Help & Support

Stratus calculates the travel time from your current location to each nearby station based on your selected pace (slow, medium, or fast). It then compares that travel time plus any buffer you've set against each train's estimated departure. Trains you can comfortably reach are shown clearly, while trains you'd likely miss are dimmed.

Buffer time accounts for the time it takes to leave your building, wait for an elevator, put on shoes, etc. You can set a global buffer in Settings (0-15 minutes) or use the Buffer Calibration tool to time your actual exit and save it as a location-based profile that applies automatically.

Long-press any departure row to open the context menu, then select "Pin." Pinned routes are saved to your home screen widget so you can check departures at a glance. Free users get 1 pin; premium subscribers get unlimited pins.

Tap any departure row to track it. Tracking starts a live countdown on your lock screen and Dynamic Island, and can optionally send you a notification when it's time to leave. You can set the alarm threshold when you start tracking.

Stratus includes an "Accessible Stations Only" toggle in Settings that filters the departure list to show only wheelchair-accessible stations. The app also displays real-time elevator outage alerts from CTA, so you'll know before you arrive if an elevator is out of service. VoiceOver and Dynamic Type are fully supported.

Free: Full departure dashboard, travel time calculations, line and direction filters, 1 pinned route, service alerts, accessibility filter.

Premium: Everything in free, plus unlimited pinned routes, home screen widgets, Live Activity with Dynamic Island, departure alarms, and per-location buffer profiles.

Premium is available as a monthly ($2.99/mo) or annual ($19.99/yr) subscription with a 7-day free trial.

Open your device's Settings > [Your Name] > Subscriptions, find Stratus Transit, and tap to manage or cancel. You can also access this from within the app via Settings > Manage Subscription. Cancellation takes effect at the end of the current billing period.

Stratus currently supports CTA L train stations only (not bus stops). Stations appear based on your travel radius, which depends on your pace setting. Try switching to a faster pace in Settings to expand your range. Also check that the Lines filter isn't hiding the line you're looking for.

Departure times come directly from CTA's Train Tracker system and are estimates. Trains can be delayed, rerouted, or cancelled without notice. If you're consistently seeing inaccurate data, pull down to refresh or check CTA service alerts within the app. If the issue persists, let us know.

No. Your location stays entirely on your device. When Stratus fetches departure data, it sends only station IDs (public CTA identifiers) to our server, not your GPS coordinates. See our Privacy Policy for full details.

Stratus is made by CloudPath LLC, an independent software company based in Chicago. We're not affiliated with the Chicago Transit Authority. We built Stratus because we ride the L every day and wanted a better way to catch our trains.