HopStop

HopStop was an American online and mobile urban-transit navigation service founded in 2005 by Chinedu Echeruo. It provided route planning for public transportation and other urban travel modes, including buses, subways, trains, taxis, walking, cycling, and, in some cases, hourly car rentals. Users could request customized, step-by-step directions based on departure time, transportation mode, transfer preferences, and the amount of walking they were willing to undertake. The service began as a web-based city transit guide and expanded into applications for iPhone, iPad, Android devices, and Windows Phone. Its coverage ultimately extended across hundreds of metropolitan areas, with particularly strong visibility in major North American and European cities such as New York, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Washington, Toronto, London, and Paris. HopStop also supplied transit maps and schedule information and did not depend exclusively on agencies publishing General Transit Feed Specification data. Beyond point-to-point directions, HopStop included a nearby-stations tool, a city guide covering attractions, restaurants, hotels, bars, shopping, and other destinations, and a community-oriented trip-planning area for itineraries with multiple stops. It also presented estimated calories burned and carbon-emissions savings associated with transit routes, extending the product beyond basic navigation into lifestyle and environmental information. The brand gained attention during the transition surrounding Apple’s release of iOS 6 in 2012. Apple had replaced Google Maps with its own mapping product, and several technology publications identified HopStop as a useful alternative for public-transit users. In July 2013, Apple acquired HopStop. Following the acquisition, support for Windows Phone was withdrawn, the Android application was removed from Google Play in September 2013, and the service was progressively discontinued. By October 2015, HopStop was no longer available on any platform, as Apple incorporated transit directions into Apple Maps through iOS 9. The shutdown ended HopStop as a standalone consumer brand and generated criticism because Apple Maps did not initially preserve coverage for all of the cities previously served by HopStop.

HopStop was established in 2005 by Chinedu Echeruo, who had studied at Syracuse University and Harvard Business School and had previously worked as an analyst at investment banks and hedge funds. The company developed an online guide intended to make complicated urban journeys easier to plan. Rather than limiting users to simple road directions, HopStop concentrated on the practical details of city travel: transit lines, station access, walking segments, transfers, departure times, and alternative modes such as cycling and taxis. The service expanded from its website into free mobile applications for iPhone, iPad, Android, and Windows Phone. Its principal function was customized, step-by-step routing. Users could choose public transit, walking, biking, taxis, or other available options and could adjust preferences such as minimizing walking or reducing the number of transfers. HopStop also offered official or agency-based transit maps and schedule information, nearby-station searches, and a city guide listing destinations including restaurants, hotels, bars, attractions, and shopping areas. Community tools enabled users to assemble itineraries with multiple destinations. Route results could include estimates for calories burned and carbon emissions avoided through transit use. HopStop’s geographic footprint grew considerably. The service listed coverage in hundreds of metropolitan areas worldwide, including cities throughout the United States and Canada, as well as London, Paris, Moscow, and Saint Petersburg. Its United States coverage included major markets such as New York, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, Philadelphia, Atlanta, Las Vegas, and Washington, D.C. The company’s data model was also notable because transit agencies did not necessarily need to publish General Transit Feed Specification data for HopStop to provide information. In 2008, trade coverage described the service as receiving angel financing and attracting approximately 1.5 million visits per month. In 2009, Echeruo left HopStop and Joe Meyer, formerly associated with AOL’s Quigo Technologies, became president and chief executive officer. HopStop was subsequently included among the fastest-growing United States software companies and ranked 1,182 on the 2011 Inc. 500|5000 list. The product became especially visible after Apple released iOS 6 in September 2012. Apple had replaced Google Maps with its own mapping application, but the initial Apple Maps product did not satisfy all public-transit users. Business Insider, Fast Company, Wired, and other publications listed HopStop among useful transit applications for Apple devices. Apple acquired HopStop in July 2013. The acquisition was followed by a narrowing of the standalone product’s availability: Windows Phone support ended shortly afterward, and the Android application was removed from Google Play in September 2013. HopStop’s remaining service was eventually retired. By October 2015, it was unavailable on all platforms, while Apple used the iOS 9 generation of Apple Maps to provide transit directions. The discontinuation attracted criticism because Apple Maps did not initially retain coverage for roughly one hundred cities that had previously been served by HopStop. The HopStop brand therefore ended as an independent consumer navigation service, although its capabilities and transit expertise were associated with Apple’s broader mapping strategy.

• 2015

  Standalone service discontinued

  [1]HopStopen.wikipedia.org

  HopStop disappears from all platforms as Apple Maps begins offering transit directions through iOS 9.

• 2013

  Apple acquisition

  [1]HopStopen.wikipedia.org

  Apple acquires HopStop in July, after which the standalone service begins losing platform support.

