Getting around getting easier (whether you're a tourist or a local).

You can get good directions from Mapquest and Google Maps, but that's really only good for people in cars.  Those of us who are public transportation junkies have to learn over time which buses goes where, until how late, and which trains and buses you can connect to.  That's quite a bit to learn.

But there are websites that can shorten this learning curve.  One such website is HopStop which covers New York, Washington D.C., Boston, Chicago, and San Francisco. Nick Gonzalez from TechCrunch reported that HopStop takes your two address and will plot out not just which buses and train you need to take, but also your foot path and travel time.

These types of websites are great resources for urban dwellers, but there is a red flag for our readers (why else would we cover it!).  Location-specific information is best put together by people who live there. I wouldn't be able to assess HopStop's functionality for each city it covers, but I'm guessing it covers one city very well, a couple of cities in okay-fashion, and one or two very poorly.  For some cities, the official transit authority website may be the most useful while other cities are better served by the private sector. You need to try out the different websites for your city and see which serves you best and gives the most accurate directions.

Got a favorite transit website for your city? Drop it in the comments and we'll check it out.

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