Pop app
The Pop app is a multi-purpose mobile app for the Tyne and Wear Metro. It is available for iOS on the Apple App Store and for Android on the Google Play Store. It does not require an account to use but does require agreeing to an End User Licence Agreement. It is developed by Nebula Labs[1] on behalf of Nexus under the code-name "Nexus Next Generation".[OR] It replaced the older Tyne and Wear Metro App and Pop Card Checker app.
Features
[edit | edit source]- View Metro service status updates[2]
- Subscribe to push notifications for service status updates[1][2]
- View the realtime locations of passenger trains via a map[3][4][5]
- Check the next passenger trains due at a station[1][3]
- Plan a Metro journey[1][2]
- Connect to Metro Connect[6][7][8]
- Find ways to contact Nexus[4][9]
- Check the occupancy of some car parks[1][4]
- Check the data on a Pop card (only on NFC-supported devices)[OR]
- Buy One Week Metro Season Tickets (only on Android, in collaboration with Google Pay, Yotra Ltd, and Scheidt & Bachmann)[2][10][11][12]
- Buy special event tickets, such as for concerts[2][13]
- Scan special event ticket QR codes[a][OR]
History
[edit | edit source]By 13 July 2018, Nexus was working with Google to develop a mobile app to allow customers to pay for Metro tickets.[14]
The app was first published to the Google Play Store on 13 November 2020.[15] Nexus announced its release on 24 November 2020, focusing on its ability to provide One Week Metro Season Tickets, and plans to add other products, including Pop PAYG, in 2021.[10][16] Support was not added for Apple Pay, and therefore iOS, due to questions Apple had over data access and third-party firms, but Nexus was in talks to change this.[17][18] This app's initial release also included a journey planner, beginning the deprecation of the original Tyne and Wear Metro App which also featured a journey planner,[19][20] and a Pop card checker, which was also available as a standalone app on Android.[21][22] It also included realtime due times,[23][24] however that feature was labelled as a test.[16]
On 15 January 2021, a 'How busy is the Metro?' feature was added,[25] again copying from the original Tyne and Wear Metro App.[26][27] However, this feature has since been removed.
Nexus announced support for Pop PAYG in Google Pay (now Google Wallet) on 28 February 2022.[28][29][30][31] However, this is done entirely within Google's app, not the Pop app which only includes a set-up guide.
On 18 August 2022, the "Test" label was removed from the realtime due times page.[32] On 30 January 2023, the original Tyne and Wear Metro App was entirely replaced by the Pop app (automatically on iOS and through notifications on Android), resulting in the realtime features of the Pop app (for due times and car parking) becoming available on iOS.[23][24]
Support for push notifications about Metro service status updates was added in May 2023, and the option to personalize these notifications was added in October 2024.[33]
On 22 November 2024, Nexus told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that Apple was planning to rollout the technology required to support adding UK transit cards (including Pop cards) to Apple Wallet. However, they also added that new smartcard readers would be needed first.[34][35]
On 29 January 2025, the live map was added.[4][5]
On 9 December 2025, support for Metro Connect was added.[7][8]
On 2 June 2026, the layout of the Android version of the app was revamped to better match that of the iOS version, such as by switching from a hamburger menu to a bottom navigation bar suited for one-handed use. Support for special event tickets was also added, piloted by offering a Metro Day Ticket for a Take That concert on 9 June 2026.[13]
Technical details
[edit | edit source]Programming languages and frameworks
[edit | edit source]The Pop app is developed using Swift (for the iOS app), Kotlin (for the Android app), Django (a web framework for Python, used for the APIs)[1] and Vue.js (a web framework for JavaScript, used for the live map).
Map
[edit | edit source]The Pop app live map is an embedded web page meaning it can be accessed without using the Pop app, such as from a desktop. The realtime data shown on the map updates periodically (every 10 seconds since 17 April 2025 and as of 22 July 2026).
APIs
[edit | edit source]The Pop app uses a number of purpose-built APIs, which are the servers a device connects to when refreshing realtime data or when purchasing tickets.
This wiki does not act as documentation for any part of the Pop app or its APIs. The purpose of this section is to provide insight into how the app works, which is necessary for understanding some of the technical limitations of the app.
