A snippet from tomorrow's Dr. Gridlock column in the Washington Post:
Dear Dr. Gridlock:
[...] "Also, couldn't Metro establish a Web site on which we could enter the starting point and the hoped-for-arrival point and then the Web would have a map showing what train or buses to take." Duggee Hatry, Washington.
Dr. Gridlock's response:
"The Web site you are seeking might exist. Try www.wmata.com and on the home page, hit "Metro Trip Planner."
Dr. Transit says, "why not just say that a trip planner does exist not that it "might" exist?"
Granted, it isn't a map-based product, which is what the writer asked about (Dr. Transit does wonder if Mr. Hatry has ever looked at the Wmata.com website), but it provides the information people seek.
I do think the trip planner isn't perfect. The main planning constraint the system uses is to minimize transfers, so it doesn't always promote the most efficient way to get somewhere, but it does tell you how to get places. In fairness, it's likely impossible to program Trip Planner with all the possible constraints and possibilities and for the software application to be relatively quick and functional.
If you know a little about the area you're trying to go to, then you can apply more creative criteria (subway+bike, subway+bike+bus, etc.) to figure out how to get someplace more quickly than the Trip Planner would have you believe is possible.
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