A NEW JOURNEY planner for travelling around Ireland using public transport has been launched by the National Transport Authority and the Department for Transport.
The Transport for Ireland website and an accompanying Android app are currently available to help users plan their journeys using 120 operators of bus, rail, ferry and taxi services. An iPhone app has been developed and is currently awaiting approval from Apple for its release. The NTA expects it to be available “in the coming days”, a spokesperson has told TheJournal.ie.
The department says this is the first time an integrated transport planner of this kind has been made available to the public and it will provide mapped-out routes, timetables and journey times to users. Footpaths, laneways and shortcuts have also been considered in the mapping options.
Users can also submit their feedback on the service online and the Transport for Ireland site also has links for sending feedback to service providers such as Bus Éireann and Irish Rail.
“We have done a lot of work, incorporating all existing data-sets to bring the system to this stage, where we’re ready to present it to the public,” NTA chief executive Gerry Murphy said. “The next stage requires input from members of the public.”
We really want to know about local walkways, links and barriers that we haven’t been able to pick up. We want to know how people feel about using the site – is it as clear as they want? Do they like it? Could it be better?Our special technical team will be incorporating this important user information as they update and improve the Planner over the coming months.”
Public and Commuter Transport Minister Alan Kelly described the new planner as a “real step forward in integrating public transport information for users”.
The new journey planner will be integrated with the NTA’s real-time passenger information service for Dublin Bus and Bus Éireann stops. A cycle planner is also currently in development, initially for the Greater Dublin Area.
Screengrab of one sample journey using public transport.
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