Automating the Repetitive: The Story Behind Tally

Tally was inspired by my experience as a transit planner at LeeTran in Fort Myers, Florida. A year in as a transit planner, I was tasked with overseeing the average passenger trip length surveys for the fiscal year 2016-2017. At that time, LeeTran’s Automatic Passenger Counters (APCs) were not certified for National Transit Database (NTD) reporting, which forced us to use manual methods for collecting data on boardings and alightings. This labor-intensive process involved generating random trip selections, calculating distances between stops, and manually entering data into spreadsheets for analysis.

The process was incredibly tedious. We had to number every trip by pattern, use GIS tools to calculate distances between bus stops, and then print out paper survey templates. Once the surveys were conducted, we collected the data manually and tabulated everything in Excel, making the entire workflow slow and prone to human error. Each service change period required us to repeat the process, as the number of trips and schedules changed.

The challenge of balancing accurate data collection with the time-consuming manual steps sparked the idea for Tally. I envisioned a solution that could automate much of this process—leveraging existing GTFS feeds to create survey templates, simplifying the workload for surveyors by advancing automatically between stops, and aggregating the survey data into one report with a data summary. Instead of the inefficient manual methods we used at LeeTran, Tally could streamline survey creation, track data collection, and ensure more reliable results, all while reducing the burden on staff.

What makes Tally unique is its purpose-built approach for transit agencies. It automates the creation of APC certification surveys, integrates real-time location tracking, and provides downloadable reports for quality assurance and record-keeping.

With the APC re-certification deadline approaching in 2025 for certified agencies, Tally comes at a crucial time. At ETA Transit, we’re already working with two agencies to become APC certified, supported by two transit professionals who have over 20 years of experience in conducting these surveys and working with NTD certification. This expertise and automation make Tally a transformative tool for modernizing transit data collection.