New Job Listings Point to Continued Work on Transit Options in Apple Maps

[MacRumors]

Apple today posted two new job listings on its website, seeking to fill engineering positions related to public transit. The company is looking for a Maps Public Transit Engineering Manager and a Public Transit Software Engineer, who will join the Maps team to work on building and improving a Transit Routing platform "at a massive scale."

As a member of the Transit Routing team, you will work on one of the most anticipated features of Apple Maps. You will design and implement functionality that will be used by millions of users worldwide.

In addition to these job listings, Apple has posted other transit positions on its website over the past few months and has also acquired multiple mapping companies focused on transit, including HopStop and Embark, two companies with apps and tools developed to provide subway, bus, train, taxi, walking and biking directions.

As noted in the job listings, Apple is working to build these services into its own mapping service, incorporating accurate, real-time information on public transportation routes into the Maps apps for iOS and Mac.

Apple's lack of public transit information was one of the major criticisms the company faced after its in-house mapping service debuted in 2012. Discontent with the lack of features and the inaccuracy of the Maps app prompted both a reorganization of the company and an apology letter from Tim Cook.

Alongside its work to introduce transit options to Maps, Apple has also aimed to improve the accuracy of the service. Over the past several months, Apple has hired a multitude of Ground Truth experts to fix location-based issues such as the error that caused Australian drivers to become stranded after receiving faulty directions.

Despite Apple's efforts, problems with Maps are ongoing. Recently another location-based error caused Maps to direct drivers in Alaska onto an airport taxiway.

Article Link: New Job Listings Point to Continued Work on Transit Options in Apple Maps

 

[Sky Blue]

Nice.

Apple Maps is lacking many, many things, including transit.

 

[ryuok]

Still no where close to Google Maps

 

[Aeshaettr]

awesome. Always move forward

 

[Rojo]

This is nice, I guess. But I'm already used to using Google Maps as a default because of Apple Map's lack of transit info. By the time this comes out, will anyone be able to un-learn the behavior of using other apps?

 

[jayducharme]

At least the new Maps icon doesn't have you careening off an overpass like the old one (pictured above) did.

 

[joejoejoe]

keeping it old school with the icon, eh?

 

[dannys1]

Apple Maps is beautiful on OSX, but totally useless in the UK. Since the day it was released a medium sized town near me has had completely the wrong name and it STILL hasn't been updated!!

The other day I was in Birmingham and asked for directions to a Nandos. It took me to the furthest one away, walked past 3 other ones in the city on route!! Last time I ever use Apple maps for any directions to points of interest.

If i type in Starbucks it thinks my nearest one is two cities away, there are two down the road from me :/

 

[ArtyBolshevik]

Oh, I have been waiting for this for a while. Little by little, Apple is starting to make Maps look like an attractive competitor against the Google alternative. Only time will tell, but I am hopeful!

 

[DeepIn2U]

Oh, I have been waiting for this for a while. Little by little, Apple is starting to make Maps look like an attractive competitor against the Google alternative. Only time will tell, but I am hopeful!

Man the fact that its iCloud enabled and now on OSX it's already a competitor for my liking.

 

[troop231]

Point to

Still no where close

Always move forward

I see what you all did there

 

[sofila]

I understand that a lot of Apple Maps users complain about the lack of feedback on their reports. I've read that many errors reported multiple times in the last year were ignored. It doesn't seem that Apple is taking this problem seriously.
Tim Cook's apologies letter may not be enough, maybe some real facts would do better.

 

[The Phazer]

Oh, I have been waiting for this for a while. Little by little, Apple is starting to make Maps look like an attractive competitor against the Google alternative. Only time will tell, but I am hopeful!

No, it really isn't.

 

[Nevaborn]

Apple maps is awful in the UK.

Used it to go to Cardiff other day. It got me there just but there is no lane guide unlike a proper TomTom. Once in Cardiff it was useless falling behind making me miss turns constantly with little to no helpful information. It then got me lost on a dead end trying to find my destination, a nightmare.

Also the arrow icon represent my car or myself if walking is always much further from aay junctions than I really am. It makes me think it means the next one over but it doesnt.

Add this to the fact maps havent been updatedin 7 years where I live, zoom in too far and instead of a sharp high quality image I get a grey screen of boxes.

Apple maps has a long way to go and they need to get a movw on with it.

 

[Jayse]

Everyone whines and moans about Apple maps being 'utter crap' and compare them to Google maps.

