Developer Resources

Metro has resources available for developers to create applications for desktop, web or mobile devices. The Metro Transparent Data Sets API includes the order and location of rail stations by line, train arrival predictions for each station, service alerts and elevator/escalator status. The Google Transit Feed Specification (GTFS) download provides the same official schedule data that supports Metro’s online trip planner. RSS feeds provide subscriptions to Metro advisories and news releases and GTFS schedule releases. 

As more resources are made available, they will be announced here.

Metro Transparent Data Sets API

  This collection of web services describes the WMATA transit system and is available to
  developers free of charge. Visit the Metro Transparent Data Sets API website to get started.

GTFS Download

  The GTFS data provides the same schedule data that supports Metro’s online trip planner.
  You must read the License Agreement before proceeding to the download.

RSS Feeds

  Subscribe to Metro RSS feeds for:
  Service Alerts
  Press Releases
  GTFS Data Updates (last updated: 12/06/2012)

Frequently Asked Questions for GTFS

What is the Google Transit Feed Specification?

The Google Transit Feed Specification (GTFS) is an open format used by Google to incorporate transit information into applications, like Google Maps, that include geographic data.  Because this is an open and freely available format, anyone can use the data to create their own applications.

Why are you publishing this data using the GTFS format?

Using the GTFS format allows us to extend usage of this data to all of our customers,  thus eliminating the work involved in importing the data to different formats .

Do you offer technical support?

Unfortunately, we don't have the resources.  The good news is that Google has extensive documentation of GTFS.  If you have questions not answered by the documentation, you can post them to the Google Transit Data Feed Developer's group.

What are your plans for developing the feed?

We plan to keep up with the development of the specification and update the format of our data as necessary. 

When will the data change?  Will it happen on a set schedule?

Data changes happen frequently but on no set schedule. To stay informed of data changes, you'll need to subscribe to our RSS feed.