MyTerminal

I download the app to help me with, my commute. And, at first was working perfectly for two months. Then, it suddenly stopped working. Every time I click to search it kicks me out of the app. This is a inconvenience for me when, I’m trying to plan my commute home.

I downloaded the app and it looks ok. Could be better and more user friendly. Basically you have to know where the bus route goes. Unfortunately there is no way to save your favorite bus and make that the bus you get alerts from. A step further would be to allow you to get an alert for the bus you intend to take letting you know, from current location....”if you leave now, you can catch the 4:00pm bus at gate 300”. Also, the maps are really small and basic. Should have a more updated feel. So if you are going to a park and ride or main location that is a major stop you will find it. If not, you cannot search. It has potential and I like the fact that the gate and time are on there.

I have a poor sense of direction and rarely take the bus. So when I was on my way to Port Authority to catch a Trailways bus to upstate NY, I was surprised and pleased to find I could download an app with the location of the ticket counters and gates. The map showed the Trailways counter on the subway level, so I went down to the subway entrance -- which I know well, since I used that entrance several times weekly for five years. Unfortunately, the map didn't have any directions or street markers on it, and after going down a flight, I had no idea which way I was facing. But I did see a sign for the Peter Pan ticket counter (though not for Trailways). I looked on the map. According to the app, Peter Pan was on the main level on the other side of the station, which was obviously not the case. After using my phone's compass to figure out which way was North, I walked toward the area where the Trailways counter was supposed to be. It was there, next to Peter Pan. So much for the usefulness of the maps. The ticket seller told me the bus would be leaving from gate 32. This confused me, as I was changing buses in Kingston, and the two buses in the app's departure schedule that went to or through Kingston and that were leaving at the correct time were at completely different gates. Sure enough, when I went down to gate 32, I found that the Trailways bus to Kingston leaves from there, and since the sign looks semi-permanent, apparently it always does. So much for the usefulness of the gate directory. I'm a UX professional by trade with a specialty in the technical aspects of content design and engineering. I know better than the average person how difficult it must be for the Port Authority to manage the data from so many different bus companies. But if they don't have a workable solution, they shouldn't publish an app. Bad information is much, much worse than no information. Thanks for listening.