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GTFS Transit Integration for the Interactive Map

Updated: Jill Bobrick Edited:

Concept3D supports integration with GTFS (General Transit Feed Specification) to provide real-time transit information on our platform. To enable this integration, you need to provide specific URLs that allow our system to access your GTFS data. Below are the required URLs and a brief explanation of each:

Required URLs for GTFS Integration

  1. GTFS Static URL
    • Description: This URL points to your static GTFS data. This dataset includes all the necessary information about your transit system, such as routes, stops, schedules, and more.
    • Example: http://www.yourtransitsystem.com/gtfs/static.zip
    • Format: The data should be in a zip file containing the standard GTFS text files (e.g., agency.txt, stops.txt, routes.txt, trips.txt, stop_times.txt, etc.).
  2. Trips URL
    • Description: This URL provides real-time trip updates, including information about current trips, delays, cancellations, and other status changes.
    • Example: http://www.yourtransitsystem.com/gtfs/trips
    • Format: The data should be in GTFS-realtime format, which is typically provided as a protocol buffer (protobuf) file.
    • Note: When constructing the route for our GTFS feeds, we query the Trip Updates endpoint to get a list of all active trips for a specific route. A route, in the GTFS system, can be a single trip or a combination of multiple trips. We will only display the current active trips, not the full route.
  3. Vehicle URL
    • Description: This URL offers real-time data about the locations and statuses of vehicles in service. This includes information on the current position of each vehicle and its progress along the route.
    • Example: http://www.yourtransitsystem.com/gtfs/vehicle
    • Format: The data should be in GTFS-realtime format, provided as a protocol buffer (protobuf) file.

 

Setup Instructions

  1. Retrieve Required URLs: Concept3D needs all 3 URL listed above for the integrations.
  2. Test the URLs: For quickest implementation, verify that the URLs return the correct data formats by accessing them in a web browser or using tools like curl or Postman on your end.
  3. Submit the URLs: Once verified, provide these URLs to your Client Success Manager or via support@concept3d.com.
  4. The Concept3D team will finalize integration on our end and follow up.

 

Other Integration Requirements

  • Ensure Data Availability: Make sure your GTFS static and real-time data are hosted on reliable servers that can handle frequent requests.
  • Publicly Available URLs: Ensure the URLs are publicly accessible and provide direct access to the required data files.
  • Data Accuracy: Ensure your GTFS data is up-to-date and accurate to provide the best experience for users.
  • URL Stability: Use stable and consistent URLs to avoid disruptions in data access.
  • Data Format Compliance: Adhere to GTFS and GTFS-realtime format specifications to ensure compatibility.

 

FAQs

We updated to GTFS, why do my routes look different from my previous transit provider? 

When constructing the route for our GTFS feeds, we query the Trip Updates endpoint to get a list of all active trips for a specific route.  A route, in the GTFS system, can be a single trip or a combination of multiple trips.  We will only display the current active trips, not the full route.  This can lead to display discrepancies between GTFS and other transit providers depending on how the other transit system works, and what real time data we have available from the Trips URL request.

 

My transit provider has both GTFS and a direct integration, which is better? 

If we have a direct integration with your provider, we recommend using that. See a list of providers we integrate in this help article.

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