NYC Transit's new feature, the Interactive Map, an online itinerary service Trip Planner, opens up a new way for customers to search, locate and pinpoint destinations, as well as places of interest in and around the five boroughs.

The Interactive Map was released in a beta format on Feb. 18 as an option on the Trip Planner homepage.

Employing features of the Interactive Map, users can pan to any area in New York City and, with a click on the tool bar, view a location on either a road map or aerial view while utilizing multiple zoom levels. The subway map, showing all the subway lines in an area including each subway station, is available as a user-controlled overlay in either view. Station information is easily accessible by mouse overlay or clicking on an individual station. Accessible subway stations are also available as a user-controlled feature.

A unique feature offered by the Interactive Map is the ability to personalize it. By opening up and maintaining an account, users can log-in with an e-mail address and password and retrieve marked locations, maps and itineraries.

The Interactive Map is located at http://tripplanner.mta.info/map.aspx