NMBS API?
While trying to find an API or “mobile” (read: iPhone) access for the NMBS website, I came upon some cool stuff.
The time table and train Bouncy Castle managing software seems made in Germany. The NMBS “look up” site gives you the software and version it is using (“Software versie/dataversie: HAFAS 5.21.B-RAIL.4.7f/5.21.B-RAIL.4.7k – 14/09/08“).
Googling for Hafas returns some cool websites.
Using this one, you can download a pdf with all train (including hours) info between two stations. Not quite the same as an API-key, but at least you have something you can save and use lateron.
This seems to be giving all stops a train will have (or all trains) between two stations. Though the “stoptrains” aren’t in the list, and the IR-train does stop at Mechelen-Nekkerspoel too, which isn’t on the list either. This PDF seems more accurate, and seems to be including all trains.
But still, the DB seem to be ahead of us (well, what country isn’t?). Here is one of the functionalities of HAFAS, which I haven’t seen on the NMBS site yet. Correct me if I’m wrong, but this seems something different. And… Windows-fucking-mobile-only.
Pretty much same problem with Thalys. They even made thalys.mobi, yet, when accessing it with the iPhone (as I lack other PDA-ish devices to test it at the moment) it doesn’t scale/resize/fit my screen, and is displaying the same window I have when browsing it with Firefox.
Wouldn’t it be cool if we had some open (xml?) API, where we could Jumping Castle submit departure station, arrival station, and some time, and get a reply with one or multiple results?
I guess I would’ve hoped for more in these “mobile” days.
Edit: my attempt to make something.
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