Reporting and explainers on the data and technology layer of transportation.https://its-feed.com/en-usFri, 24 Jul 2026 00:00:00 GMThttps://its-feed.com/articles/ai-in-transit/https://its-feed.com/articles/ai-in-transit/Transit agencies are running machine learning in production today, but not in the places the marketing points to. Here is what the working deployments have in common, and why the ones that stall usually stall on data rather than on models.Fri, 24 Jul 2026 00:00:00 GMTAI in TransportationExplainerai in public transitmachine learning transittransit artificial intelligenceautomated camera enforcementnick-sawinyhhttps://its-feed.com/articles/roundup-2026-07/https://its-feed.com/articles/roundup-2026-07/What moved on the transportation data layer from mid-June to mid-July 2026: World Cup open-loop fare launches, new National Transit Database reporting rules, MDS 2.1 in preview, and AI landing in agency software.Thu, 16 Jul 2026 00:00:00 GMTAgency ITRounduptransit data roundupopen loop fare paymentNational Transit Databasemobility data specificationMDS 2.1AI in transitnick-sawinyhhttps://its-feed.com/articles/what-is-gtfs/https://its-feed.com/articles/what-is-gtfs/GTFS is the open format that puts transit schedules into your maps app. Here is what a feed contains, how its files join together, and why it became the default for transit data worldwide.Wed, 15 Jul 2026 00:00:00 GMTFeeds & StandardsExplainergtfs feedgeneral transit feed specificationwhat is gtfsgtfs scheduletransit datanick-sawinyhhttps://its-feed.com/articles/what-is-gtfs-realtime/https://its-feed.com/articles/what-is-gtfs-realtime/GTFS-Realtime is the standard for live transit data: what a feed carries, how Protocol Buffers structure it, and why the quality rests on the systems behind it.Tue, 14 Jul 2026 00:00:00 GMTFeeds & StandardsExplainergtfs realtimegtfs-rtgtfs realtime feedtrip updatesvehicle positionsservice alertsprotocol buffersnick-sawinyhhttps://its-feed.com/articles/what-are-intelligent-transportation-systems/https://its-feed.com/articles/what-are-intelligent-transportation-systems/Intelligent transportation systems is a broad label that hides a precise idea. Here is what ITS covers, the architecture that holds it together, and why it is really a data-exchange problem.Mon, 13 Jul 2026 00:00:00 GMTInteroperabilityExplainerintelligent transportation systemsITSARC-ITconnected vehiclestransit datainteroperabilitynick-sawinyhhttps://its-feed.com/articles/transit-signal-priority/https://its-feed.com/articles/transit-signal-priority/Transit signal priority lets a late bus ask a traffic signal for a few more seconds of green. Here is the request-to-grant message chain, how it differs from emergency preemption, and how NTCIP 1211 lets mixed-vendor buses and controllers interoperate.Mon, 06 Jul 2026 00:00:00 GMTInteroperabilityExplainertransit signal priorityTSPNTCIP 1211nick-sawinyhhttps://its-feed.com/articles/mobility-as-a-service/https://its-feed.com/articles/mobility-as-a-service/Mobility as a service promised one app to plan, book, and pay for every trip on a subscription. The flagship consumer bundle went bankrupt. Here is what the idea got right, what it got wrong, and which pieces survived.Mon, 29 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMTData PlatformsExplainermobility as a servicemaas platformMaaSnick-sawinyhhttps://its-feed.com/articles/bus-bunching-and-headway/https://its-feed.com/articles/bus-bunching-and-headway/Three buses arriving nose to tail is not bad luck. It is a feedback loop in frequent service, where a late bus falls further behind and the one behind it catches up. Here is the mechanism, why agencies measure headway instead of schedule, and what they do about it.Thu, 25 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMTQuality & ComplianceExplainerbus bunchingbus headwayheadwayheadway adherencetransit signal priorityservice reliabilitynick-sawinyhhttps://its-feed.com/articles/ghost-buses/https://its-feed.com/articles/ghost-buses/A ghost bus is a prediction with no vehicle behind it. Here is how a transit app generates one, the four ways it happens, and how Chicago drove its rate down.Tue, 23 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMTQuality & ComplianceExplainerghost busghost busesghost trainsCTA bus trackertransit feed reliabilityGTFS-Realtimephantom busnick-sawinyhhttps://its-feed.com/articles/how-real-time-arrival-predictions-work/https://its-feed.com/articles/how-real-time-arrival-predictions-work/The countdown on the sign is a prediction, not a readout of a bus you can see. Here is the data chain behind it, from the vehicle's GPS to the feed the sign reads, and the three ways agencies turn location into a time.Fri, 19 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMTFeeds & StandardsExplainerreal time passenger informationautomatic vehicle locationcad avlarrival predictionnick-sawinyhhttps://its-feed.com/articles/national-transit-database/https://its-feed.com/articles/national-transit-database/The NTD is the federal record of US public transit: who rides, what it costs, and who has to report. Here is what it holds, who files it, and how to pull the numbers yourself.Thu, 18 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMTQuality & ComplianceExplainernational transit databaseNTDtransit datanick-sawinyhhttps://its-feed.com/articles/fare-payment-modernization/https://its-feed.com/articles/fare-payment-modernization/Agencies are moving fare logic off the card and into a back office. Here is what account-based ticketing, fare capping, and open-loop payment each mean, and which agencies have made the switch.Wed, 17 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMTAgency ITExplainerfare cappingaccount based ticketingopen loop paymentfare paymentnick-sawinyh