Free for everyone
Plan
A planning tool built on open public data (Census, LEHD LODES, GTFS, OpenStreetMap) instead of proprietary location data. Compare scenarios before spending money.
Learn moreOpen-source · nonprofit-run
Plan, launch and fund public on-demand transit, on software the city owns.
OpenTransit Lab gives cities, counties, transit agencies, campuses and community groups three open kits that work together: a free Planner, a transit operating system, and a funding-stack builder.
The loop
- 01
Plan
Open public data shows where people live, work and travel, where transit gaps are, and where on-demand service could work.
- 02
Pack
The chosen design becomes a City Pack: zones, hubs, hours, fleet, costs and the funding stack, in plain files the city owns.
- 03
Launch
Rider app, driver app, dispatch and an agency console. Or City OS: dashboards and oversight over an existing operator.
- 04
Fund
Every trip's cost is split across rider fares, foundations, sponsors and the city, with a ledger funders can audit.
- 05
Measure
Live key performance indicators against targets, open data out (GTFS, GTFS-Flex, GTFS Realtime) and reports regulators need.
- 06
Re-plan
Real trips flow back into the Planner, which compares modeled and actual demand and re-fits its assumptions.
Full platform or City OS
Launch
About 20% of adopters run the full platform. About 80% use City OS: vehicle tracking, dashboards, autonomy rulemaking, incidents and reporting over an existing operator.
Learn moreFlat fee, never per ride
Fund
Blend rider fares, foundations, sponsors and city or grant co-pay. Track every dollar per trip. Small organizations pay $0: the software is open source.
Learn moreDemo cities
Jersey City, NJ
Demo City Pack. Zones, funders and costs are illustrative, not an official Jersey City plan.
Fare: $2.00 (reduced $1.00) · Split: rider 20% / foundation 30% / city 50%
Long Beach, CA
Demo City Pack modeled on LB Circuit. Zone, sponsors and costs are illustrative.
Fare: free · Split: rider 0% / foundation & sponsor 40% / city 60%
Trenton, NJ
Demo City Pack imagining Trenton MOVES in service, based on NJDOT's December 2021 RFEI. Not a real service: zones, kiosks, fares, costs and funders are illustrative.
Fare: $1.60 (reduced $0.80) · Split: rider 15% / state 55% / partners 20% / city 10%
Why now
$51
U.S. average, demand-response cost per trip (includes paratransit)
National Transit Database (NTD), 2023 · 2023 · confidence mediumVERIFY
$8.45
U.S. average, fixed-route bus cost per trip
National Transit Database (NTD), 2023 · 2023 · confidence mediumVERIFY
5
Rule of thumb: passengers per vehicle-revenue-hour to break even
Industry rule of thumb; most programs run at 2 to 4 · 2025 · confidence lowVERIFY
Many programs run on closed vendor contracts. Cities can struggle to get their own trip data, cost per trip is hard to see, and services get cut when budgets tighten. Open software, city-owned data, free planning and a funding stack built in from day one are meant to change that.