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April 20, 2006

MyBus + SMS = Crazy Delicious!

I have recently discovered that you can get up-to-the-minute, real-time bus information from Metro and Sound Transit sent to your cell phone through SMS.

This totally rocks.

Yes, it rocks. It rocks because it solves an all-too-common problem for bus riders, namely: finding out when the hell the next bus is due to arrive.

The service is relatively easy (and time-consuming) to set up (read: geeks only for the moment), but at a high level, it works like this:

1. First, you have to know the routes you’re interested in, such as the 43 or the 48. If you're already a bus rider, this shouldn't be too hard (I mean, you know how you're getting to work, yes?).
2. Second, you look up the timepoint you want to monitor. The SMS system is built around a query that says, “Hey, I’m interested in finding out the route information for the 43 and 48 when they hit 23rd and Aloha." The system has assigned 23rd and Aloha a code (3924, in this case), and you need to find out what it is. Visit the MyBus Web site, give it your route number, and then find your location in the list. (The timepoint is the four-digit number at the top of the page.)
3. Third, you send an e-mail to the system from your phone. The message needs to be of the format “[Route Number] @ [Timepoint]", so if you want to know when the 43 will be at 23rd and Aloha, you’d send to "43@3924". (If you want data on several routes, separate them with commas, such as "43,48@3924".) The address you’re mailing to is: "sms@mybus.org"
4. There is no step four.

I’ve been using this since Monday, and I must confess that it is wonderfully useful. One tip: since formatting and addressing the message can be pretty time-consuming with the triple-tap cell keyboards most folks are using, just keep your finished message in your phone's outbox and re-send it whenever you want up-to-date information.

If you're a regular Metro rider, be sure to check it out!

Posted by Gavin Shearer at April 20, 2006 10:13 AM. Posted to Geek | Transit.

Comments

Posted by: L at January 16, 2007 9:39 PM

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