Call-prep brief · checked 2026-08-01

Valley Metro

Grade F · 33.0 / 100

Unchanged since 2026-07-31.

For this call: lead with the grade and the three fixes below, then confirm the feed is current and the NTD details line up. Each fix is framed as a next step, not a failure.

What changed since the last check

Correctness no change
Freshness no change
Rider experience no change

Top three things to fix

Re-generate shape distances in your export; flag to your vendor if it persists.
Some trips have stop times whose distances along the route go backwards. Apps can show buses jumping backwards or mis-order stops.
Effort: Usually an export-tool fix, not hand editing.
Review the rule documentation for 'duplicate_key' at https://gtfs-validator.mobilitydata.org/rules.html and check the flagged rows in your feed.
Duplicate key (flagged by the MobilityData validator). See the linked rule for what this affects.
Effort: Varies.
Review the rule documentation for 'stop_time_with_arrival_before_previous_departure_time' at https://gtfs-validator.mobilitydata.org/rules.html and check the flagged rows in your feed.
Stop time with arrival before previous departure time (flagged by the MobilityData validator). See the linked rule for what this affects.
Effort: Varies.

Finding handoff

Move one finding to a recheck

Select one finding. Copy the request, make the change in the feed-producing tool, then compare the next complete run.

Feed evidence: Some trips have stop times whose distances along the route go backwards.
Next action: Re-generate shape distances in your export; flag to your vendor if it persists.
Recheck: Publish the changed feed at the same URL. On the next complete, comparable scorecard run, confirm that this finding is no longer reported.

Copy handoff text

Agency: Valley Metro
Finding: decreasing_or_equal_stop_time_distance
Feed evidence: Some trips have stop times whose distances along the route go backwards.
Why it matters: Apps can show buses jumping backwards or mis-order stops.
Requested change: Re-generate shape distances in your export; flag to your vendor if it persists.
Recheck: Publish the changed feed at the same URL. On the next complete, comparable scorecard run, confirm that this finding is no longer reported.
Evidence: https://gtfsscorecard.org/agency/valley-metro-2274/?finding=decreasing_or_equal_stop_time_distance#finding-handoff

NTD GTFS readiness: Needs attention

This feed is close to NTD-ready. 5 validator errors to resolve.

Published Ready: Published at a public URL.
Valid Needs attention: 5 validator errors to resolve.
Current Ready: The published window is current, but its service end date is unusually distant; confirm that date is intentional.
agency_id provided Ready: agency.txt provides agency_id. For RY2026, keep one stable value for each NTD reporter represented in the feed and crosswalk each value on the P-50 form.

agency_id equals NTD ID (optional): Not checked yet. This feed provides agency_id. For RY2026, keep one stable value for each NTD reporter represented in the feed and crosswalk it on the P-50 form. The value does not need to equal the five-digit NTD ID; we do not have that ID on file, so the optional equality comparison is not checked yet.

Key facts

Feed URL: https://vmgoapp.com/gtfs
Last checked: 2026-08-01
Service window: The feed states that service is published through 2099-12-31. Confirm that this end date is intentional before relying on it as a maintenance signal. Last service date 2099-12-31.
Feed version: 7/30/2026
Location: Virginia

Part of the Virginia portfolio: see where this agency sits among the state's feeds before the call.

A data-quality and completeness read to support an agency conversation. Not an official compliance determination. Rubric v1.3, validator 8.0.1.