The MTA’s official app is getting an upgrade: real-time service notifications personalized for individual commutes and locations.
The tech from Swiss firm Axon Vibe was one of four products selected for a one-year test run on the city’s subways and buses as part of the MTA and Partnership for New York City’s “Transit Tech Lab.”
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, MTA Chairman Pat Foye pegged the value of the projects — which are being implemented at no cost to the agency — at between $10 and $20 million.
“This is a win-win for the MTA,” Foye said. “It’s a win-win for our customers.”
Axon Vibe’s product will let users of the transit agency’s existing MyMTA app opt into location tracking, which allows the company to provide personalized real-time service updates and suggest alternative routes — before riders even enter the station.
“We’re looking to minimize the impact of subway delays by better informing subway riders about the delays, proactively,” Boris Matz, the company’s North America leader, told reporters.
The MyMTA app launched last year on orders from then-Chairman Joe Lhota, who wanted to combine the features of the agency’s many disparate mobile applications into one platform.
A million people have since downloaded MyMTA, the agency said, though the platform has a paltry 2.5-out-of-5 rating on the iOS app store.
A limited group of subway customers will be able to use Axon Vibe’s service this coming winter, with the ultimate goal of a universal rollout at a still-undetermined future date, the MTA said.
Other tools selected for the pilot program include one from Veovo that uses cell phone signals and 3-D cameras to measure train and platform crowds, one from Preteckt that predicts bus maintenance problems before they happen, and one from Remix that assists transit planners in redesigning bus routes.
At the end of the yearlong test period, the MTA will weigh whether to pursue actual contracts with the four companies.
Foye said there’s “no guarantee” the companies will get contracts when the pilot wraps up.
