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NYC’s transit agency disables feature that made it possible to track subway riders
New York City’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) announced today that it’s disabling the “feature” on its website that made it possible to track people’s movements by entering their credit card info. The MTA says it’s turning off the seven-day history feature for OMNY as part of its commitment to privacy.
NYC subway security flaw makes it possible to track riders’ journeys
The contactless payment system for New York City’s subways has a security hole. Anyone with access to someone’s credit card number can see when and where they entered the city’s underground transit during the last seven days. The problem lies in a “feature” on the website for OMNY, the tap-to-pay system for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), which allows you to view your recent ride history using only credit card info. Further, subway entries purchased using Apple Pay — which gives merchants a virtual number instead of your real one — still somehow link to your physical credit card number.
NYC's transport authority will no longer post service alerts on Twitter
The MTA is leaving Twitter. They said paying Twitter $50,000 a month for API access wouldn't be the best use of resources.
Cellular service is coming to New York's subway tunnels, but it's going to take a while
Cellular service is coming to New York’s subway tunnels.
London’s railway of the future is finally here
Crossrail cost more than $20 billion and took over a decade to build. It is London's railway of the future.
A power surge shut down half of NYC's subways for five hours
Half of NYC's subway system shut down for five hours last Sunday thanks to a power surge
LG Display's transparent OLED puts a screen between you and the sushi chef
As per its annual tradition, LG Display is preparing to show off some new display tech demos for CES 2021, with the focus set on showing where transparent OLED may fit in the pandemic age.
Hitting the Books: How NYC's iconic subway system shaped the city
New York’s subway system is an intrinsic aspect of the city’s identity, as much so as the Brooklyn Bridge or Empire State Building. New York simply wouldn’t be New York without its trains, a critical connective infrastructure that moved approximately 5.5 million people every single day in 2019. In his new book, Subway: The Curiosities, Secrets, and Unofficial History of the New York City Transit System, author John Morris takes readers on a fascinating trip through the history of the iconic urban rail system, from its founding through its explosive mid-century expansion, to its decline in the 1970s and rebirth in the modern era.
Panasonic built a vacuum to rescue AirPods from train tracks
Working with Japan’s JR East rail group, Panasonic has developed a cordless vacuum device that can quickly nab a stray pair of wireless earbuds.
LG's transparent OLED displays are on subway windows in China
LG is bringing transparent OLED displays to subway trains in Beijing and Shenzhen.
Google's Waze-like app for public transit hits five more cities
Last year, Google incubator Area 120 announced a public transit app that works in a similar way to Waze. Users of Pigeon report transit information to help others know if they're likely to face delays or other issues. Until now, it's only been available in New York City, but as of today, it's going live in Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Washington, D.C.
Beyond Meat comes to Subway in the form of a meatball
Beyond Meat didn't take long to respond to Impossible Foods' Burger King deal. Subway has announced that it will test a sub with plant-based meat, the Beyond Meatball Marinara, in 685 North American restaurants this September. It's far from vegan when it includes parmesan and provolone cheese, but it should hit the spot if you're only looking for a meat substitute -- a 6-inch sub will include a hefty 24g of protein.
NYC's automated subway routing had glitches for 'months' before Friday
When New Yorkers were stuck without access to multiple subway lines for 90 minutes on July 19th, that was really just the culmination of ongoing woes. The City has obtained Metropolitan Transportation Authority reports showing that the NYC subway system's Automatic Train Supervision has been failing frequently in recent months, with 13 failures since June. The technology controls switches and routing on its own, and failures force the MTA to rush out human operators that can offer manual control like they do on most lettered lines.
Lyft adds NYC subway directions to its app
Lyft's support for public transportation will soon include one of the biggest mass transit systems on the planet. The ridesharing firm is rolling out access to real-time New York City subway directions through its app over the months ahead, giving locals a one-stop directory for some of the most common transportation options in town. You'll still have to pay with your MetroCard (or a tap of your phone), but you could use just one app to take a Lyft car to an urgent meeting, the subway for your return and a Citi Bike for the last leg of the journey.
