Fix: stops that no trip ever serves
Code: stop_without_stop_time (MobilityData validator)
What this means
Some stops in stops.txt are never referenced in stop_times.txt, so no
scheduled trip stops there. The stop exists in the feed but nothing arrives.
Why it matters
A rider can find one of these stops in a trip planner or on a map and walk to a
corner where no bus is scheduled to come. It also tends to mean the feed is
carrying retired stops the export never cleaned up.
How to fix it
First decide which case each stop is:
- A retired stop that should no longer be published: remove it from the
export. Many tools have a "do not export unused stops" option, or you remove
the stop record at the source.
- A stop that should be served but was dropped from its trips by mistake:
add it back to the trips that should serve it, so it gets stop_times
entries again.
A stop that is a parent station or a boarding area referenced by other stops is
a different case and is not flagged by this notice.
How long it usually takes
A review pass in your scheduling software. The count tells you how big the pass
is; a handful is minutes, dozens is an afternoon of cleanup.