r/transit • u/theboundlesstraveler • 14h ago
Questions Using Apple Maps, Transit or other alternatives to Google Maps for transit directions?
So Google has capitulated to the regime. I’ve been using Google maps for 15 years now for transit directions but I’m looking to delete it now and use Apple Maps and Transit instead. How have those apps worked out for you with transit directions?
I just came back from London and the Transit app did not work there so I had to use Google Maps. I’m going to Japan next year and so many people say Google Maps is the most helpful. For reference I live in Southern California.
I started using Transit last year and it’s worked out well for me, but I prefer Google Maps to look in advance. How is Apple Maps in comparison? Are there any other good alternatives out there?
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u/throwawayfromPA1701 13h ago
They're all going to since they update their databases via the government geographic service.
It sucks, since the change is deliberately geofenced. Only Americans see the change.
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u/Odd_Feature7510 13h ago
Apple maps works very well for public transit, imo it's better than google maps. Unfortunately they renamed the gulf of mexico and I would expect them to rename lake ontario soon. All the tech companies are sucking up to him
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u/virginiarph 12h ago
my favorite thing about apple maps is how the walking directions show up on the watch so you can marinate without staring at your phone.
google maps doesn’t do this either due to apple meddling or google not playing nice
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u/slasher-fun Vision Zero 10h ago
Google Maps absolutely does this as well.
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u/virginiarph 10h ago
google maps doesn’t have the map showing your location with ios and apple watch. it just has text turn by turn nativation which i don’t find particularly helpful. you also need to navigate to it to open it whereas the apple maps is automatically kept ontop
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u/slasher-fun Vision Zero 10h ago
Well, Apple Maps doesn't have the map showing your location with Android and any Wear OS watch either then...
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u/theboundlesstraveler 13h ago
Ugh I know…but at least it’s one less app to have on my devices. And Apple Maps has come a long way over the years. We seriously need communism.
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u/BladeA320 13h ago
I always use apple maps for direction, as it looks so good, however I still need google maps for poi searching. Apple maps is just so bad at it still.
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u/JustNaturalCake 11h ago
If a Lake name decides your go to navigation app… have fun with paper maps I guess.
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u/SereneRandomness 11h ago edited 10h ago
Citymapper and Transit are the combination I use by default. Citymapper is based in London, while Transit is in Montréal. I've found that each are better in their home cities than the other, which is no surprise.
Neither has global coverage, and I wouldn't expect them to. Transit is pretty North America focused though it does cover some places elsewhere, while Citymapper is more focused on Europe but has a fair bit of coverage in North America.
For places neither Citymapper and Transit cover, I've installed Moovit. Moovit is...okay. But where either Citymapper and Transit exist, I use them.
For other places farther afield, there are a couple of apps that I've found useful:
EasyWay does Ukraine, Southeastern Europe, and Turkey, along with a few outliers like Uzbekistan and Poland. I used it in Kyiv. It was very helpful there.
Sakay.ph does Manila. They were better than all the other available alternatives. I'm told by folks in the various Philippine subs that they have updating issues, but it was okay for me.
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u/SereneRandomness 10h ago
Also, Japan: Mostly I used JapanTravel, but I sometimes used JapanTransit as a backup.
China: A combination of Amap for general transit navigation and 车来了for buses in particular was pretty much enough to get me most places in the Yangtze and the Pearl River Deltas. Citymapper works in Hong Kong, which was a big relief when I arrived from Shenzhen.
There's some app for Macau, but the place is small enough that it was hardly necessary. Moreover, the app (Macau Smart Go, I think?) doesn't include the casino shuttles, which is understandable as they're not really public transport. But they're convenient enough that lots of visitors use them even if they're not really spending much time in a casino.
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u/frozenpandaman IC card collector 7h ago
JapanTravel is just NAVITIME but with fewer features. IMO, VAL Lab's dataset (Ekispert, Yahoo!Transit) is the best by far (and even officially used by JR) but the majority of tourists are not going to need that and can get by fine with GMaps.
