The Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) activated the Next Vehicle Arrival System (NVAS) for its bus network and made available its open data/XML feed for third-party developers.

Using Global Positioning System software, NVAS allows transit customers to receive real-time route data as to when the next buses — up to six succeeding — will arrive at any specific bus stop.

Next-vehicle information is available for more than 9,300 TTC bus stops inside Toronto and more than 800 TTC bus stops in the GTA served by contracted TTC vehicles. Predictions are not available for Wheel-Trans and Community Buses due to the door-to-door nature of service.

The information is available at no charge directly through the website of TTC’s partner, www.nextbus.com. There are also many third-party applications for smart phones, which provide unlimited access to the data for a nominal one-off fee.

TTC customers can see next-bus information on LCD screens at Bathurst, Broadview, Dundas West, Main Street and Spadina subway stations, and on LED displays on street shelters at Bathurst/Adelaide and Queen/Spadina.

Bus arrival information is now available via text as well. Standard text-messaging rates apply.

TTC customers can find the unique multi-digit stop number by clicking on the Buses page, selecting their route of choice and identifying the bus stop number listed next to their specific stop location. The stop number can be sent to the six-digit short code 898882 (TXTTTC). To protect against spam, there is a limit of 10 text messages every 12 hours, per cell phone number.