This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.
This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.
You can now get real-time updates as to when the next Metro train or bus is coming via Google Maps. Metro's The Source breaks down how this new function works. Open up your Google Maps app, then tap on the transit icons. The app will tell you which lines pick up there, and what time they're expected to arrive. If an arrival time is in green, that means the bus or train is on time. If the arrival time is in red, it means that the bus or train is running late. And, much like real-time traffic data, if the arrival time is in black, it's simply the scheduled time, but no real-time data is available.
This feature combines Metro's planned schedules with the Netxtrip app—an app that provides real-time transit data—which Metro has been using for the past 6 years.
We plugged in traveling via Metro between two L.A. landmarks: The Grove and The Wiltern. Here's what it looks like in Google Maps.
(Screenshot by Juliet Bennett Rylah/LAist)
Here's an example provided by Metro:
