The New Apple Maps
This fall, Apple will release the new version of their iPhone and iPad operating system, iOS 13. iOS 13 brings lots of fun changes for users including dark mode, enhanced photo editing and big security improvements. One of the flagship updates in iOS 13 comes to Maps, Apple’s built in mapping, directions and routing app. When we first launched Tunnel Time, we made a conscious decision to not try to do turn-by-turn directions or transit directions. Instead we focused on how to use these transit services; how to ride, how to transfer, how to request a stop and how to exit. We realized that many users will still want to know the best apps for transit directions, so we created our Directions page. That page includes the three biggest players in the world of transit apps: Google Maps, Transit and Movvit.
The absence of Apple’s Maps app was a tough one. The number of cities that had transit information on Apple Maps was significantly less than the other providers, so we left it off. This was especially true with the cities that we listed on Tunnel Time at launch. We felt that if we were to include Apple Maps as a directions solution, and then not have it available for travellers in some of our launch cities, that would be unfair to our users. That has changed. Not only has Apple been increasing the number of cities that offer transit data worldwide, but iOS 13 specifically brings some great new transit features to the Apple platform. While there are still cities missing (even some of the cities we have on the site) we feel that Apple Maps is now at a place where we should offer it on the Directions page.
Real Time Transit Information 🚊📍
Starting in the Fall, iOS 13 will offer real time transit data in many cities around the world. This is a huge improvement that we’re really excited about at Tunnel Time. One of the reasons we enjoy the Transit app is the visual design aesthetic they’ve chosen for their app. We’ve always preferred the look and feel of Apple’s Maps over Google Maps, however the offering from Google always had better data. Google has better transit info, more cities and turn by turn navigation in more locations (not to mention Offline Maps support). I often found that while the look and feel of the Apple Maps was better, I would use it less and less because I was never able to find the information I needed. Transit filled that need for me. Transit offers great real-time transit information in a beautifully designed experience. Will Apple’s offerings be enough for users to not need these third party apps? We can guarantee that the design and user experience will be great, but the data and usability is King.
