The digital gap between the center of Madrid and its neighboring municipalities begins to close today. If you live in Getafe, Leganés or Parla, it is possible that your cell phone can now offer you more information about the situation of public transport, thanks to the fact that the Regional Transport Consortium of Madrid (CRTM) has started the integration of the fleet of intercity buses in the real-time system of Google Maps.
This functionality, which EMT users (the capital’s blue buses) have been enjoying since last March, was one of the historical demands of the “green zone” travelers. Until yesterday, consulting an intercity route on Google only returned the theoretical timetable, a static figure printed on paper that rarely matched the reality of traffic on the A-42 or A-6.
Activation is not yet massive, but staggered. The first vehicles to appear geolocated on the map correspond to lines of the Corredor Sur. Passengers on these routes can already see how the bus icon moves on the screen or receive delay alerts colored in red, based on the GPS position of the vehicle and not on an algorithmic estimation.
After this first phase of technical tests in the south, the entire intercity network is expected to be incorporated into the system in the coming weeks. The goal is that, before the end of the year or at the beginning of 2026, any traveler, from the Sierra Norte to the Corredor del Henares, will have the same information accuracy as a resident of the Salamanca neighborhood.
What changes for the traveler?
The difference is substantial. Until now, Google Maps said, “Departure scheduled at 14:15.” If the bus passed at 14:12 and you arrived at 14:14, you missed it without knowing it. With the new integration, the application will say: “Departure in 3 min (On time)” or “Delayed: arrives at 14:22”.
This technological leap is based on Open Data (Open Data) of the operating assistance systems (OAS) that buses carry, connecting them directly to Google servers. This equals the service to that of specific applications such as Tu Transporte Madrid or Moovit, but with the advantage of not needing to install anything extra, since it is integrated into the app that most people already use for walking or driving.