October 24, 2016

The Rhode Island Public Transit Authority (RIPTA) announced its participation today in the first statewide Hackathon hosted by the State of Rhode Island. The “Revolutionizing RIPTA” portion of the Hackathon – Hack(RI) – will officially launch at RIPTA’s Headquarters located at 705 Elmwood Avenue, Providence on October 26, 2016 at 6pm.

The State of Rhode Island Office of Innovation, RIPTA, <IntraCity> Geeks and MojoTech invites coders, designers, entrepreneurs, students, activists and other civically engaged individuals to brainstorm potential projects and develop creative and useful solutions during the Hackathon.

“Although hackers will be free to work on any project that they choose, this year’s key theme is “Revolutionizing RIPTA”. Participants will have access to RIPTA’s new, real-time, open data transit API in order to create a transit application,” said Arnell Milhouse, Director of Hack(RI) and <IntraCity> Geeks. “The API will provide access to real-time trip-updates, vehicle positions, service alerts and more. RIPTA, will bestow awards, prizes, glory, honor and swag to the team that creates the best mobile application.”

Hack(RI) is for every skill level, but to make the competition fair and shine a spotlight on Rhode Island tech companies, technology professionals will be required to register as a Pro team. Pro teams will go head to head to be judged against the best RI tech teams in the state — all in the spirit of friendly competition! The winners of the Revolutionizing RIPTA Hack(RI) category will receive a RIPTA swag bag which will include a featured advertisement onboard RIPTA buses announcing their win and more.

“Hack(RI) is a great example of promoting collaboration across government and technology communities to solve everyday problems,” stated Governor Gina Raimondo. “National trends show more transit agencies relying on technology to attract riders and improve the reliability of transit. By harnessing 21st-century technology and innovation, the Hackathon will help RIPTA introduce new technologies to provide the customer with better information on bus schedules, routes and trip planning. By making transit more convenient and easy to use, it will attract more riders.”

Hack(RI) promotes collaboration across government and technology communities, engages area technologists to improve government and provides a platform for citizens to share innovative ideas.

The “Revolutionizing RIPTA” portion of Hack(RI) Hackathon begins on October 26, 2016, and will include meetups leading up to the final event. The 3-day concentrated segment of Hack(RI) kicks off on Friday, December 3rd at TIMES2 STEM Academy with final presentations and awards being given on December 4, 2016. Hack(RI) is a free event and RIPTA is expecting a strong turnout from transit enthusiasts and members of the Rhode Island technology community.

For further details about the Hackathon, as well as registration information, visit hackri.com

For more information on RIPTA services, passengers can call 781-9400 or visit ripta.com.