Add NewRoutes to GTFS-RT to support dynamic service (#606)

[cleveramarquet]

Description

This proposal introduces a NewRoutes message to the FeedEntity in GTFS Realtime. As discussed in Issue #606, the current specification lacks a standard way to define route metadata for services that do not exist in the static GTFS schedule.

The full technical specification and field definitions can be found in the GTFS-NewRoutes Google Doc.

By allowing a Route to be defined directly within the real-time feed, consumers can provide a complete and accurate experience for riders without requiring agencies to "reuse" unrelated static IDs.

Implementations

• Producer: Clever Devices Test Feed
• Consumer: Transit App (Development in progress)

Call for Vote

I am calling for a vote for Official Adoption of this proposal as a functional change.

• Voting Period: Ends at 23:59:59 UTC on April 23, 2026 (14 days from now).
• Requirement: At least 3 "Yes" votes and no "No" votes (unanimous consensus) are required.

[leonardehrenfried]

As I did in the Google doc, I'm requesting this to be changed to an int so it can reflect the full range of extended route types. As a benefit this enum would then not have to be kept in sync with static GTFS.

[leonardehrenfried]

cc @hbruch

[cleveramarquet]

I see your point about the extended route types. However, I used an enum here to stay consistent with how the rest of the current GTFS-RT specification handles route types. Perhaps we could stick with the enum for this PR to keep the scope focused on NewRoutes, and then address a global move to int32 for route types across the entire spec in a separate proposal?