The OneBusAway Application Suite

The OneBusAway application suite's primary function is to share real-time public transit information with riders across a variety of interfaces:

• OneBusAway Web - A variety of web interfaces to transit data
  • A standard web interface to transit data, including maps and stop pages with real-time info
  • Sign-mode - Same information as the standard web interface, but in a large format for large displays (e.g., large televisions)
  • A mobile-optimized version of the web interface for smart phone mobile browsers
  • A text-only version of the web interface for more-basic mobile browsers
• OneBusAway REST API - A RESTful web-service that can be used to quickly write applications built on top of transit data. This API powers the following apps:
  • OneBusAway iOS (iPhone)
  • OneBusAway Android
  • OneBusAway Windows Phone
  • OneBusAway Windows 8
  • OneBusAway Windows 10 (under development)
  • OneBusAway Fire Phone (based on Android)
  • OneBusAway Alexa (for Amazon Echo, etc.)
  • OneBusAway Glassware (for Google Glass)
  • OneBusAway for Pebble Smartwatch
• OneBusAway GTFS-realtime export - A bulk export of all trip updates (predictions), vehicle positions, and service alerts for a transit system in the GTFS-realtime format.
• OneBusAway Phone - A Interactive Voice Response (IVR) phone application for accessing real-time transit information
• OneBusAway SMS - An SMS service for accessing real-time transit information
• OneBusAway Watchdog - A module hosting webservices for monitoring realtime data

Watch the YouTube video for more information.

Getting Started

Here are the high-level steps you'll need to take to launch the OneBusAway mobile apps in your area:

1. Get your schedule transit data in the GTFS format
2. Have an AVL system that produces arrival estimates (Note: we're working removing this requirement - contact us if you're interested. Alternatively, you may be able to use other open-source projects, such as The Transit Clock, to go directly from raw vehicle locations to arrival times that are shared via GTFS-realtime and SIRI - this would replace Steps 2 and 3.)
3. Implement a GTFS-realtime or SIRI real-time data feed (We also support other formats)
4. Set up a OneBusAway server
5. Do some quality-control testing of arrival times
6. Request to be added as a OneBusAway region

See the multi-region page for more details.

Setting up a OneBusAway server

There are two options for setting up your own OneBusAway instance:

• Quick-Start Guide - We provide a Quick-Start bundle designed to get you up and running quickly with OneBusAway.
• Developer Installation Guide - If you want to get your hands dirty with code, this guide will help you get a OneBusAway instance set up using the source-code and Eclipse.

Status

You can find the latest releases here:

• Latest Stable Release
• Latest Development Release

Deployments

OneBusAway is used in a number of places:

• http://pugetsound.onebusaway.org - the original Seattle-area deployment that started it all
• http://tampa.onebusaway.org - a deployment in Tampa, Florida
• http://atlanta.onebusaway.org - a deployment in Atlanta, Georgia
• http://bustime.mta.info - real-time info for NYC MTA buses
• http://www.yorkregiontransit.com/en/ridingwithus/apps.asp - Real-time info in York, Canada

Check out the full list on the OneBusAway Deployments page. Check out the main project page at http://onebusaway.org.

Download

• Latest Stable Release
• Latest Development Release

Code Repository

To browse the source online visit https://github.com/OneBusAway/onebusaway-application-modules.

To create a local copy of the repository, use the following command:

$ git clone git://github.com/OneBusAway/onebusaway-application-modules.git

Developer Information

• Installation Guide - How to set up your own OneBusAway instance using the code and Eclipse.
• Real-time Data Compatibility - Have a real-time transit data source (e.g., GTFS-realtime, SIRI)? Check out this page to see how you can make it work with OneBusAway.
• Troubleshooting tips - Having problems? Check out this guide.
• Mobile App Design Considerations - Want to create a mobile app for OneBusAway? Check out this page first.
• Multi-Region - OneBusAway is launching in new cities! Check out this page to learn how to launch the OneBusAway apps in your city.
• Contribution Guide - Information for developers on how to contribute code to OneBusAway, including general code conventions, how to submit patches, etc.
• Project Governance - Guide to OneBusAway project governance
• Maven Repository Info - Where the release and snapshot artifacts of OneBusAway libraries are found.
• Mailing lists:
  • Developer discussion list
  • User discussion list
• IRC channel:
  • #onebusaway on Freenode
  • You can connect using your favorite IRC client or chat through the web (just enter a username and click Connect)

Contact Info

There are lots of ways to get in touch with us.