Mapping programs have come a long way over the years. We used to go to sites like Mapquest to print out directions and then GPS’s like Garmin and TomTom came along.

Nowadays I’m not sure if many people use much besides their phones for directions.

While I primarily use Waze for directions, when taking public transportation, Google Maps is the way to go.

Google Maps allows you to save directions off-line which is a nice feature. Some other useful updates were added a few years back.

TechCrunch is now reporting that Google Maps will soon be introducing another useful feature related to public transportation directions.

“Google Maps will soon tell you when it’s time to get off your train or bus“.

I don’t know about you, but it’s easy to zone out and just not pay attention while taking public transportation. With the new update though, Google Maps “will give you live guidance and interactive real-time notifications during your journey“, according to TechCrunch..

The real-time updates will show up in the Google Maps app as well as on the Android lock screen. There was no mention whether or not the updates will show up on the lock screen for iOS devices. (Boo…)

TechCrunch mentions that you’ll do your transit directions search as usual but you’ll then be able to hit a start button which has the details about your trip, giving you live updates while you’re walking or riding public transportation (buses & trains). The most useful part of the update is that TechCrunch believes “that Google Maps will even remind you to get off your bus or train when you get close to your stop.”

The update is supposed to go live soon but there was no mention of an actual launch date.

Find out more from TechCrunch here.