Nearly half of Americans now own a smartphone, so it is understandable that a tidal wave of information is coming to them through handheld devices — up from just 35% nine months ago.
In response to the growing need for anytime, anywhere resources, the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LA Metro) has just announced the launch of its “Go Metro Los Angeles” mobile app, now available free in both the Apple App Store (iPhone and iPad) and Android Play.
The Metro Library figures prominently in the News section of the App. Users will find links to our Los Angeles Transportation Headlines – our daily aggregation of news and information about transit and transportation in Southern California.
They will also be put in touch with our Primary Resources Blog – our platform which gives our collection a voice of its own. The blog shares the past, present and future of transportation in Los Angeles and features “This Date in Los Angeles Transportation History.”
Finally, the app also features the Library’s Twitter feed, so users can stay up to the minute on the conversation surrounding Los Angeles’ ambitious mobility agenda.
We believe we are the first transportation library in the United States to provide service via a mobile app, continuing our history of early adoption of technology to serve our users and connect with potential users — including mobile access to our library catalog since 2003.
In its first week, thousands of transit users around Los Angeles County have already downloaded the app, and have given it an average 3.9 star rating.
The app features full trip planning capabilities, over 200 downloadable maps, fare charts, service alerts, planned service advisories, and more. Additional information can be found here.
We invite you to take a look at screenshots for the Library’s News & Information sections as well as our Transportation Headlines, Primary Resources and our Twitter Feed.
In the future, we are looking at developing our own Library app, featuring full catalog access (including our Archive and federated searching capability of external resources), as well as links to all of our social media properties.
Meanwhile, download the app and take us with you when you’re on the go!