Public transport app Moovit is taking its foundation in crowdsourced data one step further by opening editing capabilities to all. Previously only available to members of the Moovit Community program, which has to date mapped out over 115 cities worldwide in the last two years, the new feature allows transport riders to help others to have the most up-to-date transportation information so that the travelling experience is better for everyone. The newly-released Moovit version 4.13 for Android is available for immediate download.

The upgrade means that any Moovit user can help to suggest edits to data within the app, including edits to many attributes of a station, like its location on the map, name and whether it is permanently inoperative. Due to the way some data is collected, occasionally a station icon will be shown on the map near where the station is located (across the road, or a few yards away, for example), but not actually in its precise location. When planning a trip via the app, the station icon location on the map is taken into consideration in the routes a user will receive.

The new update, coupled with Moovit’s existing level of service reporting capabilities – such as lift malfunction, cleanliness or crowdedness updates – gives users the ability to quickly spot discrepancies and make changes that can help to improve the overall experience of their fellow transport riders, and even potentially avoid transport congestion, maintenance delays or other issues.

“We’ve seen such amazing success with our Community program, with more than 65,000 people worldwide signing up to become editors or ambassadors to improve the quality of our data, that we decided to expand upon this fundamental idea of the Community,” said Yovav Meydad, Moovit VP of products. “We’re now empowering our millions of users to make changes and improvements within the app. The more users that are involved in the process, the better the data in the app becomes, and the more people we’re able to help have smoother journeys on public transport.”

Users will now also be able to submit photos of bus stops as well as station entrances and exits, helping other riders to quickly recognise where they should be entering a station to find their train or metro line. Edits to the station entrance and exit details will be moderated by existing Community editors and ambassadors for accuracy, with a goal of approving appropriate changes within 48 hours.

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