Subway Info Skill | Agent Skills

Subway Info

Overview

Real-time NYC transit information covering subway, bus, ferry, and commuter rail (LIRR/Metro-North). Covers all 496 subway stations, 16,000+ bus stops, NYC Ferry landings, and LIRR/Metro-North stations.

When to Use

Checking real-time train arrivals at a station
Getting current service alerts and delays
Searching for subway stations by name or line
Planning trips between subway stations
Checking bus arrivals and routes
NYC Ferry schedules and alerts
LIRR and Metro-North departures
Commute planning and schedule checking

CLI Tool (Preferred)

If subway-info CLI is available, prefer it over raw curl — it handles retries, auth, and outputs token-efficient text by default.

Install

# From the mta-mcp repo
npm run build:cli
# Binary at ./dist/subway-info

# Or run directly
npm run cli -- arrivals --station 127

Subway Commands

subway-info arrivals --station 127 --line 1 --direction N --limit 5
subway-info alerts --line A
subway-info stations --query "times square"
subway-info trip --from 127 --to 631
subway-info status --line L

Bus Commands

subway-info bus arrivals --stop 402940 --route M1
subway-info bus alerts --route M1
subway-info bus stops --query "5th ave" --borough Manhattan
subway-info bus route --route M1

Ferry Commands

subway-info ferry arrivals --landing <id>
subway-info ferry alerts
subway-info ferry landings --query "wall street"
subway-info ferry routes

Rail Commands (LIRR / Metro-North)

subway-info rail departures --station <id> --system LIRR
subway-info rail alerts --system MNR
subway-info rail stations --query "penn" --system LIRR
subway-info rail station --station <id>

Global Options

--json          Print raw JSON instead of compact text
--api-key <key> Override $SUBWAY_INFO_API_KEY
--base-url <url> Override https://subwayinfo.nyc

REST API

All data endpoints use POST with JSON body. Base URL: https://subwayinfo.nyc

Rate Limits

| Tier | Requests/Min | Authentication | |------|--------------|----------------| | Anonymous | 10 | None (IP-based) | | Free | 60 | X-API-Key header | | Standard | 300 | X-API-Key header | | Premium | 1000 | X-API-Key header |

Subway Endpoints

Get Arrivals

curl -s -X POST https://subwayinfo.nyc/api/arrivals \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"station_id": "127", "line": "1", "direction": "N", "limit": 5}'

| Parameter | Type | Required | Description | |-----------|------|----------|-------------| | station_id | string | Yes | Station ID (use search to find) | | line | string | No | Filter by line (e.g., "1", "A", "F") | | direction | "N" | "S" | No | N=uptown/Bronx, S=downtown/Brooklyn | | limit | number | No | Max arrivals (default: 10) |

Get Alerts

curl -s -X POST https://subwayinfo.nyc/api/alerts \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"line": "A"}'

| Parameter | Type | Required | Description | |-----------|------|----------|-------------| | line | string | No | Filter by line | | alert_type | string | No | Filter by type (e.g., "Delays", "Planned Work") |

Search Stations

curl -s -X POST https://subwayinfo.nyc/api/stations \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"query": "union square"}'

| Parameter | Type | Required | Description | |-----------|------|----------|-------------| | query | string | No | Station name search | | line | string | No | Filter by line | | limit | number | No | Max results (default: 10) |

Get Station Info

curl -s -X POST https://subwayinfo.nyc/api/station \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"station_id": "127"}'

Plan Trip

curl -s -X POST https://subwayinfo.nyc/api/trip \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"origin_station_id": "127", "destination_station_id": "631"}'

Bus Endpoints

POST /api/bus/arrivals   {"stop_id": "402940", "route": "M1", "limit": 5}
POST /api/bus/alerts     {"route": "M1"}
POST /api/bus/stops      {"query": "5th ave", "borough": "Manhattan"}
POST /api/bus/route      {"route_id": "M1"}

Ferry Endpoints

POST /api/ferry/arrivals  {"landing_id": "<id>", "route": "<route>"}
POST /api/ferry/alerts    {"route": "<route>"}
POST /api/ferry/landings  {"query": "wall street"}
POST /api/ferry/routes    {}

Rail Endpoints (LIRR / Metro-North)

POST /api/rail/departures {"station_id": "<id>", "system": "LIRR"}
POST /api/rail/alerts     {"system": "MNR", "branch": "Hudson"}
POST /api/rail/stations   {"query": "penn", "system": "LIRR"}
POST /api/rail/station    {"station_id": "<id>"}

Health Check

GET /health

Common Station IDs

| Station | ID | Lines | |---------|-----|-------| | Times Sq-42 St | 127 | 1, 2, 3, 7, N, Q, R, W, S | | Grand Central-42 St | 631 | 4, 5, 6, 7, S | | 14 St-Union Sq | L03 | L, 4, 5, 6, N, Q, R, W | | 34 St-Penn Station | A28 | A, C, E, 1, 2, 3 | | Fulton St | A38 | A, C, J, Z, 2, 3, 4, 5 | | Atlantic Av-Barclays Ctr | D24 | B, D, N, Q, R, 2, 3, 4, 5 |

Use subway-info stations --query "..." or /api/stations to find any station ID.

Helper Scripts

./scripts/arrivals.sh "times square"          # Search by name
./scripts/arrivals.sh 127 1 N 5              # By ID with filters
./scripts/alerts.sh A                         # A train alerts
./scripts/trip.sh "times square" "grand central"
./scripts/status.sh L                         # L train status

Error Handling

| Status Code | Meaning | Action | |-------------|---------|--------| | 400 | Bad Request | Check required parameters | | 401 | Unauthorized | Invalid API key | | 429 | Rate Limited | Reduce request frequency or add API key | | 500 | Server Error | Retry with backoff |

Best Practices

Use CLI when available — handles retries, auth, and compact output automatically
Search first: Find station IDs before calling arrivals
Filter by line: Narrow arrivals with line parameter for cleaner results
Cache station IDs: Station IDs are stable; cache them after first lookup
Respect rate limits: Anonymous tier is 10 req/min; set SUBWAY_INFO_API_KEY for higher limits

Agent Skills: Subway Info

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