Google Maps can predict how crowded your train or bus will be
Public transit is vital for countless people, but no one wants to be stuck on a subway train or bus that's jam-packed. To help you figure out how busy your ride is going to be, you'll soon see predictions to that end in Google Maps. Google is tapping into data from previous rides to predict how packed a bus, train or subway will be.
Finally, I can use my iPhone to ride the NYC subway
This morning, as I've done regularly since moving to New York City years ago, I left my Brooklyn apartment to head to Engadget headquarters in Manhattan. In an ideal world, I would've been able to use my iPhone to get through the turnstile at my nearby subway station. But, even though the MTA is now supporting contactless payments services such as Apple Pay, only a handful of stations and buses have so far been upgraded to the new One Metro New York (OMNY) system. The one close to my apartment isn't one of them. Still, I wanted to get the full experience beyond a quick demo from Apple. Thankfully, there's a subway station near our office that has the tap-to-pay turnstiles.
Samsung Pay will work on some NYC trains and buses starting today
A momentous thing is happening in New York City today: They're finally fixing the subway! Just kidding, the Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) is rolling out contactless payments for select stations and bus lines. (Because that will address overcrowding, broken air conditioners and aging signal systems!) We already knew that Apple, Google and Fitbit's payment systems would each be supported, and today we're learning that Samsung is a-go too. If Samsung's press release seems light on details, that's because it's the MTA that's charting a course toward a new system that only uses contactless payment methods. The agency's plan is called One Metro New York, or OMNY for short, and today's limited roll-out represents just one early step. The big milestone for 2020 will be enabling mobile ticketing through a forthcoming OMNY app. That move alone would help bring the MTA in line with other public transportation systems, including New York's own Metro North and Long Island Railroad. Looking further ahead, in 2021, the MTA plans to issue a new card that's meant to ultimately replace the yellow swipeable one we use today. That will be available at unspecified retail locations to start, and will expand to vending machines in subway and commuter rail stations by 2022. And, if all goes according to plan, the MTA will retire the swipeable card in 2023. For now, OMNY is only available on Staten Island buses and 4, 5, and 6 stations between Atlantic Avenue-Barclays Center and Grand Central. Again, you can use it with other payment systems too, including Apple Pay, Google Pay and Fitbit Pay. It'll also work with contactless credit and debit cards. Check it out if you're so inclined, and remember: be safe, don't look anyone in the eye and avoid the pole-dancing rats.
Fitbit devices can pay for your NYC bus or subway ride
Add Fitbit to the growing list of device makers that will support tap-to-pay in New York City's mass transit system. When the city's contactless fare pilot program starts on May 31st, Fitbit Pay-equipped wearables like the Versa Special Edition, Charge 3 Special Edition and Ionic will let you pay per ride on the MTA's Staten Island buses as well as the 4, 5 and 6 subway lines running between Grand Central and Atlantic Avenue-Barclays Center. You could use your watch to track your gym session one moment and get a ride home the next, in other words.
Apple Pay will work on NYC subways and buses starting May 31st
Ever since I moved to New York City nearly ten years ago, I've had to buy physical MetroCards to ride the subway almost every day. But last week, for the first time ever, I didn't have to swipe my card to get trough the turnstile and catch my train. Instead, the entire process was done on an iPhone, thanks to a demo I tried of the Apple Pay Express Transit feature -- one that will start rolling out to MTA subway and bus stations on Friday, May 31st. This contactless system, which also works with Apple Watch, is as seamless as you might expect: You just hold your device next to the screen on an upgraded tap-to-pay turnstile and, within a second, you'll see a message on the reader that says "GO" and you're on your way.
Elon Musk's LA tunnel turns Teslas into a 'rail-guided train'
Tonight The Boring Company hosted a launch event for the test tunnel it successfully built in LA running from SpaceX's property to "O'Leary Station" at a reported cost of about $10 million. In tweets, he showed off a Model X equipped with gear that guides the car between elevators at each end of the tunnel, where it then simply drives right back onto the road. The rig itself is really just a set of wheels, and TechCrunch reports that Musk said during a media briefing that they will be available as an aftermarket add-on for $200 to $300.