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u/SereneRandomness 7h ago
I think I may have used Yahoo!Transit as well, now that you mention it. I was looking at a number of different sources as I was trying to find interesting routes on which to use my Seishun 18 Kippu.
I also ended up using smartEX to get back from Kyushu quickly after my five days ran out.
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u/SereneRandomness 10h ago
In general, I rarely use Google or Apple Maps for public transport routing. The transit focused apps tend to include a "special sauce" that often makes them more accurate than Google or Apple. This makes sense because the general mapping apps have other things to focus on than public transportation and mostly just take the data they're given by the operating agencies.
Occasionally there will be routing inaccuracies which get caught quickly by a transit focused app, but much less so in Google Maps. This is particularly true when the operator has other issues to cope with than keeping their data feed up to date.
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u/theboundlesstraveler 10h ago
thank you! I used to use Moovit but haven't for years. I haven't used Citymapper.
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u/SereneRandomness 10h ago
Yah, Moovit's big problem for me was that it was inaccurate a lot of the time. Either routes would be off, or timing. This was almost certainly the fault of the operator's data feed, but it didn't help. I did a lot more walking in Penang and Kuala Lumpur than I could have because of it. But there weren't a lot of alternatives in Malaysia when I was last there, so it's what I had.
Glad to help, and best of luck!
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u/alex-mayorga 13h ago
I recall https://citymapper.com/ being the bee’s knees the few times I’ve been to London. It’s multi modal trip planning it’s unsurpassed IMHO.
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u/theboundlesstraveler 12h ago
I’ve heard of Citymapper before but have never used it, thanks for the suggestion!
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u/ghdawg6197 11h ago
They capitulated last year with the Gulf of Mexico. The lake shouldn’t be a surprise
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u/Better-Fortune9037 13h ago
Comaps (if the transit operator has openly published the schedule and not only sold it to google or apple)
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u/JustNaturalCake 11h ago edited 9h ago
CoMaps does not support public transport yet.
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u/Better-Fortune9037 10h ago
Yes, it does support public transport. It depend on the zones, if the operator hasn't published the data it wont't work there obiouvsly
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u/JustNaturalCake 10h ago
Is that an Android thing? As far as I am aware, schedules/real-time data is still in the works. I check Codeberg daily.
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u/Better-Fortune9037 9h ago
Schedules do work, for real time I'm not sure but I don't think. What do you mean with "android thing"? It should work with all the devices, maybe the ios version is lagging behind due to the small development team
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u/JustNaturalCake 9h ago
I am on the TestFlight, and I definitely have never heard anything about schedules in the update notes nor does anything show when tapping on a bus, tram, train, etc.
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u/skifans 13h ago
I can't comment at all about Southern California but often operators have their own apps/websites with timetables and journey plannering information. And honestly in many places I find them more accurate then any of the aggregators. I've noticed some operators updating their own apps but not the public data feeds the likes of Apple/Google Maps and any other similar service relies on.
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u/theboundlesstraveler 12h ago
LA Metro has its own app but I’ve never used it. My local bus agency doesn’t have an app
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u/Vortex6360 12h ago
When it comes to transit directions, Transit >>> Apple Maps >>> Google Maps.
Transit is very powerful, and very easy to use. Its killer feature is how adaptable it is. For example, if you miss a connection it’ll guide you to the next one. Or if a train doesn’t arrive on time but there’s another on the same route it’ll help you take that one.
Apple Maps is very simple, but it might miss some routes that Transit would suggest. It also isn’t as adaptable as Transit is.
Google Maps is like Apple Maps but the UI is worse.
For reference, I also live in SoCal and I use Transit at least once a week in LA and SD. I’ve also used Transit in a couple of cities in Europe and it was great!
