Patent Document ID: 20130046456
Application ID: 13587798
Patent Flag: 0

Claim One:
1. A computer-implemented method comprising: receiving, by one or more configured computing systems of an inter-modal travel option assessment system, information from a user about a starting location and a destination location in a geographic area and an indicated time corresponding to the user traveling from the starting location to the destination location; determining, by the one or more configured computing systems, multiple alternative travel options for the user to travel from the starting location to the destination location at the indicated time, the multiple alternative travel options each using a distinct combination of two or more modes of transportation from multiple available modes of transportation in the geographic area, wherein the multiple modes of transportation include one or more mass transit systems in the geographic area and include use of a private vehicle of the user traveling on one or more roads in the geographic area, and wherein at least one of the multiple alternative travel options uses a combination that includes at least one of the mass transit systems for a subset of the travel and that includes the use of the private vehicle of the user for another subset of the travel; obtaining, by the one or more configured computing systems, road traffic information about traffic conditions on the one or more roads at an indicated time, the obtained road traffic information corresponding to actual traffic conditions if the indicated time is a current time and corresponding to expected traffic conditions if the indicated time is a future time; obtaining, by the one or more configured computing systems, schedule information for the one or more mass transit systems; obtaining, by the one or more configured computing systems, monetary cost information associated with using each of the multiple modes of transportation; assessing, by the one or more configured computing systems, monetary costs associated with using each of the multiple alternative travel options to travel from the starting location to the destination location at the indicated time, the assessed costs for the multiple alternative travel options being based at least in part on the obtained monetary cost information; assessing, by the one or more configured computing systems, travel times associated with using each of the multiple alternative travel options to travel from the starting location to the destination location at the indicated time, the assessed travel times for the multiple alternative travel options being based at least in part on the obtained schedule information and on the obtained road traffic information; and providing information to the user about one or more of the multiple alternative travel options that indicates the assessed monetary costs and the assessed travel times for the one or more alternative travel options, to enable the user to use one of the one or more alternative travel options to travel at the indicated time from the starting location to the destination location.