Why BusBus and the sign at your stop can disagree

Updated

BusBus and the countdown clock at a stop don't always agree. Here's how BusBus works out what it shows, and why the two can differ.

BusBus counts stops, not minutes

For each bus on the way, BusBus shows how many stops away it is and how far it has to go by road, like 3 stops away · 0.4 mi. A bus about to reach your stop shows Approaching, then At stop. BusBus doesn't predict an arrival time for each bus.

To work this out, BusBus looks at the stop each bus says it's heading to and counts the stops from there to yours, along the route in the bus's direction. The distance to the bus's next stop is measured along the road.

The only minutes BusBus shows are for gaps between buses, like "The next 2 buses are bunched, then about 19 min until the next one." That's an estimate, based on how fast buses on the line are moving right now.

Where the bus positions come from

Every MTA bus reports where it is to MTA Bus Time. The BusBus server collects the latest positions about every 30 seconds, and the app checks for new ones while you have it open. A stop's card and My Stops check again every 30 seconds, and you can pull down on My Stops or a stop's page to check right away.

Why the numbers can differ

  • Reports arrive at different times. A sign or another app may have picked up a newer or older report than BusBus. Tap a bus to see how old its report is, like Updated 12 sec ago. After 2 minutes, it changes to Last seen.
  • The bus isn't moving. BusBus still lists a bus that's stopped or stuck in traffic, marked Not moving, at the same number of stops away until it moves again.
  • Signs and other apps can count differently. They may show predicted minutes worked out their own way, which can disagree with a stop count.

If a bus you can see on the map isn't listed for your stop, see a stop says no buses are on the way.