Accessing Public Transit Information by Phone Differs by Race/ Ethnicity, Nativity and Geography % of U.S. adult smartphone owners in each category the transit information frequently/
Additionally, 25% of smartphone owners (and 38% of those ages 18-29) use their phone at least occasionally to find public transit information.
Several groups stand out when it comes to using their phones for public transit information.
Minority and immigrant workers tend to rely more heavily on public transportation for commuting to their jobs than other groups do, according to 2009 U.S. Census Bureau data, and these groups are also relatively likely to navigate public transit using a mobile device. Some 37% of African-American and 30% of Hispanic smartphone owners use their phone to get public transit information at least occasionally, compared with 21% of whites. Foreign-born smartphone owners are also more likely to access public transportation on the go than those born in the U.S. (34% vs. 24%).
In addition, 41% of smartphone owners from the Northeast (home to several of the most traveled transit systems in the country) use their phone at least occasionally to look up public transit information, a substantially higher share than in other regions of the country. This activity is also more popular among smartphone owners who live in an urban area than among those who live in the suburbs or a rural area.
Accessing Public Transit Information  | by Phone Differs by Race/ Ethnicity,  | Nativity and Geography  | % of U.S. adult smartphone owners in each category  | the who use their phone frequently/ 'occasionally category to get  | the transit information frequently/  | Total  | 25  | Whites  | Blacks  | Hispa Blacks nics  | U.S born  | 24  | Foreign born  | 34  | Northeast  | Mid west  | 20  | South  | 20  | West  | 23  | Urban  | 34  | Sub urban  | 22  | Rural  | 10  | Pew Research Center American Trends Panel survey, Oct. 3-27  | 2014. Whites and blacks include only non-Hispanics  | PEW RESEARCH CENTER 