Show HN: Embark SF – A new Bay Area transit app (opens in new tab)

(itunes.apple.com)

39 pointsdavidwhodge13y ago45 comments

45 comments

42 comments · 17 top-level

unohoo13y ago· 3 in thread

I am a regular Caltrain rider and here's my honest feedback.

First, to be completely unbiased, the app looks awesome and pretty slick - so great job on it.

Now the challenges: 1) This app will be incredibly difficult to monetize unless you reach significant scale and then use advertising

2) Most of the daily commuters in the bay area are either bart riders or caltrain riders or muni riders -- as in, the mode of public transport they take is fixed. As a Caltrain rider, i have never taken the bart in the last 2 years i've commuted to the city. And I believe vice versa is equally true. Bart riders are unlikely to ride Caltrain regularly (discounting every once in a while ride). Why am I saying this and how is it relevant ? Most of the existing daily commuters have already downloaded free apps which provide the schedules, maps etc. -- most will have very little incentive to download your app, unless it provides some additional value above and beyond the existing apps

3) This app could be more valuable for those who are visiting bay area -- although most of my friends who have visited bay area rent a car -- since they plan day trips to napa, carmel etc -- while in the city, most just tend to use cabs.

This kind of app makes a lot of sense for a place like nyc or london where the subway and public transport system is much more complex and extremely well connected. And where majority of the people use public transport. But even then -- those whose daily commute route is fixed, the app adds little value, IMHO. But I havent used it in nyc, so I could be wrong.

djcapelis13y ago

  > 2) Most of the daily commuters in the bay area are either
  > bart riders or caltrain riders or muni riders -- as in, the
  > mode of public transport they take is fixed. As a Caltrain
  > rider, i have never taken the bart in the last 2 years i've
  > commuted to the city. And I believe vice versa is equally
  > true. Bart riders are unlikely to ride Caltrain regularly
  > (discounting every once in a while ride). Why am I saying
  > this and how is it relevant ? Most of the existing daily
  > commuters have already downloaded free apps which provide
  > the schedules, maps etc. -- most will have very little
  > incentive to download your app, unless it provides some
  > additional value above and beyond the existing apps

This is true for people who live outside of SF. But a lot of folks in SF do use public transit to get around. (Inside the city, Muni and BART interchangably depending on where I am, where I'm headed and when the next train/bus/whatever for different stops is likely to show up.) When I visit the south, east or other parts of the bay from SF, I use transit (BART, Caltrain, etc) most of the time.

It's called Embark SF, not Embark Bay Area. I think that was a good choice.

SandersAK13y ago

It seems like most of the feedback here is about how they will monetize, not necessarily how the app actually functions, no?

Can't speak for daily SF users, but as an NYC commuter who goes places other than just work and home on a regular basis, Embark has been far and away the best thing on my iPhone.

Also, my schedule isn't always fixed, so Embark is great at telling me when trains are coming, etc. etc.

I agree that there's lots of transit apps, I've downloaded a lot of them, but I end up keeping the Embark ones.

unohoo13y ago

if you read through it, (2) specifically is about usage and adoption, not monetization. commute in bay area is more limited to work and back -- most of the folks in east bay and south bay dont use / rely on public transport for their weekend travel.

markbao13y ago· 3 in thread

Embark NYC is absolutely indispensable and I used it to no end when I was living in the city. Made getting around a breeze.

This SF one is awesome—new design and it includes BART and Muni and the rest of the crazy set of transit systems in SF. Nice work, guys.

lquist13y ago

Agreed, the NYC app is awesome. That said, a UI consultation would probably pay significant dividends. Affordances are not always easily perceived.