Frequently Asked Questions

Phone System Access

When can I call the 511NY system?

The 511 phone service is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

How much does it cost to make a 511NY call?

511NY does not charge for the call. Calling 511NY from a landline phone will cost the same as making a local call. If you use a cell phone, airtime and roaming charges may apply.

Will I be able to call 511NY anywhere in the state?

511NY is available all across New York State. Telephone service providers will need to establish the ability to route 511NY calls to the system. Contact your telephone company if you are unable to reach the 511NY service.

How does the phone system know the location from which I am calling?

The New York 511 phone system will either identify your telephone prefix when you use a landline phone or the communications tower that your wireless phone is connected to when you call. Knowing your calling location allows the 511NY system to provide information specific to that area of the state.

What languages does the 511NY system use?

Information in the 511NY phone system and Web site is presented in English.

Will my call be dropped if it can not be transferred to another system?

No, the New York 511 service will keep you on the line until your call is successfully transferred to a partner agency when you select this option.

Can I use my Internet phone (Voice Over IP/VoIP) to call 511NY?

This depends on whether your provider offers an address translation service (primarily used to identify your location for 911 or E911). If so, when you call 511NY your call will be routed to the 511NY system if your registered address is in New York State. The following VoIP carriers provide this address translation service: AT&T Wireless, AT&T Wireline, Frontier Communications, OneCommunications, Sprint (Including Nextel), T-Mobile, Verizon Wireless, Verizon Wireline.

Can I call the 511NY service using a cell phone while I’m driving?

Use of a hand-held mobile telephone while driving is prohibited by New York State Law. If you use a hand-held mobile telephone while you drive, except to call 911 or to contact medical, fire or police personnel about an emergency, you may receive a traffic ticket and pay a maximum fine of $100 and mandatory surcharges of $50.

Use of a hands-free microphone is all right but put safety first. Call 511NY before you leave. If you do need to call 511NY en route, call from a rest area, fueling station or other stopping point, or have a passenger make the call for you. Remember, it is illegal to park your vehicle on the shoulder of an interstate highway unless there is an emergency.

Please visit the New York State Governor's Traffic Safety Committee page for more information.

Does 511NY have an 800 number option?

Yes. Call 888-GO511NY (888-465-1169).

What if the system is busy when I call?

With 511NY, your call will always be answered. If there is an unusually high volume of calls when you called, your call will be put in a queue to interact with the system. We are monitoring call volumes and will add capacity if needed.

Why can’t I reach 511NY?

There are several reasons why you might not be able to access the 511NY system:

1. Your telephone company doesn’t provide access to 511NY. Most landline and cellular service carriers in New York State allow access to the 511 system. If your carrier is not listed, ask it to support 511NY. If your carrier does not support 511NY, you can reach 511NY via our toll-free number: 888-GO511NY (888-465-1169).
2. Cell phone reception is poor.

   Try calling back from another location.

3. Your phone system at work does not support dialing 511NY.

   Many businesses have their own telephone systems that may need to be reprogrammed to allow direct access to the 511NY system. Contact your office manager or telephone system administrator to have them enable access to 511NY.

4. Your cell phone is using a cell tower in a neighboring state.

   When you call from an area near a bordering state, your cell phone may use a cell tower in that state, not in New York, preventing you from accessing 511NY. This has occurred in some places on the north shore of Long Island (calls may use cell towers in Connecticut). If this happens, dial our toll-free number, 888-GO511NY (888-465-1169).

5. You are calling from another state. Dialing 511 will connect you with the 511 system in the state from which you are calling, if available. Call the 511NY toll-free number 888-GO511NY (888-465-1169).
6. You are calling from a pay phone that has not been programmed for 511.

   Call the 511NY toll-free number 888-GO511NY (888-465-1169).

How can I reach New York’s 511 service from outside the state?

The New York 511 service can be reached through these toll-free numbers:

How can I connect to other 511 telephone services?

