Google Maps will soon tell you when you need to get off the bus

The Google Maps team is prepping a small but useful update to its app that will give you more detailed guidance when you're traveling by public transit - giving you a nudge when you're about to reach your stop on a bus or a train, for example.

In other words, as TechCrunch reports, you'll get step-by-step instructions along your public transit route just as you would if you were using the navigation mode for driving or walking. It's the same kind of fine detail that apps like Citymapper have had for a while.

These prompts will appear on the lock screen as well, to minimize the risk of you missing your connections when you're traveling by bus, train or tram. You can scroll through the steps of your journey and get alerts set up.

Going live

Google hasn't said anything officially about the upcoming update but TechCrunch says the functionality is likely to be rolling out soon to the main app. It looks like this is for Android users first of all, though the same feature might come to iOS too.

From sharing your location in real time, to building up lists of your favorite places, Google continues to tweak and refine its mapping app for mobile. Another update rolled out earlier this year helps users to remember where they parked.

The new feature will be particularly useful if you're taking public transit in a new and unfamiliar city, where working out various routes and connections can be a hugely frustrating exercise. Apple Maps, over to you.