Realtime API
[edit | edit source]The realtime API can be broken down further into "the geo API" and "the times API". The creator of this wiki hosts a proxy for the realtime API which adds a number of features on top of the underlying API, such as data collation, streaming, a history and timetables. The realtime API restarts at 3AM every day.
The times API is the most well-known of Nexus' APIs and is what provides the "Personal PID" (the due times at the bottom of the "Track your Metro" page of the Pop app).
The geo API is newer and is what provides the train statuses and service statuses shown in the live map. It requires a JWT to access, but there are a couple endpoints which provide one without requiring any other authorization.
Journey plan API
[edit | edit source]The journey plan API is provided by Nebula Labs. The domain name dedicated to it starts with "ken", which is likely a reference to Metro Ken, a mascot used to inform customers about modernization work. The API is responsible for:
- the journey planner, using GTFS technology[1]
- status updates for car parks (this is the note or warning shown alongside each car park)
- listing Metro stations currently supporting Metro Connect
- providing Metro service status updates
- providing the available categories for push notifications
- subscribing to push notifications
Host card emulation API
[edit | edit source]For information about host card emulation itself, see this Wikipedia article.
The host card emulation (HCE) API is responsible for:
- providing car park data, which is in turn provided by a "custom local government API"[1]
- handling purchases of some tickets via Stripe
Realtime data quirks
[edit | edit source]The volatile nature of the realtime API means that it has a lot of technical quirks which cause strange behaviour in the Pop app. A number of these known quirks are listed in the table below.
| Symptom | Cause | Times API affected | Geo API affected |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trains get stuck departing a station when they enter a siding or depot. Other trains appear to overtake these trains. A number of trains still appear to be active in the middle of the night, despite being in the depot. | The realtime API does not track trains entering sidings or depots. These trains will appear stuck having departed their last station. Usually, these trains will disappear after a few minutes. However, other times they will stay there until they leave the siding/depot, or until the API is restarted. | Yes | Yes |
| Green line trains with a destination inside the shared stretch (e.g.: South Gosforth) will show in the map but will not show as due at any stations in the shared stretch. | The times API tries to predict which line a train is running on based on the selected station and the train's destination. This line color used to be shown alongside each time in the Pop app. The Pop app no longer uses this data at all, but it still tried to parse it. The Pop app only expected either "YELLOW" or "GREEN" as the values. However, the API can't figure out the line color when both the stations it is referencing are in the shared stretch, so will report a line of "UNKNOWN". When the Pop app tries to parse this, it encounters an error.
|
Yes | No |
| Green line trains with a destination inside the shared stretch but which haven't reached the shared stretch yet (e.g.: at South Hylton headed to South Gosforth) will be completely missing from the map until entering the shared stretch and will disappear briefly from the due times when entering the shared stretch. | Unknown, but could be related to the line color issue described above. | No | Yes |
| Green line trains with a destination inside the shared stretch will disappear from the due times when approaching Regent Centre or Fellgate and reappear when approaching South Gosforth or Pelaw. | Yes | No | |
| Trains will disappear from the map while at their termini, or whenever the driver leaves the cab, even if the train is still in service and is showing in the due times. | The geo API stops tracking trains if the driver is keyed out of them for longer than a couple minutes, which they often do at termini or when responding to an emergency brake activation. | No | Yes |
| Trains running off-timetable will report completely inaccurate due times. Trains show as "Due" at stations they are nowhere near. | The times API seems to trust the timetables more than realtime data. Nexus often disables the realtime API entirely during major disruption due to the inaccuracy of the times API. The geo API is generally resistant to disruption, but Nexus is unable to disable the times API without also disabling the geo API. | Yes | Indirectly |
| Non-passenger trains showing in the Pop app, even showing destinations like "Not In Service" or "Gosforth Depot". | The realtime API is only meant to provide data on passenger trains. However, non-passenger trains do still show up from time to time. | Yes | Yes |
| Trains don't appear to arrive at Sunderland when heading northbound between Park Lane and St Peter's | Unknown | Yes | Yes |
| Trains will briefly show as departing Wansbeck Road Platform 2 after departing Fawdon Platform 2 towards Airport | Unknown | Yes | Yes |
| At midnight on the dot, trains at South Shields or South Hylton Platform 2 will instantly appear to swap to Platform 1 with the same arrival time. | Unknown | Yes | Yes |
Notes
[edit | edit source]- ↑ This is accessed by tapping the Pop logo in the top right of the screen, or the NFC icon in the Pop card checker, nine times.
