Revamped MTA site includes app center

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority has launched an overhauled website aimed at making it easier for commuters -- including those on the Long Island Rail Road and Long Island Bus -- to complete their trips.

The redesigned MTA.info, which went live Tuesday, features a cleaned-up home page and several new features designed to be appealing to the tech-savvy commuter. MTA officials said the redesign was in response to the ever-increasing traffic on the site, which has seen users climb 60 percent since January 2010.

"The overarching goal here was to make the information more accessible . . . and also to give a pleasing look to it," said Paul Fleuranges, the MTA's senior director of corporate and internal communications, who led the redesign project. "We still have some work to do. But as far as cleaning up the site, I think we met our goals."

In addition to a new "minimalistic" design, the MTA's home page also has several new features. They include the new Trip Planner Plus that allows commuters to map out trips using all the MTA's transit providers, including the LIRR and Long Island Bus. The function previously only worked for city subways and buses.

The upgraded service status bar now offers service conditions not only for the current time, but for future times and dates -- incorporating planned service changes across the MTA's various agencies.

Another new feature is the site's App Center, which provides a gallery of MTA-related applications for mobile devices. The site also includes resources for app developers.

Jason Bisson, who created the iTransitBuddy app, praised the redesigned site for embracing private app developers like him, who he said were seen as the enemy by past MTA administrations.

SEE PHOTOSLIRR trains and commuters through the years

"It's all about having accurate data, and this really opens the doors to knowing that you can rely upon the schedules," said Bisson, of Somerset County, N.J. "If the riders are unhappy, no matter what app they're using, it doesn't reflect well on the MTA."

A team of more than a dozen MTA employees worked on the site since around December, Fleuranges said.

But not everyone is sold on the new site. MTA board member Ira Greenberg, who represents the LIRR Commuter Council, said the site was an improvement, but not a great one. He said that, with all its new features, the home page appears "cluttered."

Greenberg added that the MTA still needs to address the single biggest issue regarding its website -- capacity. The site has been known to crash during heavy use, including weather-related service disruptions this past winter.

"If you're making it look better and you're expecting more traffic, you better be able to handle it," Greenberg said. "People are relying on this now."