The 2023 MobilityData European Workshop: Highlights from Day Two

Day two of the MobilityData European Workshop kicked off with a vibrant Community Pitch session, where participants were able to share their current projects and initiatives, as well as any upcoming events. Following this, we headed straight into session one to get to work! 

Session 1.A: But Does it Work? Improving the Test Process for Changes to GTFS (Part One)

This interactive workshop, with great representation of GTFS experts and newcomers, was utilized to brainstorm solutions for a more thorough, inclusive, and transparent GTFS change testing process. The atmosphere was filled with collaboration and innovation, as attendees from diverse backgrounds and expertise levels came together to contribute their insights. The goal was clear –  to create a more user-friendly GTFS system that would better serve the community’s needs. The group was separated according to their knowledge level and they reviewed the governance, mapped it, and identified pain points.

Anticipation grew for the second part of this session following in the afternoon. 

Session 1.B: Maximizing the potential of the GBFS Validator

MobilityData is committed to ensuring that the GBFS Validator is valuable and user-friendly. To achieve this goal, we invited all users to participate in a collaborative workshop. Together, we worked to determine which features should be incorporated into the next iteration of improvement. 

Key takeaways: 

• A need for an API to validate GBFS feeds in the data pipeline
• A need to have error reporting more accessible to non-technical people
• A need to define data quality thresholds and custom requirements 

Session 2.A: But Does it Work? Improving the Test Process for Changes to GTFS (Part Two) 

As participants returned energized from a break, we jumped right into part two. They created 2 concepts, recommended one solution, pitched it to the larger group, and received spontaneous feedback.

Key takeaways from part one and two were focused on the main pain points. Those included:

• Improving communication for newcomers and providing educational materials, 
• Creating a business case as a guideline for GTFS changes
• A need for a historical repository to show past processes
• A need for a more formal/documented review process for spec changes before they’re adopted

Session 2.B: Creating a shared vision for the GBFS Issue Tracker

As a cohesive group, we collectively embarked on an exploration of the existing GBFS issue trackers. The goal was to determine how, as a community, we could collaborate to guarantee that the highest-quality GBFS datasets are readily available.

Key takeaways:

• A need to know who is responsible for the feed
• It is necessary for GBFS producers to understand the value of valid feeds
• A need for tracking the quality of a GBFS feed over time

Overall, it was a productive and insightful day at the MobilityData European Workshop. We are incredibly grateful for everyone’s participation over the two days, and we hope that we can continue the conversations that were sparked in Valencia.

MobilityData will be hosting our second iteration of the workshops in New York City for our North American workshops on October 16th and 17th! You can register here.