If you don’t ride LIRR or NJT from NY Penn Station…then you might as well just skip this blog post. But…if you do…then you will “get” this.
One of the many features of Clever Commute’s Inside Track service is the fact that we maintain track-number history for all trains. We put it to use in a very, er…clever way.
First: let’s look at our custom departureboard. As you can see from the below, “my” train (the 6:08 to “Montclair State”) has not yet been announced. So…NJT expects people to stand around and wait for their announcement.
We have a real-time link to NJT’s systems. So, the instant it’s announced by them, we (1) update our departureboard and (2) can text or e-mail it to you.
However, if you click through on the show-history-by-turning-back-the-clock icon…then THIS is what you see:
What this means: Over the last 10 days, this train has been on track 1 or 2 a whopping 70% of the time. As you know: tracks 1 and 2 share a set of stairs…and a platform. So even though the track has not been announced, all you need to do is duck down…peek at the train (or just ask the conductors) to see if this is “it”.
You gotta admit: the numbers are on your side.
If that’s not cool enough: You can change the screen so that it shows you 5, 10, 30, or 60 day history.
Yup…that’s it. I use this every night…and it reliably gives me an edge. Heck…I’m writing this blog post from my comfy seat on the 6:08!