Google Maps has launched its most significant public transport update in a decade, rolling out an AI-powered transit planner that integrates real-time data from buses, metros, trains, bike-share, scooters, and ride-hailing in 50 cities across 20 countries. The feature, powered by Google’s Gemini AI model, provides door-to-door journey options that dynamically adjust to delays, cancellations, and disruptions in real time.
Users can now set preferences such as “minimize transfers,” “prefer walking,” “avoid crowded vehicles,” or “lowest carbon footprint,” and the AI will optimize multimodal routes accordingly. The planner also predicts platform crowding based on historical patterns and suggests optimal boarding positions.
Cities in the pilot programme include London, New York, Tokyo, Berlin, Singapore, Sydney, Sรฃo Paulo, and Mumbai. Google says the feature has already been used to plan over 500 million journeys in beta testing, with users reporting 23% shorter actual journey times compared to previous routing.
