Prep for a call: printable one-page brief · For your board packet: printable one-pager · Fix log: every issue this feed has cleared · Compare with another agency · Watch this feed: get an email before it expires
Feed status · checked 2026-07-09
Des Moines Area Regional Transit Authority (DART)
Based on the feed this agency publishes
down 0.4 since 2026-07-08
Ahead of 48% of all tracked agencies and 45% of mid-size agencies. Operates in Iowa.
A data-quality and completeness lens to help an agency improve its GTFS feed. Not an official compliance determination from any transit program. New to this? How to read your scorecard. Interactive view of this scorecard. Rubric v1.1, validator 8.0.1.
Checked for changes 15 minutes ago; last changed 18 days ago.
Top things to fix
Ask your AVL vendor why the feed stopped advancing; the GTFS-Realtime header timestamp should move forward on every publish.
The realtime feed's last update was about 15 hours old when sampled. A realtime feed this far behind has effectively stopped. Riders see buses that already left, or apps quietly fall back to the schedule while still showing a live label.
⏱ A vendor support ticket; treat it as a feed outage.worth about +25 points
Check with your AVL vendor that every vehicle assignment flows into TripUpdates, including school-day and tripper runs.
21 of 21 trips scheduled during the sampling window had no live predictions. Riders on those trips get schedule data dressed up as realtime. Caltrans expects every operating trip in TripUpdates.
⏱ A vendor data-mapping question.worth about +35 points
Agencies here usually clear this within about 1 week (based on 82 observed fixes).
Set wheelchair_boarding to 1 (accessible) or 2 (not accessible) for every stop. A field survey can start with the busiest stops.Likely your team
880 of 880 stops don't say whether a wheelchair user can board there. Riders who use wheelchairs can't plan a trip when accessibility is marked 'unknown'; apps show no information at all.
⏱ A column in stops.txt; your scheduling software likely has it.worth about +25 points
Close the loop on each fix. Read the guide, make the change in your tool, and let the next run verify it — the scorecard shows the fix; the agency publishes it.
Ask your AVL vendor why the feed stopped advancing; the GTFS-Realtime header timestamp should move forward on every publish.
Make the change. Make this change in whatever tool produces your feed, then re-export.
Prove it cleared. The next scorecard run re-checks this automatically and, once it is gone, mints a dated receipt. See this feed's dated fix log.
Check with your AVL vendor that every vehicle assignment flows into TripUpdates, including school-day and tripper runs. · Read the fix guide
Make the change. Make this change in whatever tool produces your feed, then re-export.
Prove it cleared. The next scorecard run re-checks this automatically and, once it is gone, mints a dated receipt. See this feed's dated fix log.
Set wheelchair_boarding to 1 (accessible) or 2 (not accessible) for every stop. A field survey can start with the busiest stops. · Read the fix guide
Make the change. Make this change in whatever tool produces your feed, then re-export.
Prove it cleared. The next scorecard run re-checks this automatically and, once it is gone, mints a dated receipt. See this feed's dated fix log.
Send your vendor a fix request
You may not control the GTFS export yourself. Copy this and send it to whoever runs your scheduling software export. It names each fix with the validator notice and a guide link.
Score by category
The MobilityData validator flagged 3 kinds of issue across 2320 instances (0 error, 2320 warning, 0 informational).
Service data covers the next 44 days.
0% of stops state wheelchair accessibility (0% marked accessible, 0% marked not accessible). This measures what the feed publishes, not whether a stop is physically usable. Fare data is not published.
0% of stops state accessibility (0% marked accessible). Reflects what the feed states, not verified physical usability.
Sampled 9 times: 3 of 3 feeds healthy; 0.0% of scheduled trips had live predictions; 86.1% of vehicles on their route; predictions ran a median of 135s behind schedule.
Over time
Overall score across the last 20 checks — down 0.4 since 2026-07-08.
