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Google Maps for Android gets useful new public transit options and other minor updates

Google Maps for Android gets useful new public transit options and other minor updates

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Google Maps for Android has been updated with new public transit layer options and other minor changes.

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Google Maps public transit layer 6.1
Google Maps public transit layer 6.1

Google Maps for Android is getting a handful of minor (but useful, as always) improvements today, the primary of which concerns public transit. The updated app (version 6.10) has an updated transit layer that allows you to specify which modes of transportation you'd like to show up on the map. This means that you'll now be able to just have subway lines appear without a tangle of bus routes cluttering the display. The options mimic the public transit choices that were added to directions earlier this year — you get to choose from train, bus, tram, or subway — and are available in the close to 500 cities (and over 1 million stations) that now have transit schedules in Maps. Additionally, station pages have been given a visual overhaul that more clearly shows which transit lines stop there, how far other stations are, and upcoming departure times.

Outside of public transport, one nifty new feature is that searches for cities or postal codes will now show boundaries on the map to show exactly where one city or ZIP code ends and where another begins. Lastly, the My Places page has been given a bit more information, and the Location History page now contains a few more interesting tidbits of where you frequent should you choose to enable the tracking feature.

The changes are coming via an update to Google Maps for Android today, and while Android users will be glad to get these minor changes, iPhone and iPad owners will, of course, miss out — especially when Apple's own mapping solution replaces Google's in iOS 6.