It’s now a whole lot easier to figure out how to get around Houston using public transit: Metro routes have at last been embedded in Google Maps. Which means if you use Google to plan a local trip, figuring out how to get there by bus or rail is now as simple as choosing “By public transit” from a dropdown menu. Schedule info is right there too.

So far, the public transit option shows up whenever you use Google Maps to get directions in Houston — or you can start from a separate Google Transit gateway here. Not yet activated for Houston: Google’s Transit Layer, which in other cities lets you see all the routes at once.

Even more convenient: If you can get Google Maps on your mobile phone, you now have access to bus and train directions and schedules there too. Here’s a video demonstrating how that works:

***

And yep, it works (a little differently) on the iPhone too. Anyone want to send in a short video demonstrating that?

Instructions for those of us tied to larger screens:

• Plan a Trip Using Public Transportation [Google Transit]
• Google Maps for mobile transit directions [YouTube]
• Transit on Google Maps [YouTube]
• Finally, a good trip planner [Intermodality, via Swamplot inbox]
• Test drive the new Transit site [Google LatLong]
• New ways to get around with the Transit Layer [Google LatLong]
• Google Transit Is on Its Way to Houston [Swamplot]

Images: Google Maps