Exclusive | Frustrated Penn Station commuter creates app to predict track numbers — and avoid the mess: ‘They’re like animals’

This guy is on the right track.

New York commuters know all too well the anxiety-filled moment when a train is finally called at Penn Station, minutes before departure—when otherwise typical civilized commuters often trudge like elephants to the platform.

Joshua Crandall, a longtime sufferer of NJ Transit, was fed up with feeling the pent-up energy of his fellow stressed-out rail riders, standing around waiting — tired of the maddened, chaotic strikes that inevitably followed.

So the 59-year-old Montclair resident took matters into his own tech-savvy hands: He created an algorithm to predict exactly which track New Jersey Transit and Long Island Rail Road trains will depart on often unreliable, well in advance of any notice.

“It’s not just a magic trick, it’s how you beat the crowd,” Crandall, a financial technology worker by day in Manhattan, told The Post of his Clever Commute app — designed as a cheat code to escape Gotham’s least beloved transit hub. with your mind.

The commuter of 30 years isn’t affiliated with the NJT, LIRR or Amtrak, but the transit pro explained that after a particularly horrendous commute home in the 2000s, he created Clever Commute. After he “writes the technology that swallows the departure board,” the app “can instantly tell you which track this train has been on for the last 60 days.”

“It’s information that a lot of people don’t have a use for,” he said of his pocket forecaster, which offers a premium service for a $50 annual subscription. There are also nine ways to get it for free — Crandall said his main focus is helping others.

The savvy coder began by sharing his knowledge via email—eventually creating the first version of his app in 2015. Until recently, his expertise has been enjoyed by a relatively small circle.

Then, weeks after NJ Transit’s historic cancellations and failures at Penn earlier this summer — and at a time when back-to-office mandates are almost a given — the transportation savvy posted a promo for its product on social media.

The immediate response, he said, was “overwhelming.”

How does it work?

“Transit providers will say tracks are announced 10 minutes in advance — spoiler alert, they’re not,” Crandall explained.

The inevitable wait until too close to departure is what Clever Commute is designed to help users avoid.

To do this, the app’s algorithm is based on two months of track history and uses what Home Road Wizard calls a proprietary technology that assigns “probability levels” to certain songs.

In addition to providing average wait times based on past data, the app will rank possible track numbers by likelihood – even offering graphs and pie charts for those interested in more inside information.

However, Crandall cautioned, this is primarily a tool designed to put you at the top of the right ladder at the right time, ahead of the rush — not a green light to jump the launch gun entirely.

That’s because the app can’t be right every time, he said — and an early alight at the wrong platform could mean a missed train.

Look up, though, and you’re almost always at an advantage. If Clever Commute doesn’t fix the location 100%, it’s almost always close, insisted the transportation expert.

“If the application calls 17 and the track is 18 — you’re still in the best place,” Crandall offered.

The app also works with Metro-North and the LIRR at Grand Central Terminal — though that terminal rarely makes the same last-minute boarding announcements.

Penn Station’s uniquely close call times, Crandall said, are caused by Amtrak’s ownership of the tracks — and the national transit provider’s authority to “call the shots.”

Last Thursday night, he could be found waiting in Penn Station during the evening rush – standing in the right seat, of course.

He used the time to help a confused passerby, Brad Schuman, waiting for a 6:47 p.m. train — who was thrilled by Crandall’s accurate call on Track 7.

“To know where I’m going, and more importantly to beat this crowd, they’re like animals out there — I’d like to use that every day,” Schuman told The Post.

Last Tuesday, Crandall was at it again and helped commuter Walter Reyes, who clearly said what any stressed-out commuter would be thinking: “This is going to come in handy.”

And, even in cases where there are no dice, travelers would rather have loved and lost.

“It was at least interesting to try,” said William Whitehead after the app lost its way on a night that several trains were destroyed in standby.

And when the app appeared to train commuter Eliana Bass, she and her friend were exhausted.

When he accurately dialed Track 7 a second time by accident, Bass yelled, “Magic!”

Good travel orders

As someone who has called Penn Station a second home for three decades, Crandall knows every nook and cranny—and has witnessed every human behavior imaginable.

Here are some of his tips for a less terrifying trip.

• There are no bonus points for showing up early at Penn Station. Trains rarely arrive ahead of schedule. Kill time somewhere less horrible.
• There are easy online resources to better understand the anatomy of Penn’s confusing labyrinth. Use them to find less trafficked routes to your destination.
• Usually, the front of the train has the most open seats. Also, if there is a quiet car, choose it – and observe the cardinal rule.
• Get noise-cancelling headphones and bring water too, as dehydration can lead to increased jitters.
• Dress in layers in case a train is either uncomfortably hot or cold – you never know which it will be.
• Use the Penn alternatives if you can – take the PATH to the historic NJ Transit terminal in Hoboken for the NJT, or choose the Grand Central or Atlantic terminals for the LIRR.