References
[edit | edit source]- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 "How can travellers get up to the minute journey information?", Nebula Labs (archived)
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Nexus. "Pop app for Tyne and Wear Metro" (accessed 5 June 2026)
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Nexus. "Track your Metro user guide" (accessed 16 February 2026)
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 "Nexus launches real time Metro map through the Pop app" (accessed 5 June 2026). Nexus. 29 January 2025
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Longhorn, Danny (30 January 2025). "Nexus launches real time Metro map through the Pop App" (archived). RailBusinessDaily.
- ↑ Nexus. "Metro Connect" (accessed 16 February 2026)
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 "Free Wi-Fi is trialled on the Tyne and Wear Metro" (accessed 29 May 2026). Nexus. 10 December 2025.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Younger, Owen (10 December 2025). "Free Wi-Fi being trialled for Tyne and Wear Metro system for the first time" (archived). ChronicleLive.
- ↑ Nexus. "Metro customer reporting system is switching to WhatsApp" (accessed 16 February 2026)
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 "Smartphone ticketing arrives on the Tyne and Wear Metro" (archived). Nexus. 24 November 2020.
- ↑ "Nexus launch ITSO on Mobile on the Metro" (archived). ITSO. 24 November 2020.
- ↑ "Nexus brings mobile ticketing to the North East with ITSO on Mobile®" (archived). Yotra. 24 November 2020.
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 "Pop App update - June 2026" (accessed 5 June 2026). Nexus.
- ↑ Hill, Laura (13 July 2018). "Want to pay for your Metro ticket on your phone? There will soon be an app for that" (archived). ChronicleLive.
- ↑ "Pop" (archived). AppBrain.
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 Phillips, Tom (24 November 2020). "Tyne and Wear Metro launches mobile ticketing on Android phones". NFCW.
- ↑ "New Metro ticket app cannot be used on iPhones" (archived). BBC. 25 November 2020.
- ↑ Holland, Daniel (25 November 2020). "Mobile ticket app to 'revolutionise' Metro finally released – but you can't download it on iPhones" (archived). ChronicleLive.
- ↑ "Tyne and Wear Metro App" (archived from the original on 3 June 2019). Google Play.
- ↑ "North East Rail and Metro Strategy" (archived). Transport North East / North East Joint Transport Committee. 18 January 2022. p. 55.
- ↑ "Pop Card Checker APK for Android" (archived). Download.com.
- ↑ "Pop card checker app" (archived). Nexus.
- ↑ 23.0 23.1 "Real time Metro travel is rolled out to Apple smartphones" (accessed 5 June 2026). Nexus. 30 January 2023.
- ↑ 24.0 24.1 Smith, Roger (31 January 2023). "Nexus rolls out real-time Metro information to Apple smartphones" (archived). RailAdvent.
- ↑ "Pop" (archived from the original on 27 January 2021). Google Play.
- ↑ "Covid: Metro passengers can now use an app to see how busy the trains are" (archived). Nexus. 24 September 2020.
- ↑ Holland, Daniel (24 September 2020). "You can now rate how crowded Metro trains are in bid to 'ease stress' over social distancing" (archived). ChronicleLive.
- ↑ "Pay As You Go Metro travel arrives on Android smartphones" (archived). Nexus. 28 February 2022.
- ↑ Smith, Roger (2 March 2022). "Tyne & Wear Metro introduces Pay As You Go for Android smartphones" (archived). RailAdvent.
- ↑ "Pay as You Go launches on ITSO on Mobile" (archived). Yotra. 28 February 2022.
- ↑ "Pay As You Go now live on ITSO on Mobile" (archived). ITSO. 28 February 2022.
- ↑ "Pop" (archived from the original on 23 October 2022). Google Play.
- ↑ "Nexus launches personalised Metro travel alerts on the Pop app" (archived). Nexus. 6 November 2024.
- ↑ Holland, Daniel (23 November 2024). "Transport bosses 'committed' to iPhone ticket plan" (archived). BBC.
- ↑ Holland, Daniel (22 November 2024). "Tyne and Wear Metro iPhone tickets hope as Nexus urged to finally make Pop card upgrade" (archived). ChronicleLive.
