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Use your cell phone to track down your bus

Brian Ferris uses his iPhone to check the status of a late bus“It’s a question heard at countless bus stops:  ‘Have you seen the number 48 go by?'”

After spending countless rainy nights waiting for his bus to go by, Brian Ferris, a UW CSE grad student, decided to do something about it.  Over the past year, he created a tool, OneBusAway, that allows King County bus riders to use a cell phone, iPhone, or computer to keep tabs on their bus.  OneBusAway’s website averages 1,000 hits a day, and the system has processed over 20,000 automated calls since June.  Ferris programs the site in his spare time and is gradually adding more features.  For Ferris, he says this project fits with his philosophy of using technology to support social causes, and it’s a chance to create something that people like to use.

Read the University Week article here.