Google Transit has changed the way people plan their public transportation trips. Now there's an app, OnTheBus, for people with visual, hearing, physical and cognitive impairments. Zak Stone describes the tool.
People with disabilities are often reliant on public transportation to get from point A to point B. A new app from Google Play will help people with various impairments navigate transit with the help of GPS, reports Zak Stone:
"Rather than typing out each individual letter of a street address, users can draw the letters on a touch pad with their finger, and the app will match it up with the likely destination," he writes, "and for the blind, the touch screen is simplified enough so that a person who can't see it can still make inputs."
The app has been released in limited markets, currently it's only set up to work in Barcelona, Madrid, and Rome. Once out of beta mode, however, the program will expand into other markets and languages.
Thanks to Jessica Brent
FULL STORY: OnTheBus Brings the Usefulness of GPS to the Visually Impaired

Alabama: Trump Terminates Settlements for Black Communities Harmed By Raw Sewage
Trump deemed the landmark civil rights agreement “illegal DEI and environmental justice policy.”

Study: Maui’s Plan to Convert Vacation Rentals to Long-Term Housing Could Cause Nearly $1 Billion Economic Loss
The plan would reduce visitor accommodation by 25% resulting in 1,900 jobs lost.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

Federal Homelessness Agency Places Entire Staff on Leave
The U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness is the only federal agency dedicated to preventing and ending homelessness.

Restoring Northern India’s Himalayan ‘Water Temples’
Thousands of centuries-old buildings protect the region’s natural springs and serve as community wells and gathering places.

Milwaukee to Double Bike Share Stations
Bublr Bikes, one of the nation’s most successful, will add 500 new e-bikes to its system.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Caltrans
Smith Gee Studio
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions
Salt Lake City
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service