If you take a look at people visiting a new city, they tend to prefer taking a private cab over traveling by public transport. The fact that there is no way people can track public transport has given way to private transport.
You don’t know when the buses leave their stop, what is the route, and when will they arrive at your stop? It becomes a hassle, in such a case, to travel by public transport.
However, people do complain about the increased cost of public transport and the eventual high cost of traveling.
If only public transport is tracked, people would pay low and enjoy their travel more.
The increasing travel cost and the hassle associated with public transport has led to the need for public transport tracking apps. Having said this, there are a few things that cannot be ignored when developing the public transport tracking app. For instance, you need to have a knowledge of the basic features the user needs to be able to track the transport. Apart from that, you should know what kind of app you need, and the ultimate purpose of developing the mobile app.
Why you need a tracking app?
It will help you know the route public transport is going to take, and how long it will take to reach your stop
You can identify the buses or other public transport vehicles that will go through your specific route
You can book your tickets online
If certain cars are canceled, then you will get advance notice of the same.
Here we will take you through the prerequisites for developing a mobile app for tracking the transport.
Type of Transport App
Before you begin developing the mobile app to track public transport, you need to identify the type of app you are building for able tracking.
The first kind is the general-purpose navigation apps that show commuting options and information for the various cities. It makes commuting easy. These apps tend to network with the various transport agencies, thus showing the various options available for you. you can easily check how you can move from one city to another with the public transport
The transportation providers’ app is the second variant of a transportation tracking app. It is connected with the various transportation agencies. You can plan your trip, check the available options and even purchase the ticket to the public transportation using this method
In case you are planning sightseeing in a new city, you need to book the travel for the various points. With a private vehicle, the charges might be high. However, with the hop-on and hop-off apps, you can easily plan your visits to various places. You need to check the transport vehicles that move through all these places and then buy a ticket along the route. You can always hop-on and hop-off transportation without buying another ticket throughout the day.
When you are planning a mobile app to track public transport, you first need to plan the features to include. Here we will talk about all the features that are a must-have in your user side of the app.
Login: The sign-up or registration page is important. You need to ensure that there is a login page made available that will help the users create an account and a profile
Real-time Tracking: A map-view of the location is important to track the public transportation that you have booked. It is important that you offer real-time tracking for better user engagement
Available Vehicles: The users should be able to search for available transportation with the help of the application. Make sure to allow users to look for transport options based on their location
Pickup/dropoff: Like most of the cab hiring apps, you also need to allow users to choose their pickup and drop off location. it will make them see which transport vehicle is available for the route, and book it accordingly.
Estimated Fare: It is important that the app lets the users know, based on the pickup and drop-off locations, the fare that would be charged. It can be an approximate range so that the users are aware.
Push Notifications: It is important that the users are given information regarding changes in the timings, the arrival of their transport at the destination and other such things in real-time. That’s why it is essential for you to include push notifications as part of the app features.
History: Want to check the amount you have spent on the ride? Do you want to check the route you took for the last sight you went to see? History plays an essential role in ensuring a complete check of these records. It also allows you to rebook a certain bus or mode of transport
Ratings and reviews: People generally call for the same buses or transportation means that have received maximum positive reviews from the people. It is, therefore, important that you have the ratings and reviews feature for your user side app.
Must-have Admin Side Features
Profile Creation: The admin should be able to login to the app using their credentials. The profile and its data should be shown only after the admin has logged into the system
Service Providers: The admin should be able to view all the service providers for the public transportation system. They should be able to update the new modes in real-time
Subscription Management: The admin should be able to manage all the pre-booked subscriptions of the seats for buses, trains, etc.
In-app Payments: The admin should be able to manage the payments made by the user within the app. They should have complete control over the various payment gateways
Tracking Trips: The admin should be able to track and monitor the miles covered by the users, and update them regularly
Vehicle Status: The admin panel should be able to update the vehicle status in real-time. in case of delays, the admin should update the same for the users
Few Advanced Features
Geo-location tracking is an advanced feature that you should incorporate in your mobile app. With this feature, you will know if the bus or another mode of transport that you are planning to use is running on time or not. It will also tell you when that transport will arrive at your stop.
Route optimization results when you have enough information about a particular route. For instance, if there are blocks along a specific route, or the road is under construction, then you need to take an alternate route. The transportation tracking app will need to inform these roadblocks or obstructions in advance.
In many cases, while traveling by train, especially, you want to know the name of the place you have just crossed. The advanced feature for the mobile app should inform you about such instances as well. These in-app notifications will make your experience enriching.
Summing up
If you want to deliver an enriching solution for the public transport tracking app, then you need to identify the requirements in this area, and the possible gaps that exist. You also need to identify the issues that the people within this niche are facing before offering the solution.
Before implementing the solution, you need to identify an iPhone app development company that can get you a quick solution. Apart from that, you also need to process the technologies that will benefit you in delivering the ideal solution.
Author Bio:
Atman Rathod is the Co-founder at CMARIX TechnoLabs Pvt. Ltd., a leading web and mobile app development company with 13+ years of experience. He loves to write about technology, startups, entrepreneurship and business. His creative abilities, academic track record and leadership skills made him one of the key industry influencers as well.
