← Plat home

Privacy Policy

Last updated: May 8, 2026

Plat is an iOS app for showing the next train and bus arrivals at the saved transit stops you choose. This page explains what data the app uses, how it's used, and what is not collected.

Plain-English summary

• We use your iPhone's location to show which of your saved stops are closest to you. That's it.
• We do not have a server holding any user data, nor an account system.
• We do not collect, transmit, sell, or share your data.
• We do not use any analytics or tracking SDKs.
• The list of stops you save is stored locally on your device.

Location

Plat requests location access ("When In Use" first, then optionally "Always") to:

• Identify the 3 closest of your saved transit stops.
• Update that ranking as you move between neighborhoods so the widget reflects your current area.

We use significant location changes (Apple's low-power location API) in the background. Your precise location is read on-device only. It is never stored, transmitted, or shared with us or any third party. If you decline location access, the app still works — it simply uses the order in which you saved your stops instead of distance.

Data stored on your device

• Your list of saved transit stops (line, station, direction, location).
• Your manual stop groupings ("combine these into one location").
• A cached snapshot of upcoming arrivals so the widget renders quickly.

These are stored in the app's private storage and shared with the Plat widget via an Apple App Group. Nothing leaves your device.

Network requests

Plat makes HTTPS requests to:

• api-endpoint.mta.info — the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's GTFS-Realtime feeds for subway arrival times.
• A Cloudflare Worker we operate that forwards bus arrival queries to bustime.mta.info. The Worker injects an MTA Bus Time API key server-side so it never ships in the iOS binary; it does not log or store your queries.

These requests include the saved stop ID and route you're checking arrivals for. They do not include your location, identity, or any data that could be used to identify you.

Children

Plat does not knowingly collect data from children, because it does not collect data from anyone.

Third-party services

The only third party the app contacts (directly or via our Worker) is the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), to fetch transit data. MTA's terms are published at api.mta.info.

Changes

If this policy changes, the new version will be posted at the same URL. The "Last updated" date at the top will reflect the change.

Contact

For privacy questions or any other contact, open an issue at github.com/joshcohen90/Plat/issues.