Show the numbers
| Check | Score | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2026-06-19 | 75.1 | first check |
| 2026-06-20 | 75.1 | no change |
| 2026-06-21 | 74.8 | down 0.3 |
| 2026-06-22 | 74.6 | down 0.2 |
| 2026-06-23 | 74.8 | up 0.2 |
| 2026-06-24 | 74.8 | no change |
| 2026-06-25 | 74.3 | down 0.5 |
| 2026-06-26 | 73.8 | down 0.5 |
| 2026-06-27 | 61.3 | down 12.5 |
| 2026-06-28 | 61.0 | down 0.3 |
| 2026-06-29 | 60.7 | down 0.3 |
| 2026-06-30 | 60.3 | down 0.4 |
| 2026-07-01 | 60.0 | down 0.3 |
| 2026-07-02 | 59.7 | down 0.3 |
| 2026-07-04 | 59.0 | down 0.7 |
| 2026-07-05 | 58.7 | down 0.3 |
| 2026-07-06 | 58.3 | down 0.4 |
| 2026-07-07 | 58.0 | down 0.3 |
| 2026-07-08 | 57.7 | down 0.3 |
| 2026-07-09 | 57.3 | down 0.4 |
What changed since your last check
- Correctness no change
- Freshness down 1.7
- Rider experience no change
- Realtime quality no change
What changed in this feed
Overall score fell 0.4 points since 2026-07-08.
Same feed file as 2026-07-08; the published zip did not change.
Subscribe to this feed’s changes (Atom) to hear about grade drops in a reader, with no sign-up.
What changed over time
On 2026-06-19 this feed started at grade C. On 2026-06-27 the grade moved from C to D. On 2026-07-01 the grade moved from D to F. On 2026-06-24 it cleared scorecard_rt_trip_coverage. As of 2026-07-09 it holds grade F.
A plain-language history of this feed, newest first.
- 2026-07-01 Grade went D to F.
- 2026-06-27 Grade went C to D, realtime fell 61 points.
Everything we checked
- Error1 instance
The realtime feed's last update was about 15 hours old when sampled.
A realtime feed this far behind has effectively stopped. Riders see buses that already left, or apps quietly fall back to the schedule while still showing a live label.
Fix: Ask your AVL vendor why the feed stopped advancing; the GTFS-Realtime header timestamp should move forward on every publish. (A vendor support ticket; treat it as a feed outage.)
Validator rule: scorecard_rt_feed_lapsed
- Warning2317 instances
Some rider-facing names are in ALL CAPS or all lowercase.
ALL-CAPS stop and headsign names are harder to read in apps and are read awkwardly by screen readers.
Fix: Use mixed case for stop names and headsigns (e.g. 'Main St & 2nd Ave', not 'MAIN ST & 2ND AVE'). (Often a bulk fix in your scheduling software.)
Validator rule: mixed_case_recommended_field · Read the fix guide · See MobilityData GTFS Validator rules (opens the validator rules on an external site)
- Warning1664 instances
1664 of 1664 trips don't say whether the vehicle is wheelchair accessible.
Even with accessible stops, riders need to know the bus itself can take them.
Fix: Set wheelchair_accessible on every trip (most small-agency fleets are 100% accessible, so this is often a single default). (Often one default setting in your export.)
Agencies here usually clear this within about 1 week (based on 5 observed fixes).
Validator rule: scorecard_wheelchair_accessible_unknown · Read the fix guide · See GTFS Schedule reference (opens the GTFS Schedule reference on an external site)
- Warning880 instances
880 of 880 stops don't say whether a wheelchair user can board there.
Riders who use wheelchairs can't plan a trip when accessibility is marked 'unknown'; apps show no information at all.
Fix: Set wheelchair_boarding to 1 (accessible) or 2 (not accessible) for every stop. A field survey can start with the busiest stops. (A column in stops.txt; your scheduling software likely has it.)
Validator rule: scorecard_wheelchair_boarding_unknown · Read the fix guide · See GTFS Schedule reference (opens the GTFS Schedule reference on an external site)
- Warning21 instances
21 of 21 trips scheduled during the sampling window had no live predictions.
Riders on those trips get schedule data dressed up as realtime. Caltrans expects every operating trip in TripUpdates.
Fix: Check with your AVL vendor that every vehicle assignment flows into TripUpdates, including school-day and tripper runs. (A vendor data-mapping question.)
Agencies here usually clear this within about 1 week (based on 82 observed fixes).
Validator rule: scorecard_rt_trip_coverage · Read the fix guide · See GTFS-Realtime reference (opens the GTFS-Realtime reference on an external site)
- Warning11 instances
11 of 79 sampled vehicle positions were far from their assigned route (worst: 793 m).
A bus shown off its route usually means a wrong trip assignment; riders watch their bus drive the wrong streets.