When Google released their maps, they weren't problem-free, although over many years of evolutionary improvement, they have become so well sorted and polished they've become the benchmark for portable mapping.

Lets all quit the Apple Maps bashing and give them a chance, the same chance Google had to improve their maps. Maybe then, people might finally get off their high horse and appreciate something for once in their life.

 

[Spetsnazos]

what NEW feature does Apple Maps offer that isn't in Google Maps? So far Google Maps is more accurate and does a better job.

I see no reason to use Apple Maps.

 

[mic j]

Oh, I have been waiting for this for a while. Little by little, Apple is starting to make Maps look like an attractive competitor against the Google alternative. Only time will tell, but I am hopeful!

I have been using a MBP for a while and was looking forward to having iMap on the mac (with the Mavericks OS). Got it, tried it, and found that it can't do layover points???? Google maps does a fine job of that...so I can't see how you could consider iMap an attractive competitor. I just can't believe it can only do 1 point to point at a time. So if your taking transit and you can't map out multiple stops/transfers etc, how could it possibly be useful?

----------

Everyone whines and moans about Apple maps being 'utter crap' and compare them to Google maps.

When Google released their maps, they weren't problem-free, although over many years of evolutionary improvement, they have become so well sorted and polished they've become the benchmark for portable mapping.

Lets all quit the Apple Maps bashing and give them a chance, the same chance Google had to improve their maps. Maybe then, people might finally get off their high horse and appreciate something for once in their life.

I will repeat..you can do fancy 3D flyovers but you can't do a multiple point trip??? Makes no sense. And it's not like the app was just developed. They have a long way to go.

 

[avanpelt]

I have no idea why Apple continues to keep Maps around in its present form. I think it's one of the very few (if not only) things they put their name on currently that makes them look really bad. I seriously doubt that the more Apple Maps is used, the better it gets as a result of that utilization as we were told in the beginning.

They should've just taken Apple Maps out of iOS 7, worked their butts off for another year, and released it again with iOS 8 with all the improvements they're currently working on.

 

[CarpalMac]

I plotted a 300+ mile journey on both Google Maps and iMap, both going the same route. iMaps estimated the journey as taking 45mins longer than Google. After I had completed the journey I checked the timer on the car. Google was 2mins out...

This is rather anecdotal I guess but to me, it is a real life example of the difference in the quality of service provided.

 

[2010mini]

Funny that no one here remembers how much trouble google maps had when it first came out. Or how long its taken to get to where it is today.

Short memories I guess

 

[Rocketman]

Public (govt not private) transit is AFU, but total information dominance might increase uptake 30%.

I want to know when it's coming, and what's next and if I have to hurry or wait. Tell me that Apple.

Micro-weather wouldn't hurt either.

Where can I buy something or take a piss while I am waiting? Human interface.

I recently used Transit on iOS to chart a bus trip. It was valid. The bus trip itself was beyond bogus.

Where is co-op transpo anyway??

Rocketman

 

[Tiger8]

Everyone whines and moans about Apple maps being 'utter crap' and compare them to Google maps.

When Google released their maps, they weren't problem-free, although over many years of evolutionary improvement, they have become so well sorted and polished they've become the benchmark for portable mapping.

Lets all quit the Apple Maps bashing and give them a chance, the same chance Google had to improve their maps. Maybe then, people might finally get off their high horse and appreciate something for once in their life.

I can argue that the 1000+ responses here bashing Microsoft and calling them 'unoriginal' and 'late in the game' for the Surface and Windows 8 are the same. Talk about double-standards!

Sugercoat it all you want, Apple Maps is utter crap, an embarrasing failure that cost a few people their jobs, and in this day and age, if they can't come up with something that's up to standard, they are better off outsourcing like they did with the original iPhone. I mean they still have 'Twitter' and 'Facebook' built in integration so it's nothing new to keep other providers 'plugged in'.

 

[theheadguy]

It's really pathetic that so many people are excited that they might catch up to Google Maps is today within a couple years.

 

[na1577]

The lack of transit features in Apple Maps makes it a no-go for me. It's good to hear that Apple is still working on it.

 

[SteveBlobs]

The other day I was in Birmingham and asked for directions to a Nandos. It took me to the furthest one away, walked past 3 other ones in the city on route!! Last time I ever use Apple maps for any directions to points of interest.
/

Uh, why would you walk past three other Nandos just to get to the one it was directing you to?