I ended my tumultuous relationship with the MBTA (Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority) in September of last year after three years of anxiety and strife. I swore that the 57 bus line conspired to get me fired, always arriving exactly 30 seconds too early and waiting another 30 minutes to arrive again. Traumatized, I finally bought a car.

I discovered NextBus.com about 8 months too late. Nextbus uses satellite technology and computer modeling to track the timing of each vehicle in its system. The system tracks the distance of public and private transportation vehicles from your location down to the second. Furthermore, the information is available on the Web, meaning that all you need is a Smartphone to have the information in the palm of your hands. Though the accuracy of predictions varies depending on many factors including traffic patterns, accidents and internet traffic, the company claims to have a margin of error of less than two minutes for predictions of 10 minutes. Considering most buses don’t adhere to their respective schedules whatsoever, that margin of error is a drastic improvement.

Washington DC’s WMATA (Washington Metropolican Area Transit Authority) has provided a useful tool via its website called the Trip Planner. Trip Planner adopts NextBus technology to help commuters figure out the best way to get to their destination via the Metro and surface buses. This tool provides accurate predictions for any 12,000 stops in the DC area. For more information, go here

New York city is also embracing NextBus technology in a unique way. The Alliance for downtown NY has installed NextBus LED signs at many transit stops downtown n to provide more predictability for bus riders. The new technology is also now available on free bus lines for the Lower Manhattan community.

If your experience getting to work or school is as similar as mine was or if you just want to spend less time waiting in the cold or rain for your bus, visit NextBus!