MyCityBus

The timing on this app is wildly inaccurate. I’ll be getting ready for school and keeping an eye on it, it’ll say all morning the bus is due to arrive around 8:25. I’ll plan on getting to the bus stop at 8:15. At 8:13 I’ll be walking out the door and see the bus driving away. Other times, I’ll go rushing out the door because it says the bus will arrive in 3 minutes. By the time I get to the bus stop, the app says that 3 minutes is now 7 minutes which turns into 10 minutes. So then I’m waiting outside often in the heat or in the cold wind or rain with no bus shelter to stand under. I get that things happen which can affect when the bus arrives but this app needs a serious overhaul.

I previously used the bus system in another big college town, and while it was not great, it easily and accurately reported exactly when the bus would arrive (even with delays). Oftentimes I am walking to a bus stop with a reported departure time of 8:35, and on my way there, at 8:32, I have seen the bus just drive on past the stop. I have resorted to getting to the stop 10 minutes early, however, this often results in a 15-minute waiting time as the buses also arrive 5-7 minutes late at least two times a week. I would be fine with the inconsistency in the bus arrival time if the app were better with real-time bus tracking and proper reporting of the unpredictable bus schedule. Luckily I have a car, but feel for those without a vehicle who rely on this app to get to work/class everyday.

I needed city bus to get to class today in the rain. It showed a route from a stop near me. It was backtracking from the direction of my class a couple minutes to get to the stop, but it’d still be quicker. I walked to the stop and was almost there... just in time to see the bus pull away from my stop two minutes earlier than the app said it would even arrive. I waited at that stop for 15 more minutes for the next bus 13, and when bus 13 got there, I flagged the driver down. She shook her head at me and refused to stop... at the stop for bus 13 that the app suggested next to a bus 13 stop sign. Seriously?? So then I had to walk further than if I’d just walked to class in the first place, was in the rain twice as long, AND was late to class. Thanks CityBus!