December 8, 2005

TriMet gets Googled - transit mapping 1st in nation

The popular web search site, Google, has partnered with TriMet to provide transit trip-planning information to its website visitors throughout the world.

The new service, called Google Transit, is now being tested at google.com/transit. While TriMet is the only transit system on the website so far, Google may eventually expand the service to include cities around the world.

Last summer, TriMet contacted Google, which is widely recognized for its search engine and mapping services, and let them know TriMet's data was available if Google wanted to use it for transit planning.

"Having our transit system on a website recognized worldwide is a great advantage to potential riders who are planning to visit our region and want to know what transit alternatives are available here," said Bibiana McHugh, manager of enterprise systems at TriMet.

Some of the unique features and advantages of Google's system include:

• Cost comparisons between riding transit and driving
• Detailed satellite images along routes to help identify where you want to go
• As an internationally known search engine, travelers could eventually go to Google for one-stop transit planning, instead of searching for and connecting to individual transit websites.

Because Google's trip planner is still in testing, riders are encouraged to go to trimet.org to plan their trips.