Cape Town launches TCT app to make traveling in the city a breeze

Keen for a gatsby lunch in the City Bowl or a trip to the Waterfront? Perhaps the Transport for Cape Town (TCT) app can help you get there.

In an effort to make traveling across the South African city a breeze, the app relies on popular transport services like the MyCiti bus, Jammie Shuttles, Metrorail trains, sightseeing buses and the Golden Arrow Bus Service.

While the announcement notes that this is “the first of its kind on the continent to merge the timetables, stops and stations of all the scheduled public transport services in a city,” we’ve seen other apps like GoMetro, FindMyWay and Google do exactly that for the last few years now. It does, however, have a couple of interesting features up its virtual sleeve.

First of all, the app will tell commuters which mode — bus or rail, or combination of the two — to use to reach their destination. More than the distance and time it take to get to your next bus stop or destination, the app also includes information for people relying on private transport. City’s Mayoral Committee Member: Transport for Cape Town, Councillor Herron explains:

Furthermore, the app will inform you of useful places along the way such as accommodation, restaurants, shopping malls, schools, hospitals, fueling stations and police stations. It can find places of interest close to you and keep you informed of these en route. Once residents get the hang of it, they will not only use the app to move around the city, but also to explore their city.

A rather cool addition to TCT is its crowdsourcing features. Users can for instance report transport-related issues like potholes, faulty traffic lights, flooding, accidents and bad driver behaviour directly to the city. The exact location can be easily recorded if the GPS is on and the user will have the option of attaching a photo with the message to the city.

It’s currently available for Android and Windows Phone with BlackBerry and iOS to follow within the next few days.