Planned service changes

Make changes for a network, some routes, or stops. Changes can be categorized as Cancellation, Modification or Addition.

Suspend services

GTFS Service Alerts

Provide the alert information with effect=NO_SERVICE that targets the affected services, like agencies, modes, routes, direction, or stops. The affected trips are included in the directions results but show up in the disrupted section on the Google Maps app.

Related articles:

• How to select an entity using Service Alerts
• Alerts overview

Manual alerts

Add manual service alerts with effect=NO_SERVICE in Transit partner dashboard.

Related articles:

• Create and manage Service Alerts
• Alerts overview

GTFS static

Changes take 24-48 hours to show up on Google Maps. Use this option if you don’t want to show the canceled service.

Service

Use calendar_dates.txt with exception_type=2 or use calendar.txt with day fields populated with 0. 

Make sure that the period of service as defined by the feed_start_date and feed_end_date fields in feed_info.txt covers the period of the service’s suspension or cancellation.

Related article:

• Service dates and times

Trips

To cancel multiple unrelated trips, group all canceled trips within specific service_ids. Then, cancel these service_ids with calendar_dates with exception_type=2.

Related article:

• Service dates and times

Stops

To remove the service at each stop, define pickup_type=1 and drop_off_type=1 in stop_times.txt. This effectively closes service for each trip. You can use this solution in either of the following scenarios:

• The cancellation applies to all trips with service at this stop.
• The stop is canceled for only some trips.

Related article:

• Trips

Update the future schedule and feed expiration

GTFS static

Agencies can update the schedule for future trips and not affect the current schedule. To do this, provide a feed that contains the future schedule with the appropriate feed_start_date field in feed_info.txt.

If the feed is set to expire soon, we’ll send you multiple notifications. Make sure that your notifications are set up properly in the Transit partner dashboard so you don’t miss this information.

Related article:

• Update your feed data

Add new temporary routes or detours

To include the new route information, update the GTFS data similar to other planned routes. Use calendar.txt to specify when those routes are active. The static feed takes 24-48 hours to update on Google maps.

Related article:

• Routes