Fix: Ask your AVL vendor to check vehicle-to-trip assignments for the flagged trips. (A vendor support ticket with the trip ids attached.)
Agencies here usually clear this within about 1 week (based on 31 observed fixes).
Validator rule: scorecard_rt_vehicles_off_route
- Warning2 instances
Some service calendars have no days of the week switched on.
Trips tied to these calendars never run; they are dead data that can mask real schedule problems.
Fix: Delete the empty calendars or set their service days. (A few minutes in your scheduling software.)
Validator rule: service_has_no_active_day_of_the_week · Read the fix guide · See MobilityData GTFS Validator rules (opens the validator rules on an external site)
- Warning1 instance
Missing feed contact email and url (flagged by the MobilityData validator).
See the linked rule for what this affects.
Fix: Review the rule documentation for 'missing_feed_contact_email_and_url' at https://gtfs-validator.mobilitydata.org/rules.html and check the flagged rows in your feed. (Varies.)
Agencies here usually clear this within about 1 week (based on 6 observed fixes).
Validator rule: missing_feed_contact_email_and_url · Read the fix guide · See MobilityData GTFS Validator rules (opens the validator rules on an external site)
- Warning1 instance
The feed contains no fare information.
Riders see 'fare unknown' in trip planners and can't budget their trip; visitors are most affected.
Fix: Add fare_attributes.txt (or Fares v2 files) with your fare structure. If your service is fare-free, ask to have it marked fare-free instead. (A small file for most flat-fare systems.)
Validator rule: scorecard_no_fare_data · Read the fix guide · See GTFS Best Practices (opens GTFS Best Practices on an external site)
- Warning1 instance
This feed models stations or entrances but has no pathways.txt.
Trip planners can't guide riders through the station, and there is no step-free route information for wheelchair users.
Fix: Add pathways.txt connecting entrances, platforms, and any elevators, with a level for each. (Worth it for multi-level or large stations; flat stops don't need it.)
Validator rule: scorecard_station_no_pathways · Read the fix guide · See GTFS Schedule reference (opens the GTFS Schedule reference on an external site)
- Info866 instances
About 866 stop names are written in ALL CAPS.
Mixed-case names are easier to read in apps and are read more naturally by screen readers.
Fix: Rename stops to mixed case (e.g. 'Main St & 2nd Ave'). (Often a bulk fix in your scheduling software.)
Validator rule: scorecard_stop_names_all_caps · Read the fix guide · See GTFS Best Practices (opens GTFS Best Practices on an external site)
- Info1 instance
feed_info.txt has no technical contact (feed_contact_email or feed_contact_url).
App makers and state data programs have nobody to email when they spot a problem with your feed, so problems linger.
Fix: Add feed_contact_email to feed_info.txt. (One field.)
Agencies here usually clear this within about 1 week (based on 10 observed fixes).
Validator rule: scorecard_no_feed_contact · Read the fix guide · See MobilityData GTFS Validator rules (opens the validator rules on an external site)
Beyond the grade
Opportunities that do not change your grade today: fare detail, on-demand service, and deeper accessibility data.
4 route badge(s) pair a color and text color below the WCAG 4.5:1 contrast bar (2, 5, 7, 8).
Consider: Adjust route_color or route_text_color so each pair clears 4.5:1. Often switching the text between black and white is enough.
863 stop name(s) use abbreviations or symbols a screen reader may mispronounce, with no spoken form set ("HUBBELL AVE / GUTHRIE AVE, DSM", "OFFICE PARK RD / #815, WDM", "11TH ST / OFFICE PARK RD, WDM", and more).
Consider: Add tts_stop_name with the spoken form, e.g. 'Main Street and Second Avenue', for the affected stops.
This feed models stations or entrances but has no pathways.txt and levels.txt.
Consider: Add pathways.txt connecting entrances, platforms, and elevators, and levels.txt for each floor, so the step-free route is described.
Some fixes we can make for you
These are the safe mechanical fixes, applied to a copy of your feed. They change only what is certain and leave everything else untouched. Review the diff before you publish.
Recased shouting stop names 866 changes
For example: HUBBELL AVE / GUTHRIE AVE, DSM -> Hubbell Ave / Guthrie Ave, Dsm
Recased shouting route names 8 changes
For example: HUBBELL AVE -> Hubbell Ave
NTD certification readiness Ready
Published at a public URL, valid, and current: the three things the NTD GTFS requirement asks of a feed all hold here. Only your own D-10 certification makes that official; this is a heads-up, not a determination.
