Help and map legend
A lot of what you see on the map comes straight from National Transport Authority (NTA) data and each bus’s own GPS, and doesn’t depend on the app. Here’s what each icon means and the most common situations.
Important: bus positions and routes come from the National Transport Authority (NTA) and each bus’s own GPS. Galway Bus Tracker is an independent app and only displays this data. It is therefore not responsible for delays, diversions, cancellations, buses out of service or incorrect information sent by the NTA. Always check the sign on the bus. For complaints about the service, contact TFI.
Map legend
The bus. The coloured stripe is the route colour, with the route number. The small arrow in front shows which way it’s going.
~6 min: the time until the bus reaches a stop. It appears on the bus card (next stop and your stop) and under Next buses when you tap a stop. It’s calculated from the bus’s real position and the time between stops in the timetable. Above 15 minutes the app just shows “over 15 min”, because the estimate is less precise.
My stops: in the menu, tap ⭐ My stops to search for any stop by name or by the number on the stop sign. Tap the ☆ to save it as a favourite (★) and tap again to remove it. Each bus card shows how long until the first favourite it will still pass. With no favourites, the app uses the stop closest to you on that bus’s route.
Waiting to depart: the bus is parked at the first stop waiting for its departure time (07:15 in the example). Many buses stop sending GPS while they wait, which is normal. At departure time only the 🕒 remains. If the GPS keeps arriving but the bus doesn’t leave, the 🕒 stays (it hasn’t left yet). If there’s no GPS at all 5 minutes after departure time, 📡❌ appears.
No signal: the bus hasn’t sent its position for more than 6 minutes. It may be somewhere else on the route.
GPS stuck: the bus’s GPS keeps sending the same position (still for more than 20 minutes, or it didn’t leave on time). The icon is faded. If it stays like this for 1 hour, it’s removed from the map.
Selected bus: the blue pin and ring show the bus you tapped. Tap it again to deselect it.
You: your location, when the 📍 My location button is on. It stays on your device.
Nearby stop: shown when you tap 🚌 Nearby stops.
Route stops of the selected bus: grey = already passed; solid blue = next stop; white = still to come.
Reached the end of the route: the bus finished its trip and is waiting for the next one. The new route appears when that trip starts.
Common situations
I can see a bus on the street that isn’t on the map
Buses showing Not in service or Out of service don’t send a position, so they don’t appear. Routes 410, 411 and 412 (City Direct) don’t appear either, because the NTA doesn’t publish their positions yet.
A bus suddenly disappeared from the map
Usually the trip ended, the bus’s GPS stopped sending its position, or the NTA stopped sending its data. When the position comes back, it reappears by itself.
The bus is still on the map but moving on the street
The bus’s own GPS is stuck and keeps sending the same place. The app marks this with 📡⚠️ and fades the icon.
The bus appears a little behind where it really is
The NTA updates each bus’s position about every 30 to 40 seconds, sometimes longer. The app animates the bus between positions, but it can be a few seconds behind.
On the map it goes one way and on the street the other, or the destination is wrong
When a bus finishes one trip and starts the next, the NTA sometimes takes a minute or two to switch its trip. During that time the map shows the old trip. On days when the clocks change, this can last longer. If it lasts a long time, use ⚠️ Report this bus in the bus’s pop-up.
Why doesn’t the app show the delay any more (+5 min, +30 min)?
The delay came from the NTA and, after peak times, it sometimes keeps a bus on its previous trip: the bus leaves on time but showed about 30 minutes late. So the app now shows the time until each stop, calculated from the bus’s real position.
The bus is waiting at the end of the route
It finished its trip and is waiting for the next departure time. The app shows 🏁 Reached the end of the route.
Delays, crowded buses, a bus that didn’t stop
That’s about the bus service, not the app. Contact Transport for Ireland (TFI): transportforireland.ie/help-and-contact or call 0818 294015.
Found an app bug?
In the app, use ⚠️ Report a problem in the menu (buttons, screens, text) or ⚠️ Report this bus in the bus’s pop-up (wrong destination or route). Or email privacy@trackerbus.com.