If you take the time to find the stops you use every day on your commute and make them favorites this app is quite useful. If you're trying to use it "on the fly" and find a random stop when you're in a hurry you're going to get very angry because it is extremely slow and unresponsive. This is probably due to the fact that there is an enormous amount of data to sort through and a lot of web calls to wait for but it kind of ruins the user's experience. Once the data loads you'll notice the table cells are too small but that was probably a design decision because the lists are quite long. The wait times for buses are written in the ugliest shade of lime green I've ever seen. Table views often scroll below the tab bar so its hard to select items at the end of the list. The keyboard doesn't always release first responder so often you can't click on the items you searched for. The maps are just screenshots from the desktop version of Google Maps, not an interactive map from the built in app.

App works pretty well and does what it says. The only problems I have are that it sometimes displays east and west when the bus actually runs north and south, which can be confusing for some commuters. Also the overall look of this app is poor. It just looks "cheap". With a update to make this app act and look better,it will be an easy four/five star.

Great improvements, keep up the good work! Faster than what it used to be, up to date on the routes that are available, and accurate times. If there are errors on times, it's the CTA site, not the app. The app just repeats the CTA info... which is sometimes off, but MOST of the time very accurate. WELL worth the $0.99!! Highly recommend this to anyone who lives in Chicago and uses the CTA even occassionally.

I've been waiting for someone to write this app for awhile. It does what it says. Could be a bit more polished, so hopefully we will see future updates but I would have paid twice as much for this!

It constantly freezes, like my hands when trying to use this broken software in 10 degree weather.

Well, it costs a dollar while the ctabustracker website is free... it would have been worth it if it actually was quicker than looking for the stop on bustracker, but it is in fact ridiculously slow when you are first searching for stops. Once you have your favorites list, those are quick enough to access, but if you aren't a regular commuter I'd say don't waste your dollar till they fix the slowness.

So this app used to work fine, but the app hasn't worked in over 2 weeks and there are NO APPROACHING BUSES at every stop. WTF -- I paid for this!! FIX IT.

I'm glad dev states immediatey that this doesn't work anymore- I was ready to drop my great review. I trust it will be up and working again in no time... Update! Responsive developer listens to feedback and fixed slowness issue! Some will argue one can find all the features of this app by going to google maps, waiting for the GPS locator, zooming in, finding a stop, knowing which way your going, and then logging into CTAs bus tracker, flipping through all the various scroll wheels to find your bus, and then only getting the nearest 2. Me, I'll pay $.99 to the developer to have all this in a slick app that saves time and works.. And allows favorites to be stored so that when it's 10 below this winter I'll only have to push 1 button to know where my bus is at! This is way better than the other CTA maps in the store.

for $0.99 is was great for about 3 weeks. Then yesterday suddenly it does not work at all.... When it was working it did a great job....

While certainly not perfect yet (missing some routes), this app is a great way to plan your CTA travels. I have been spared those 30 minute bus waits this winter, and for that alone this app was worth the buck and the money for the iPhone!!! Great app...now I just wish the whole CTA could get an upgrade!!

I only wish it had more routes, i.e. the 22 and the 36.

Still buggy but it has done the job for me. Also, if the timing isn't accurate, keep in mind that it's most likely the CTA tracker website that's wrong, not the app.

The good:

What I like:

12/10/2008

First release was incredibly slow, cumbersome, and unusable in real life. The new version still needs a lot of work, but is lightyears better than the prior release. Some neighborhoods are missing, but at least they aren't broken down into weird regions anymore. I use this app daily.

this App seems to be 95% correct on bus times and tracking. I just wish it had updated and "correct" neighborhood. where are the neighborhoods: Ravenswood Gold Coast Andersonville I think an updated list of hoods based on the names people who ride CTA would actually use would be very helpful.

Second release of program makes this a easy to use and rather convenient application. Favorites option definitely makes it easier than going to the bus tracker site and waiting for each menu to load as you select your options. Highly recommend.

Didn't think it possible that this App could be slower than the buses it tracks. Also, the graphics, icon included are not up to standards.

This app is handy and I do use it frequently. However, the response is very slow, and many of the big bus lines (22 and 36, I'm looking at you) don't have the tracking systems installed yet, so it's not as useful as it could be - yet. Still, my hopes remain high for this system and app, it's a really great idea and potentially amazing.

The search All page does not scroll. Did they even test or debug before they ship the software?

I live in a very busy part of the city and this program simply cannot find my the Fullerton 74 line. I have tried various search strategies all to no avail. For example search for Fullerton and the screen shows a list which cannot be scrolled. A proximity search within sight of the bus stop cannot find it. This would be useful if it worked but it most definitely does not. This is a non-functional program; it is the most frustrating app I have ever used.

I've compared and contrasted the times on this to the cta bus tracker on the website and the countdown times are flawless except when it comes down to one and two minutes. Has favorite locations and map assistance. Cant ask for more. WORTH IT!

This app is now fixed. Appears to work fine.

90% of the time, I am told no busses are approaching (even with 1.5.1).. The Clark 22 runs 24/7...there is ALWAYS one approaching...but still, the app lies to me. PLEASE fix!