511NY will transfer your call to travel information services in New Jersey, Quebec or Vermont depending on the 511NY calling region menu you are using (the 511NY region must be adjacent to the state or province). If transfers are enabled, say "Other 511 Systems" at the Main Menu.

What do I do when the system do not understand what I am saying?

511NY uses a state-of-the-art voice-recognition system to guide you through the menu options. The system might have a difficulty responding to your request if:

• you said something it is not programmed to recognize at that particular menu;
• it cannot understand your voice; or
• there is background noise, such as a radio or people talking near you, that prevents the system from understanding you.

Reduce background noise and speak as clearly as possible in a normal tone of voice. If you are using a cell phone and you have a low signal, try calling back when you get a better one. If you still have problems, use numeric touch-tone commands.

How do I use the phone system if I am hearing-impaired?

Hearing-impaired callers can dial 711 or visit https://www.fcc.gov/consumers/guides/ip-relay-service for assistance on-line to access 511NY information. 711 is the national three-digit number for access to Telecommunication Relay Services (TRS). Callers dial 711 and ask the operator to connect them to the 511 service. Once connected, the 711 operator acts as a go-between, relaying callers' request for travel information to the 511 system and then providing system responses back to the callers.

How do I use the phone system if I am speech-impaired?

Speech-impaired callers can use the touch-tone system to access information from the 511 system. Press "0" at each new menu to hear the touch-tone options, then press the number that matches your choice. Once you learn the touch-tones, there is no need to press zero to hear the list of choices; just enter your selection.

How accessible is the 511NY Web site if I am vision-impaired?

The 511NY Web site has been designed to meet the accessibility policies of the NYS Office for Technology. Most of the material on the Web site will be in HTML or ASCII (plain text) formats. However, some of the files may require users to have installed the following specific software or plug-ins to interpret the page content: Adobe Acrobat Portable Document Format (PDF), Adobe Flash and Microsoft Office.

Transit Trip Planner

How does the 511NY Transit Trip Planner differ from others?

Our transit trip planner is groundbreaking in its ability to plan a multi-modal trip involving several different types of transportation services and multiple operators. The trip planner also allows you to specify:

• Arrival or departure time
• Date
• Travel by (pick from the list: Transit, train only, bus only, walk only, bike only, transit & bike)
• Optimize by: Fewest transfers or Quickest trip

How do I use the 511NY Transit Trip Planner?

Enter your Start and End Address in the fields shown to the left of the map. Then click ‘Submit’.

If you want to add more settings click the ‘Show Settings’ button.

• There you will be able to enter whether you want to ‘Arrive at’ or ‘Depart by’ a certain time and date, which can be filled in manually or using the clock and calendar pop-ups.
• You can select the modes you would like to travel by (Transit, train only, bus only, walk only, bike only, transit & bike) and
• You can select how to optimize your trip (Fewest transfers or Quickest trip)

I’m not sure of exact street addresses. Can I still use the Transit Trip Planner?

Absolutely. The Transit Trip Planner uses auto-complete functionality to help you identify the correct address. You can also click on the map to indicate the approximate origin and destination of your trip. Zoom in, as needed, to see more street detail.

What information will the Trip Planner give me?

After you have submitted your inputs, the results will display in the same window under the ‘Submit’ button. You may have to scroll down or ‘Hide Settings’ to see your trip options (up to 3). Trip options show:

• Map with trip traced
• Starting and Ending points on the map and in text
• Details on where to board the service
• Start and end time and trip duration
• Detailed instructions and duration of each leg of your trip (if applicable)

I’m unfamiliar with the area. Will the Transit Trip Planner show me where the closest stop is and tell me how to get there?

Yes. Your itinerary will be displayed alongside a map showing the starting point of your trip and where you will pick up the service as well as providing you with detailed directions.

Can I print directions?

Yes, the Transit Trip Planner supports printing. After you have planned your journey and selected your trip option, click the print icon on the right side of the option summary (under the total travel time). Your browser should open a pop-up window to allow you to choose your printer and other printing options.

The Transit Trip Planner can’t find my address.

Zoom into your address and right click on the map. The map will give you an option to set your start location or end location.