Appiphilia: Some Google Maps smartphone apps get L.A. transit info

July 10, 2009 4:34 PM PT

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Have you noticed some new data points on your Google Maps app? Well, the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority has just hooked up with Google Maps to make it easier for passengers to plan trips using the MTA’s buses and trains.

As mentioned on the LA Now blog, the MTA is the latest to add its info to Google’s interactive maps. And you can tap into that on your iPhone as well. By tapping the transit icon (the bus in the middle), you can access schedules for the road and rail public transportation options to your destination. It includes the departure times, estimated travel time and price to hitch a ride.

The BlackBerry Google Maps app also offers transit details -- routes, times and distance. The MTA’s info wasn’t accessible when we tried to call it up with plans for a trip from downtown L.A. to Glendale and one from downtown to Irvine. Foothill Transit directions from L.A. to Claremont came up without issue.

Other transit agencies currently available through Google Maps include Foothill Transit and Metrolink.

-- Michelle Maltais

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Michelle Maltais

Michelle Maltais served as deputy director of audience engagement until leaving the Los Angeles Times in 2017. She joined the newsroom in 1997 as a copy editor, served as its broadcast producer and interactive video executive producer, and occasionally wrote on a variety of topics including technology and family.