- Published Ready
- Published at a public URL.
- Valid Ready
- Passes validation with no errors.
- Current Ready
- Service data covers the next 44 days.
- agency_id matches your NTD ID Not checked yet
- Setting your GTFS agency_id to your five-digit NTD ID is an optional way to line a feed up with its National Transit Database record. FTA links the two on your P-50 form, so it is not a required feed change. We don't have your NTD ID on file, so this is not checked yet.
In plain words: if you report to the federal transit database, you have to publish a working, up-to-date feed and confirm it once a year. This box is a heads-up on whether yours looks ready; it is not the official sign-off.
A readiness signal mapping this feed to the FTA National Transit Database GTFS requirement (Report Year 2023 onward: a public, valid, current feed, certified annually on the D-10). Aligning agency_id with your NTD ID lets the feed line up with your NTD record; the July 2025 final rule links the two on the P-50 form rather than requiring that feed change, and requires shapes.txt in the published GTFS: Full Reporters from Report Year 2025, and Reduced, Rural, and Tribal Reporters from Report Year 2026. Not an official determination; your certification is the official check.
Conformance mark Not yet
This feed is close to the conformance mark. States wheelchair access on 0% of stops and 0% of trips; the mark needs 90% of each.
- Valid Met
- Passes validation with no errors.
- Current Met
- Service data covers the next 44 days.
- Accessible Not yet
- States wheelchair access on 0% of stops and 0% of trips; the mark needs 90% of each.
In plain words: earn this mark when your feed passes validation, has not expired, and says whether nearly every stop and trip is wheelchair accessible.
A pass credential for a feed that is valid, current, and states wheelchair access on nearly every stop and trip. Accessibility here measures what the feed publishes, not whether a stop is physically usable. How the conformance mark works.
Realtime reliability
The realtime feed responded on 100.0% of 105 checks over the last 16 days, with 27s median lag.
Sampled on a schedule between full scores, so this tracks uptime and freshness over time rather than at a single moment.
Prediction accuracy
Arrival predictions ran a median 135s late versus the schedule, and stayed within 360s nine times in ten. They were on time (about a minute early to five late) 83.8% of the time. 86.1% of reported vehicle positions sat on or near the published route shape.
From the last full realtime sample: how far live arrival predictions sat from the schedule, and whether vehicle positions fell on the route. These feed the realtime score; they change no other category.
Clears the Google and Apple Maps four-week coverage bar. This feed has 44 days of service ahead, clearing the four-week (28-day) window Maps asks for. No validator errors either, so riders keep seeing this agency in their trip planners; warnings lower the grade here but do not remove a feed from Maps.
How this agency maps to the standards
A data-quality lens, not a compliance determination. Each category shows this feed's score and the standards it relates to: the FTA National Transit Database GTFS requirement, the MobilityData grading scheme, and the Google Transit gate. Read the full standards crosswalk.
- Correctness 84 / 100
- GTFS Schedule best practices, checked by the MobilityData validator. MobilityData grading: stop locations, route names and colors. Google Transit: a feed must pass validation to stay in Maps.
- Freshness 73 / 100
- The FTA National Transit Database expectation of a valid, current feed. Google Transit: an expired calendar drops the agency from Maps.
- Rider experience 23 / 100
- GTFS Best Practices for rider-facing fields. MobilityData grading: stop names and headsigns.
- Realtime quality 38 / 100
- GTFS-Realtime best practices: a stable URL, high uptime, and frequent updates.
Show your grade
Put a live badge on your agency site or feed README. It updates daily and links back to this scorecard.
Prefer a shields.io style? Point a dynamic endpoint badge at the published badge.json.
Cite this record
This page updates on every check. The record below does not: it is the dated file this grade came from, published at https://gtfsscorecard.org/data/artifacts/des-moines-area-regional-transit-authority-dart/2026-07-09.json and never overwritten, pinning the grade, category scores, rubric version, validator version, and the scored feed's sha256 as they stood on 2026-07-09. Use it in a board packet, an NTD narrative, or a research citation instead of linking the live page, whose content will differ on your next visit.
Citing the tool itself rather than one agency's record? Use the repo's CITATION.cff.