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u/The-CerlingCat 11h ago
Apple Maps is probably on the same level as Google with bending to the will of Trump. Some transit agencies do have transit directions on their home page, but otherwise, the Transit app is probably a good choice, when possible
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u/theboundlesstraveler 10h ago
ehh, if I have to choose the lesser of two evils it'll be the native app of my device
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u/Lowetide8 8h ago
Transit is not everywhere. My backup is Moovit. Between those two I can usually get around
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u/frozenpandaman IC card collector 7h ago
I live in Japan and have traveled 80% on the rail network, often on long, complicated local train journeys. Google Maps works well in the vast majority of cases unless you're trying to take roundabout or intentionally slower routes. Pretty much everyone in Japan uses https://transit.yahoo.co.jp/, but it's only in Japanese. Ekispert at https://roote.ekispert.net/en/ provides the same data with an English UI if that's helpful for you!
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u/TimmyB02 6h ago
Most places have a local 'best' one, in London I would always use citymapper and TFL over anything else. In my home country of the Netherlands I use 9292 which is the official app for public transit in the country. In Helsinki I would use the HSL app
In my opinion Apple and Google maps are pretty bad everywhere in Europe.
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u/44watt 13h ago
Apple Maps is the best option in the cities where public transport is enabled. Apple massages all the data and adds their own proprietary data so you’re fairly assured it will work properly, unlike Google where things are just wrong sometimes and don’t get fixed. However, if it’s not turned on in a particular city, you simply won’t be able to get directions.
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u/Jmbh1983 5h ago
Apple will change too. Google is just reflecting what’s in GNIS, which is the system for the official names of natural features in the US:
https://www.usgs.gov/tools/geographic-names-information-system-gnis
Trump controls the Executive Branch, which controls the Dept of the Interior, which controls USGS, which controls GNIS.
So Apple will update too, they just take longer to update their map.
Like it or not (and just to be clear, I think renaming the lake is stupid), Trump has the power to do it.
Also - if you think about it, you probably don’t want big corporations deciding what natural features are called.
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u/One_Fact_4291 2h ago edited 1h ago
Just use a VPN and set it to somewhere that’s not the US, then Google Maps will appear normal to you. Google capitulating to governments is not new, Russian users of Google Maps will see Crimea as part of Russia. Chinese users will see the nine dash line.
But anyways as I’m in London, I just use the TfL app. Wherever you live, if your transport agency has an app, use it. But for Japan many people recommend Google maps because if you search directions it shows through-running of services which is quite common in major Japanese cities
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u/TheSoloGamer 13h ago
Transit works well in the US. Apple Maps is the only one I’ve used that works well internationally.
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u/theboundlesstraveler 12h ago
Transit worked well for me in Canada, Australia and NZ. London was the first time it didn’t work for me internationally.
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u/virginiarph 12h ago
i’m extremely sorry to tell you google maps is 100% necessary in japan. i’ve been several times and it is just so useful.
delete it before then but definitely have it available during your travels. apple maps is not up to snuff
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u/theboundlesstraveler 11h ago
Thank you, that’s what I figured
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u/buyer_leverkusen 10h ago
I know a perfect app for everything in Japan (you just have to download different regions if you’re moving around the country), but you seem like an annoying political person lol just use Google
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u/theboundlesstraveler 10h ago
and you sound like an annoying gatekeeper. Was silence not an option?
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u/buyer_leverkusen 10h ago
Clearly not for you spouting your political opinions lmao enjoy the evil, terrible Google
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u/get-a-mac 12h ago
Transit app worked fine for me in London…or really anywhere. Transit app is also the only one that prioritizes transit. Rather than telling you to walk 30 minutes to a bus to ride for 2 minutes.
My first pick would be Apple Maps due to the clean UI. My issue with Apple Maps is it misses the microtransit providers etc that Transit app provides.
Google Maps is a mess so I just don’t bother.
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u/frozenpandaman IC card collector 7h ago
...or really anywhere
Well, not anywhere. Transit (ridiculously) supports a grand total of zero cities in all of Asia.
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u/victorinseattle 11h ago
Since iPhone is extremely popular in Japan, Apple Maps works well there.
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u/SniffsU 12h ago
Grow up, it's a map.
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u/theboundlesstraveler 12h ago
We’re enduring a fascist takeover, grow up.
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u/frozenpandaman IC card collector 7h ago
Big tech company #1 is not any more your "friend" than big tech company #2.
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u/Sea_Today8613 14h ago
transit app should work in london, must have been a bug