders when their bus or train is coming, helping customers reduce wait times.

Transit agencies are installing Wi-Fi in stations so riders can use their wait time productively, and adding countdown signs so they know when their ride is on the way. They are also encouraging ridership and providing better station access by adding bike racks and lockers at stations. The most recent data appear in the APTA Public Transportation Infrastructure Database, which details these changes and more.

A total of 137 U.S. and 11 Canadian APTA transit agency members responded to the infrastructure database.

For example, the database added new information about the information systems public transit agencies are using and whether they are providing real-time arrival information to their customers. Among U.S. agencies, 87 (63.5 percent of respondents) have some sort of automatic vehicle location system that allows them to track the locations of their vehicles and are the foundation of systems that provide real-time arrival information to transit passengers.

Agencies are using a variety of tools to provide vehicle arrival times to their riders, such as posting real-time information on their websites, sending text messages to riders, operating an automated phone system riders can call to receive real-time arrival information, and administering a mobile device app developed by the agency itself.

Transit riders are becoming more interested in being connected to the Internet via mobile devices and laptops at all times. To this end, 24 U.S. agencies have installed Wi-Fi at 43 bus stations and three agencies have installed Wi-Fi in a total of 34 rail stations in the U.S.

The APTA Public Transportation Infrastructure Database is published biennially for the benefit of APTA members and the public. Information on APTA member agencies included in the database is provided directly by the agencies. The report may be downloaded here.