Fixed issue with no data on buses. Works well but you have to search streets manually. Find me button still does not work. And sometimes cause phone to freeze.

Is it possible to switch directions? Why does the app assume I'm heading in one direction? The cta tracker site allows you to do that, if the app pulls from the site, why is there no option? Fix it, I'll use it

Does not have options to select all stops for routes covered, and you should be able to search by either of the cross streets. For instance, for the Route 22 Clark bus, there is no way to search for Clark & Wilson. There is an option for Wilson & Clark, but does not feature the 22 bus. Some of the pending arrivals are listed as going in the wrong direction also (east or west when it is a north our southbound route).

Some of the problems I saw in other reviews seem to be fixed. The "Find Me" feature works fine, and it shows both directions from my stop. If the CTA is not yet providing online information for your route then you will probably not like this product, but the routes I use are all available. Its even easier to use than going to the CTA's online site from my laptop.

DO NOT BUY this app, the app. only shows one direction, what good is that. Save the money and just go to ctabustracket.com

Great app for CTS bus users. New routes being added week of April 19. If you get those on in a timely manner and all subsequent route adds... this would be a 5 star.

First off, BIG UPS to the person who wrote the app. Thank you. Maybe I could have done what you've done, but I did not and you did! Well All RIght!!! My quibbles are quibbles. I wish there were a better way to parse directions, that said I do understand the challenge, In the downtown area, the not having directions is great. Any bus that is going to stop on Adams is going to be headed west, wonderful. As long as I know the next one coming, I am good to go. On the other hand, I would like the bus stop on 79th to be more direction centered (or at least parseable) But oddly, if I am standing at the corner of 79th and King Drive (Yaaayyy!!! New Routes), I may want to see all the busses that are coming in all directions, instead of having to choose either 79th or King Drive as the center of the stop. This is something that people who ride busses a lot could appreciate because sometimes we will take whatever is coming first (because we have so many places to go).

I don't drive and this app has been immensely helpful in getting around Chicago. Great for the winter when you don't want to be standing in the cold for very long. There is the occassional bus that doesn't have their gps on, so those don't appear on here, but those are also few and far between. Word to the wise, my girlfriend gets angry when we head out because I'm always checking when the busses are coming. If you have a significant other that likes to be spontaneous, this might not be good for you because you WILL get hooked on finding out when your bus is coming.

The new update I got for this app today finally makes this app worth having. I've had this app now for about two or three months and it was always a little clumsy, butthe new update allows finally allow me to search by the bus route number rather than just by location. Now this app is at last more convenient than using the cta's web site tracker. Definitely worth the price now!

I have a problem with this app. When I pick a stop the direction is always North. I read other reviews stating the stops show both directions. If this could be fine tuned this would be a 5 star app easy.

Thank you for listening CTA, I am so glad you guys fixed it, because it really is useful and practical. I don't normally write reviews, but this one was killing me when it didn't work, so thank you again!

My god, I have to 'search by neighborhood' to find my stop! I need to know my stop to figure out which one to use in order to identify the bus line I'm interested in. Who remembers all the stops (and there are 100's, 1000's?)?!? No no no!

This is a lot better than the web apps. I can now delete all my web links from my home screen. Is also faster than the web app.

I am a regular user. I favorited my buses to and from work (not hard) and use them to time my trips. For example, in the AM I take the 77 Belmont west - the stop is right out my door. When it says bus arriving in 2 minutes, I head out - the bus is there, extremely accurate timing in my experience (which btw is dependent on the CTA Bus Tracker system not on this program). In the PM i use it to decide which el stop to get off at depending on which bus is arriving first. Nearby stop locator is accurate on my 1st gen iPhone. I would give it 5 stars if it would list all routes for a given stop and if it loaded faster. To the person who wants the stops listed in geographical order - NO. You would have to sort thru the stops knowing where your stop is on the list. Alphabetical order is fine - you know what street you're on, right?

I'm confident it'll be up and running again soon. I miss the convenient features. Especially the Favorites where I've titled each of my frequent bus stops according to where they take me so I can touch and quickly see what time I need to be at that bus stop. Bus Tracker is okay, but it's not as cool nor is it nearly as speedy as CTA Tracker. And you know making great bus connections in Chicago is all about perfect timing! That's why I use CTA Tracker. CTA Tracker has always worked perfectly for me and I look forward to again enjoying using it daily.

I love this app. It's very convenient. I gave it three stars because it would be great to be able to organize by bus number as well as neighborhood. The neighborhood/find me idea is good, but some people (i.e. me) know their bus routes and just want to know when it will be arriving. A lot of people on here are agitated that the app has been displaying "no approaching busses". I'm sure this will be fixed in the next version. There's not much a developer can do in the current version if CTA's API changes....

This app even worked when I was in my basement bedroom (can't say that for iTrans CTA Chicago)! Waiting for information to be added for #72 Bus---North Avenue which is notorious for tandem buses in rows of two to three at the same time!!

Accuracy varies- sometimes spot on and other times way off. About one-quarter of the time the bus comes and it's NOT even on the app. When my wait is long I cross-check it with the CTA's official web app and there's often a difference.