GTFS

Documentation

The General Transit Feed Specification is documented on a Google Code site.

Tables in our feed

We currently include the following tables in the CTA GTFS Feed (links point to more detailed information on Google Code):

1. agency.txt - basic agency information
2. stops.txt - list of stop locations for bus and train, also includes parent station info for trains
3. routes.txt - route list with unique identifiers
4. trips.txt - has information about each trip taken by a CTA vehicle
5. stop_times.txt - scheduled arrival/departure times for each stop on each trip
6. calendar.txt - defines which service IDs operate on which days
7. calendar_dates.txt - has exceptions to calendar (such as a holiday when a Sunday schedule is operated)
8. shapes.txt - defines how to draw a route line on a map
9. frequencies.txt - defines headways when trips aren't specifically scheduled, but sent as-needed (such as service that follows a major event)
10. transfers.txt - has additional information to guide trip planners into identifying two stops as a transfer point and how much extra time to give people to transfer between services