Commuter Diaries Part 2

In my first post about commuting, I shared my best practices for traveling through the city without killing anyone or yourself. Now it’s time to talk travel!

I am fortunate enough to travel for my job. In just three short months, I’ve gone to Florida, California and Chicago. When I’m not flying around the country, there are times when I have to ride the bus or train into Manhattan. Along the way, I’ve found little pieces of technology that have become extremely helpful.

Text Message Schedules: NJ Transit has signs at each of their bus stops with a number to text to receive real-time updates about the bus assigned to that stop. Some mornings when I get to my stop, I text the number to see how far my bus is from picking me up. This service is also available for NJ Transit trains. Costumers can text in their route and will receive a menu of options. For example, if you text New Brunswick to NY Penn Station, you will receive different options for that route. You can text back a certain letter that corresponds with the option you want. You can include a time in the message as well.

Mobile Boarding: So maybe I have been living under a rock because I didn’t fully understand mobile boarding passes. Most airlines offer an app for smartphones so you can access flight information and your boarding pass. Now my Blackberry isn’t very app friendly, but I can still pull up my boarding pass in a browser and have the attendant scan it. The mobile boarding pass comes with a QR code to scan and contains all of your flight information. It makes life so mush easier and eliminates something else you have to remember to carry around while traveling.

Another tool I find super helpful when commuting is the different types of passes offered by NJ Transit. Both the train and the bus offer 10-trip passes that can be used at any point within 20 days of its purchase. These are even better than monthly and weekly passes since you can use them at any point. For me, there are some days I go in with my mom and some days when I commute alone. So the 10-day allows me flexibility in choosing what days I can use them. It also ends up being more affordable to buy 10-trip passes then a round-trip ticket every few days. Definitely look into your ticket and pass options when using public transportation to commute.

How has technology played a role in your commute? Share your thoughts!

Tagged: Cities, Commuters, Commuting, Manhattan, Mobile Boarding Pass, NJ Transit, Public Transportation, Technology, Text Messages