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MBTA Launches First Upgrade to Its Mobile Site Since 2007

The MBTA is getting an upgrade, just in time for the Thanksgiving rush. Today, the T launched a refreshed mobile site, MBTA.com, with updated features and new sections to improve the on-the-go experience of commuters, making it easier to find out where your bus is or to send a complaint if it’s delayed.

Back in 2007, the MBTA rolled out an initial mobile site when it launched an updated version of MBTA.com. That version of the mobile site was built for much smaller phone screens, explains Josh Robin, Special Assistant to the General Manager for Innovation and Special Projects. “It was essentially pre-smartphone era.”

With the incredibly rapid development of smartphones in the past four years (hello, Siri), the MBTA suddenly found its mobile site outdated. Additionally, in the past year alone, the MBTA has experienced significant traffic growth to its mobile site, indicating it was time for a change, so this spring, the MBTA made a decision to reinvest in mobile site.

“The smartphone has revolutionized customer innovation for us,” says Robin, noting the new site will be optimized for the bigger buttons and screens on smartphones.

Specifically, the service alerts pages have been completely redesigned, and the schedule pages have been refreshed to include information on service frequency and times of the first and last trains, an ongoing customer request. Additionally, the new site incorporates mobile trip planning through Google Maps.

The new mobile site also incorporates brand new features such as a customer comment form, which allows riders to report concerns and send comments on-the-go. No more angry tweets to @mbtaGM that may or may not go unheard. “The comments [on the mobile site] go directly into the departments that can fix those issues,” explains Robin, whether it’s a giant puddle at a station or a problem with a bus driver.

Most significantly, the new mobile site will include an apps page, which provides a list of MBTA apps specifically for your device. Apps like Catch the T and OpenMBTA were spawned by the MBTA’s Open Data initiative, allowing developers access to real-time bus, subway and train data and “revolutionizing the way people ride the bus and the T,” adds Robin.

“The heart of these initiatives is about addressing all the things that drove people like me nuts,” says Robin, explaining that nearly every MBTA employee uses the MBTA to get to work. “Waiting for a bus doesn’t have to mean leaning over and looking for the headlights.”

Now, it simply means typing MBTA.com into your web browser.

Will you use the new MBTA.com mobile site or stick with apps?

from BostInnovation.com http://bostinnovation.com/2011/11/21/mbta-launches-first-upgrade-to-its-mobil...