Google Maps API idea

bloodiedathame

bloodiedathame

bloodiedathame

Soldato
Joined
11 May 2007
Posts
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Location
Surrey
I want to either learn to write or (more likely) assemble a team in order to build a National Rail based API, where users could scroll around a map, looking at the location of rail stations and ultimately see an overlay of information about journey times, season ticket prices, first and last trains etc, all data which is available on the National Rail site.

Anyone interested in pointing me in the right direction?
 
Probably more likely the latter, though I was hoping that the tool would be free, as far as I'm aware a business API license is needed in order to profit from Google Maps data.

I was thinking along the lines of more a team of hobbyists/practicing skills/learning something new...
 
Could it not scrape data from their own website rather than an app? And yes there must be a shed load of data. But I guess once the correct fields are identified? and terms quantified? ie start station, end station, then it should be able to pool the information it needs quite easily?

For example:
Sutton to Victoria
Fast journey time (0 changes) ~30 mins
Slow journey time (2 changes) ~ 50 mins
7 day railcard: £38.20
7 day travelcard: £49.80

I suppose depending on how National Rail stores it's data is down to whether this is feasible or not? And also making sure it was 'tamper proof' ie if National Rail didn't like the tool I was producing and they changed the way they formatted their data then my app would be buggered so it would need some sort of failsafe?
 
Indeed, I'm familiar with the term API, so I know it exists as a 'common ground' between in this instance network rail and googlemaps so the data from one can be used in the other. However the comment I responded to was about National Rail apps, I don't think the information I'd want is available on there, so the API would have to find the data on their website, but I have no idea in what form that exists.

I've got a year and no money. :D

Yes a) that scares me, putting in a lot of work for them to change the format of their data, b) id only be interested in perhaps putting it up on the web. Not as an app.
 
Sounds like National Rail are ***** through to the core. I thought it was just surface level arseholishness (unjust rail fare increases, lack of information about trains, dirty trains, rude staff) but it goes right through!

So to avoid paying money for publicly available information... I assume one would get around that by writing a program which populates fields on their website and collects the results? Though I would assume their site would have measures against this? Or is my thinking totally ridiculous?
 
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No that makes sense to me, pretty much as I imagined including the drawbacks, I like it when things I think are possible (then realise they've existed for years and I'm totally behind and not some sort of internet lord).
 
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