March 29, 2026
Mind the snark gap
Show HN: Public transit systems as data – lines, stations, railcars, and history
All aboard a nerdy transit dashboard; fans cheer the UI, fume at the tiny lineup
TLDR: A new site turns transit systems into a slick, terminal-style data browser, but it lists only nine cities. Commenters praise the UI, nitpick track-versus-route lengths, and loudly demand London, Paris, and more—proof the idea’s hot, but the content needs to catch up.
Show HN—Hacker News’ show-and-tell—just rolled into the station with publictransit.systems, a terminal-style dashboard that turns subways and light rail into browsable data: stations, lines, railcars, even history. Early riders are vibing on the retro-cool interface. One fan swooned over the ⌘K command palette and begged to search by railcar models like “R211” and by line colors. It’s the command line meets conductor, and the aesthetics are getting a standing ovation.
But the honeymoon screeches at… just nine systems. The loudest chorus complains there are so few cities, while another commenter rattles off a dream itinerary—“London, Paris, Copenhagen, Rome, Madrid?”—like they’re ordering off a rail menu. Cue the pedant showdown: “We’re confusing route length and track length,” warns a measurement stickler, and suddenly the thread is counting miles like it’s a math final. The vibe: mind the gap between hype and content.
Amid the nitpicks, a bigger vision glows: one commenter imagines entering your own commute and seeing how different transit designs change your day—basically a policy simulator disguised as a subway map. Net-net, the community’s split between applause for the slick UI and a demand for global coverage yesterday. For now, it’s a sleek launch with strong trainspotter energy—and a to-do list longer than rush hour
Key Points
- •A terminal-inspired website aggregates structured data on public transit systems worldwide.
- •The database currently includes 9 systems with a combined track length of 1,506 miles.
- •Each system entry lists stations, lines, track length, and daily ridership, along with descriptive context.
- •Featured systems include Baltimore’s Light RailLink and Metro SubwayLink, BART, CTA’s Chicago ‘L’, NYC Subway, Sound Transit’s Link, Beijing Subway, and Tokyo Metro.
- •The Beijing Subway is noted as the world’s busiest and among the longest; the NYC Subway operates 24/7 and has the most stations.