• 2012

  Visibility rises after iOS 6

  [1]HopStopen.wikipedia.org

  Technology publications recommend HopStop as a transit option following Apple’s replacement of Google Maps in iOS 6.

• 2011

  Inc. 500|5000 recognition

  [1]HopStopen.wikipedia.org

  HopStop is listed among the fastest-growing United States software companies and ranks 1,182 overall.

• 2009

  Leadership passes to Joe Meyer

  [1]HopStopen.wikipedia.org

  Founder Chinedu Echeruo leaves HopStop and Joe Meyer becomes president and chief executive officer.

• 2008

  Early audience and financing growth

  [1]HopStopen.wikipedia.org

  Contemporary reporting described angel financing and approximately 1.5 million monthly visits.

• 2005

  HopStop is founded

  [1]HopStopen.wikipedia.org

  Chinedu Echeruo establishes HopStop as an online urban-transit and city-navigation guide.

A free, multimodal urban-navigation service focused on detailed public-transit directions and city travel information.

• Web transit-navigation service · 2005

  HopStop.com

  The original web service supplied free, customized directions for public transit, walking, cycling, taxis, and selected car-rental journeys. It also included maps, schedules, station searches, city listings, and route-related environmental and calorie estimates.

• Mobile navigation applications

  HopStop mobile applications

  HopStop distributed applications for iPhone, iPad, Android, and Windows Phone. The apps brought the service’s multimodal directions, nearby-station search, transit information, and city-guide functions to mobile users before platform support was withdrawn after Apple’s acquisition.

• Local discovery feature

  HopStop City Guide

  The City Guide connected route planning with local discovery by helping users find attractions, restaurants, hotels, bars, shopping areas, and other businesses in supported metropolitan areas.

• 2015

  Transit directions move to Apple MapsGeneration change

  Background

  Apple introduced public-transit directions as part of the iOS 9 generation of Apple Maps.

  Action taken

  HopStop was removed from all platforms and ceased operating as a standalone service.

  Aftermath

  The shutdown drew criticism because Apple Maps initially lacked coverage for approximately one hundred cities previously supported by HopStop.

  Source

• 2013

  Apple acquires HopStopM&A

  Background

  HopStop had become a prominent independent transit-navigation option, particularly after the launch of Apple Maps without broad public-transit support.

  Action taken

  Apple acquired the company in July 2013 and subsequently folded its transit capabilities and expertise into Apple’s mapping strategy.

  Aftermath

  The standalone product lost platform support and was ultimately discontinued.

  Source

• 2013

  Platform support is narrowed after acquisitionStrategy

  Background

  Following Apple’s acquisition, maintaining HopStop as a fully independent cross-platform application was no longer the apparent product direction.

  Action taken

  Windows Phone support was withdrawn, and the Android application was removed from Google Play later in 2013.

  Aftermath

  HopStop’s availability became increasingly concentrated within Apple’s ecosystem before the brand was retired.

  Source

• 2015

  HopStop shuts down as a standalone service[1]HopStopen.wikipedia.org

  Product generation

  By October 2015, HopStop was unavailable across platforms after Apple began supplying transit directions through Apple Maps in iOS 9.

• 2013

  Apple acquires HopStop[1]HopStopen.wikipedia.org

  M&A

  Apple acquired HopStop in July 2013, beginning the transition of its transit technology and coverage into Apple’s mapping products.

• 2013

  HopStop withdraws support from Windows Phone and Android[1]HopStopen.wikipedia.org

  Product generation

  Following Apple’s acquisition, Windows Phone support was discontinued and the Android application was removed from Google Play later that year.

• 2012

  HopStop gains visibility as an iOS 6 transit alternative[1]HopStopen.wikipedia.org

  Product generation · Other

  After Apple replaced Google Maps in iOS 6, technology publications highlighted HopStop among useful transit applications for Apple devices.

• 2011

  HopStop is recognized on the Inc. 500|5000 list[1]HopStopen.wikipedia.org

  Other

  HopStop was identified as one of the fastest-growing software companies in the United States and ranked 1,182 overall on the 2011 Inc. 500|5000 list.

• 2009

  HopStop changes leadership[1]HopStopen.wikipedia.org

  Leadership change

  Founder Chinedu Echeruo left the company, and Joe Meyer became president and chief executive officer.

• 2008

  HopStop receives angel financing and reaches substantial monthly traffic[1]HopStopen.wikipedia.org

  Other

  Contemporary coverage reported angel financing and approximately 1.5 million monthly visits as the service expanded its audience.

• 2005

  HopStop is founded as an urban transit guide[1]HopStopen.wikipedia.org

  Other

  Chinedu Echeruo founded HopStop as a service for detailed city-transit and multimodal directions.

1. 1HopStopen.wikipedia.org