NextVTA Updated – 1.3.1

I updated the NextVTA Android application to version 1.3.1. I made several improvements were made to clean up the user interface and increase usability,

• added icons to indicate the route type (bus, light rail)
• added route type filter to hide or show only certain route types
• added route description (major start and end points)

Also note that the routes list now shows the route number only. The choice of direction (north, east, etc.) and period (weekdays, saturdays, etc.) are moved to the route view page. This makes the route list easier to navigate as there are fewer entries. The period is auto-selected based on the current day of week.

NextVTA

I just published my first Android application to the Android Market: NextVTA. Very simple app that allows to you select a Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority bus or light rail route and then with one click see the next scheduled bus or train for the selected time point. It can also be used as a browser for all VTA schedules. The app requires no network access; all schedules are bundled in the application.

It doesn’t do any location-based searching. That would be nice, but I suppose I’d have to get access to the latitude and longitude of all VTA time points. I don’t see that happening.

I may enhance it a little in the future, to be able to search for routes, and to move the selection of route direction (northbound, eastbound, etc,) and period (weekdays, saturdays, etc.) from the route list to the route view, to shorten the list of routes and make it easier to scroll through to find what want.

Nothing more than a learning exercise.