Optibus, a software platform for planning, operating, and optimizing public transportation networks, is making its General Transit Feed Specification (GTFS) Manager available to the European market for the first time.
The expansion begins with a focus on Spain through a partnership with Geoactio, a smart mobility company in the country specializing in public transportation.
More than a billion people use transportation planning apps like Google Maps and Apple Maps every month. These apps make it easier for passengers to discover, access, and use public transportation. But they only work properly when fed the latest, highest-quality data about services and timetables.
GTFS Manager exchanges service data between transportation agencies, operators, departments of transportation, vendor systems, and trip planning apps around the world.
Through the new partnership, Geoactio is making Optibus’ GTFS Manager accessible to Spanish public transportation agencies and cities that have been struggling to transfer service data to the cloud and make service information more accessible to passengers. Many of these agencies have received funds for digitalization under the European Commission’s Next Generation Funds program, established to address the economic and social impacts of the coronavirus pandemic.
During the pandemic, public transportation networks struggled to adapt services to match rapidly evolving demand trends. Communicating those services changes added an extra layer of complexity.
GTFS Manager was the first supported cloud-based software developed for maintaining transportation data in Google Maps and other trip planning applications. The product’s user-friendly interface allows transportation agency staff to easily manage, update, and visualize their data. GTFS Manager maintains all required and many optional elements of GTFS data, including routes, trips, stop times, transfer preferences, service calendars, holidays, and fare schedules.
Used by more than 350 transportation operators and state and federal agencies in the US and Canada, Optibus’ GTFS services help to modernize and digitally transform passenger information systems, leading to more reliable services and better passenger satisfaction. Current users of Optibus’ GTFS offerings include the Oregon Department of Transportation, Vermont Agency of Transportation (VTrans), Caltrain, and more.
“We look forward to providing our clients with even more value as we make Optibus’ GTFS Manager available to the Spanish market for the first time,” said Juancho Cabrera, CEO of Geoactio.
George Belias, Partnerships Manager at Optibus, added, “Providing accurate, reliable service information is something that passengers have come to expect from all public transportation providers. We look forward to making this level of communication a reality for more operators and agencies in Spain.”
