511

511:
The Bay Area’s Award-Winning Source for
Transportation Information

511 is your FREE one-stop source for up-to-the-minute Bay Area traffic, parking, transit, rideshare, and bicycling information. 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, anywhere in the nine county Bay Area, 511 helps Bay Area travelers navigate Bay Area traffic, plan transit trips, find out when the bus or train will depart, locate the ideal parking spot, find a carpool, discover bike lockers, and other information to travel around the region easily and efficiently.

Using 511

Phone

Call 511 from any Bay Area phone.

• 511 phone instructions
• 511 shortcuts
  
  

Web

Visit 511.org

Mobile

Visit m.511.org from your smartphone.

• 511 mobile and apps info
  
  

Apps

Visit 511.org/apps.asp for info about 511 apps.

Text & E-mail

Receive personalized real-time traffic & transit texts or e-mails on your phone.

• Register

Text 511 to get your Real-time Transit departure times.

• Info about texting 511

Social Media

Access 511 information via Facebook and Twitter.

Phone for Hearing-Impaired

Call 711 for access to the Telecommunication Relay Services (TRS).

Phone for Speech-Impaired

Call 711 or call 511, press zero at each menu to hear touch tone commands.

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511 Tools and Features 24/7

Transit

511 Transit Trip Planner

Enter your trip’s start and end points and get door-to-door, step-by-step instructions on how to make your trip on transit.

Available at:

• 511.org
• transit.511.org
• m.511.org
• and as an app:
  511.org/apps-transit.asp

 

511 Real-time Transit Departures

Want to know if you have time to get coffee before your bus comes? 511 Real-time Departures tells you just when your next bus or train will depart your stop.

Available at:

• 511.org
• m.511.org
• on the phone
• and by texting

Transit Schedules, etc.

Available at:

• transit.511.org/schedules
• and on the phone

Driving

Traffic Conditions

Use 511’s interactive traffic maps to see current traffic congestion, traffic incidents, construction and events.

Available at:

• traffic.511.org
• m.511.org
• and on the phone

511 Driving Times

Find out how long it takes to drive between your origin and destination now or at a specific time and day.

Available at :

• traffic.511.org
• on the phone
• and through customized texts or emails

Carpooling and Vanpooling

Find carpool partners and available vanpools. Find the locations of carpool lanes and Park and Ride lots as well as information on tax benefits, commuter checks, and local and regional rewards for carpoolers and vanpoolers.

Available at :

• rideshare.511.org
• and on the phone

511 Parking

Locate parking quickly and easily. This online tool features both real-time information (where available) as well as parking facilities and pricing throughout the Bay Area.

Available at:

• trafficbeta.511.org/Parking

 

511 Freeway Aid

Motorists on a freeway with a non-emergency situation (flat tire, car stalled, out of gas, etc.) can dial 511 on their cell phones, say "Freeway Aid" and be connected to the roadside callbox call center.

• More info
  
  

Airport Information

Call 511 for information about traffic conditions, ground transportation and parking rates for San Francisco, Oakland, San Jose, and Sacramento airports. You can also get parking availability for Oakland International Airport.

FasTrak®

Call 511 to be transferred to the FasTrak Electronic Toll Collection program operator.

• More info

Tahoe and Statewide Road Conditions

Call 511 and find out about road conditions to the Tahoe area and other destinations outside of the Bay Area.

Bicycling

Use the “511 Bike Mapper” to plan your bike trip. 511 also has bike maps, safety tips, and information about bikes on transit, bikes on bridges, local bicycling organizations, classes, and bike lockers.

Available at :

• bicycling.511.org
• and on the phone

Personalized 511

Register for MY511 to receive emails and/or text messages about your driving times, your transit departure times and/or traffic severity on your route(s). You can also link your phone number(s) to hear information about YOUR trips first when you call 511.

Available at :

• my511.org
• Register
• and on the phone

Accessibility

511 provides a screen-reader friendly version of the transit web pages at transit.511.org/accessible. Hearing-Impaired users can call 711 for access to the Telecommunication Relay Services (TRS). Speech-Impaired users can call 711 or call 511, press zero at each menu to hear touch tone commands.

Foreign Languages

511 provides translation through Google Translate through the “languages” links in the footer of each website page. In addition, the transit page tools are provided in foreign languages at by clicking the language links in left-hand navigation bar at transit.511.org/accessible/. An overview of services provided through the rideshare program is available in Spanish and Chinese.

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511 Resources

Transit Agency Resources

• Res. 3866 Transit Coordination Implementation Plan (PDF)
• 511 Transit Program Roles and Responsibilities (PDF)
• Handling Transit Incidents for 511 (PDF)
• Real-Time Transit Information System Requirements (PDF)
• Regional Real-Time Signs: Physical Requirements and Specifications (PDF)
• Regional Measure 2 Regional Traffic Relief Plan Policies and Procedures (PDF)

• 511 Real-Time Transit Information System Requirements (PDF)
• MTC 511 Regional Real-time Transit System – Extensible Markup Language (XML) Document Type Definitions (DTDs) for Java Message Service (JMS) Implementation (PDF)
• RTD XML Schema Package (ZIP)
• GTFS+ Additional Files Format (PDF)
• 511 Proposed Transit Stop Naming Guidelines (PDF)
• Real-Time Transit Agency Interface Using Java Message Services - Acceptance Test Plan (PDF)

Developer Resources

511 provides several free data feeds for developers to create applications, widgets. Links to 511’s data feed descriptions and agreements are

• 511.org/developer-resources_traffic-data-feed.asp
• 511.org/developer-resources_transit-data-feed.asp
• 511.org/developer-resources_ridematch-service.asp
• 511.org/developer-resources_driving-times-api.asp
• 511.org/developer-resources_transit-api.asp

511 also has a Google Group, 511SFBayDeveloperResources to encourage back and forth communication between developers and MTC staff. From time to time, MTC will publish technical documents on upcoming developments to gather feedback from the developer community in order to better inform our development.

• groups.google.com/group/511sfbaydeveloperresources?pli=1

Put 511 Tools on YOUR Website

Contact employerservices@rideshare.511.org to embed a customized 511 RideMatch Tool or transit@511.org to embed a customized 511 Transit Trip Planner into your business' website. Link to 511.org by going to www.511.org/511brandtoolbox/logos.asp or www.511.org/511brandtoolbox/banners.asp, select a graphic, download it and link to http://www.511.org.

511 User Statistics

Find the 511 user statistics for the most recent quarter here (PDF).

511 User Surveys

• 2011 511 Phone Survey (PDF)
• 2011 511 Web Survey (PDF)

511 General Public Surveys

• Topline report for 2008 survey (PDF)
• Topline report for 2009 survey (PDF)

511 Launch Focus Group Research - 2002

• Traffic Focus Group Report (PDF)
• Transit Focus Group Report (PDF)
• Rideshare Focus Group Report (PDF)
• Bicycling Focus Group Report (PDF)