MBTA Rail

This app has become the brains of my commute; I got to spend an extra five minutes playing Exapunks this morning since I could see my train was going to be late and I knew exactly where to stand for the double decker car so I could get a table. It has features not available from the MBTA API, such as train lateness trends, platform number likelihood (so you can decide where to stand in the station as you swig from that brown paper bag) and crowd-sourced reporting on timeliness and train car hygiene (“car number 2 smells like a squirrel died in a container of bad yogurt”). In summary, this app has earned its status as the only React Native app on my home screen. (Was going to deduct one star because no watchOS app yet, but then I remembered that using App Store reviews to coerce developers into adding pet features is a jank move.)

I just started taking the commuter rail and this app has saved me so much time and frustration. Not only does it surface delays so I don’t wait outside on the track, but the Reporting feature allows passengers to share real-time updates on specific trains. This morning there was a long delay due to a disabled train, but a “mystery train” showed up and was running 5 minutes ahead. Was able to track that status through other passengers and actually get a window seat. To the developer, I’d love the ability to sort or filter by inbound/outbound trains, since I’m only ever looking at one direction.

If you commute in to Boston daily this app is for you. It can help you get a jump on the crowds boarding the trains at south station and confirms if your guess was correct after you’re on the train. Really well done. Community comments can get a little annoying but they are still more useful than not. Would be cool if you could implement a reddit comment rating system so the gold would flow to the top and the nonsense would drift down into obscurity, a feeling commuters can appreciate.

I’ve had this app for a couple of years. Nice aggregation of schedule and gps info. The messaging feature is a lifesaver—riders on the train can post updates (and pithy commentary) for other riders, and this info is often better and more timely than the MBTA updates. I also appreciate that the devs do a good job of rolling out new features. For example, they just incorporated a pdf view of schedules. It’s a small add, but makes it easier to plan your trip with the app.

I would be lost without this app, and have significantly more gray hair. This app helps to alleviate some MBTA commuting stress. App has always been dead-on accurate (on Fitchburg trains) & has saved me from wasting countless hours of valuable time trying to cope with an outrageously inadequate, unreliable & sub-par Boston train system. A big THANK YOU to the app developer & to users who keep people informed & often laughing with their cheeky comments.