TripGo app gets more personal with new features

TripGo app has released a range of new features aimed at better personalising trip planning.

The app can pick up on a user’s starting location from their phone – or a user can set up their home address – and maps out their journey based on their transport preferences.

The app integrates with a user’s phone calendar for trips to, from and between events. Users are also sent alerts on when they start heading to an event in their calendar to help ensure they arrive on time.

The app uses real-time traffic data to accurately determine arrival times, and factors in all modes of transport including cycling, motor-biking, walking and shuttle services. Navigation is also offered in the app, not just simply journey mapping.

Another prominent feature is the calculation of the impact a trip makes not only to the user’s wallet but also to the environment. The app estimates the cost of the trip and how many kilograms of CO2 per mode of transport so users can make more conscious decisions.

“We want to give consumers the opportunity to make mindful decisions about their transport that extend beyond time and price,” said a spokesperson from SkedGo, creators of app. “In the app consumers are able to set their priority, whether it be they want to save time, carbon or money, and TripGo will provide the best transport solution based on those preferences.”

SkedGo came up with a prototype of its app features during a hackathon last October organised by Transport for NSW, in partnership with Deloitte.

Datasets used included OpenStreetMap for the road network and public transport, airport shuttle bus from Jayride, and car share information from GoGet and CarNextDoor. The team also privately sourced data for tolls, car parks and driving time estimates.

To support the back end, the team implemented algorithms in Java, and used IntelliJ as the IDE. It then uses Objective-C and Xcode for iOS, Java and IntellijJ for Android, IntelliJ, GWT, Java and JavaScript support the front end.