dcrider
November 2nd, 2008, 05:50 PM
Metro now has a way to check your ride home from work without you having to leave your desk. It's fairly simple, but it looks like there is potential here. For those of us that have a fairly long walk it probably isn't that great unless we have a PDA or something and are willing to stop for coffee if something breaks down.
The wmata page that talks about this new development is located here (http://www.wmata.com/riding/realtime_arrivals.cfm).
First here is the background on what is going on:
Realtime arrivals
Metro offers realtime arrival information for the entire rail system and for a select number of Metrobus routes, being expanded to cover the entire Metrobus fleet
MetroRail
Metrorail riders can find out when the next train will arrive by monitoring the passenger information displays (PIDs) in stations (we know about this)
http://www.wmata.com/images/pids.jpg
This same information is also now available via computer Web browsers and Web-enabled portable devices (This is new)
This is what you need to do to check out your commute from work before you get ready to go home. If you have a PDA you can do the 2nd bullet in addition.
Using a desktop or laptop computer, select the Metrorail stations (http://www.wmata.com/metrorail/stations.cfm) page under "Maps and Stations," then select the station of choice, and the link "Next Train Arrival (http://www.wmata.com/metrorail/Stations/showpid/showpid.cfm?station=45)." Click here (http://www.wmata.com/metrorail/stations/showpid/showpid.cfm?station=47) to see a live sample of the Web version of the PIDs sign for Braddock road. And here is the PID for Crystal City (http://www.wmata.com/metrorail/Stations/showpid/showpid.cfm?station=45). This is live folks and It is a very cool feature.
Using Web-enabled PDA or phone, visit http://wmata.com/mobile (http://wmata.com/mobile), and select “Next Train Information.???Select a train station by clicking on the first letter of the station of interest, then the station's full name. The page refreshes every 30 seconds.
MetroBus
Realtime bus arrival times are available through the "Next Bus" system, that determines when the next Metrobus will arrive at a stop.
See the Next Bus Web site (http://wmata.nextbus.com/wmata/) for a list of routes currently supported and for displays optimized for computers and Web-enabled portable devices.
Here is a picture of the next bus report:
http://www.wmata.com/images/nextBus_screen.jpg
Again this looks like it can be a very nice feature that could potentially prevent one from having to get stuck in the tunnels waiting for a train that never comes, because you don't normally find out there is a problem until after you enter the system.
The wmata page that talks about this new development is located here (http://www.wmata.com/riding/realtime_arrivals.cfm).
First here is the background on what is going on:
Realtime arrivals
Metro offers realtime arrival information for the entire rail system and for a select number of Metrobus routes, being expanded to cover the entire Metrobus fleet
MetroRail
Metrorail riders can find out when the next train will arrive by monitoring the passenger information displays (PIDs) in stations (we know about this)
http://www.wmata.com/images/pids.jpg
This same information is also now available via computer Web browsers and Web-enabled portable devices (This is new)
This is what you need to do to check out your commute from work before you get ready to go home. If you have a PDA you can do the 2nd bullet in addition.
Using a desktop or laptop computer, select the Metrorail stations (http://www.wmata.com/metrorail/stations.cfm) page under "Maps and Stations," then select the station of choice, and the link "Next Train Arrival (http://www.wmata.com/metrorail/Stations/showpid/showpid.cfm?station=45)." Click here (http://www.wmata.com/metrorail/stations/showpid/showpid.cfm?station=47) to see a live sample of the Web version of the PIDs sign for Braddock road. And here is the PID for Crystal City (http://www.wmata.com/metrorail/Stations/showpid/showpid.cfm?station=45). This is live folks and It is a very cool feature.
Using Web-enabled PDA or phone, visit http://wmata.com/mobile (http://wmata.com/mobile), and select “Next Train Information.???Select a train station by clicking on the first letter of the station of interest, then the station's full name. The page refreshes every 30 seconds.
MetroBus
Realtime bus arrival times are available through the "Next Bus" system, that determines when the next Metrobus will arrive at a stop.
See the Next Bus Web site (http://wmata.nextbus.com/wmata/) for a list of routes currently supported and for displays optimized for computers and Web-enabled portable devices.
Here is a picture of the next bus report:
http://www.wmata.com/images/nextBus_screen.jpg
Again this looks like it can be a very nice feature that could potentially prevent one from having to get stuck in the tunnels waiting for a train that never comes, because you don't normally find out there is a problem until after you enter the system.