TrainAtlas
No tracking. No ads. No account. Your trips stay on your device and sync only to your own private iCloud. The only data that ever reaches us is a small amount of anonymous, app-running data - never linked to your identity, never used to track you, and never sold.
What leaves your device (all anonymous)
- A random per-install IDFor rate-limiting and abuse prevention only. Not your name, account, or advertising ID.
- Aggregate route shapesWhich lines get ridden, for a community map. Not tied to you, and removable anytime.
- Crash & performance dataOnly if you opt in - off by default. No location, no trip data.
- Purchase validationAn anonymous ID and Apple receipt, via our payments provider. No card details.
What we never collect
- Your name, email, or contact details
- Your GPS location"Near me" runs on-device and never transmits where you are.
- The content of your trips or notes
- Advertising IDs or cross-app tracking
- Cookies, analytics SDKs, or ad networks
Overview
TrainAtlas is built on a simple principle: your railway history is yours. We do not operate accounts. The trips you log stay private to you - on your device and, by default, synced to your own private iCloud that only you can read (never to us). We never sell or share information about you. The only data that reaches us or our service providers is anonymous, summarised above and detailed below.
This policy covers the TrainAtlas iOS application (bundle ID app.trainatlas.ios) and this website (trainatlas.app).
1. Data we collect
We do not collect anything that identifies you. Aside from your private iCloud sync (section 2, which we cannot read), the only data that leaves your device for us or our service providers is anonymous and used solely to run the app. This mirrors our App Store privacy label:
| Data | Why | Linked to you? | Used to track you? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anonymous install ID | Rate-limiting & abuse prevention. A random value created at install - not your name, account, or advertising ID. | No | No |
| Crash & performance diagnostics | Fixing bugs. Opt-in, off by default (section 4). | No | No |
| Aggregate route shapes | An anonymous community map of which lines get ridden. Removable anytime (section 8). | No | No |
| Purchase validation | Verifying your Pro purchase, via our payments provider (section 5). | No | No |
What we do not collect: your name, email, or contact details; your GPS location (the one-time "Near me" search uses location on your device only and never transmits it); your trip content; advertising identifiers; and website cookies. We embed no third-party analytics, tracking pixels, or advertising networks anywhere in the app or on this site.
2. Where your data lives
On your device
Your trips, achievements, settings, and preferences are stored locally on your iPhone using SQLite. They are included in your normal iOS device backup if you have iCloud Backup enabled; that backup is governed by Apple's terms, not ours.
iCloud sync (on by default)
TrainAtlas keeps your trips, achievements, and tickets in sync across your devices using Apple's CloudKit private database. Sync is included free and is on by default; you can turn it off any time in Settings → iCloud Sync (your trips stay on each device either way). Your data is stored in your personal iCloud container - a private area of iCloud that only you can read. We cannot access, read, or modify it, and it never reaches our servers. Apple's privacy policy applies: apple.com/legal/privacy.
3. Network services the app talks to
Some features need the network. Here is exactly what leaves your device and where it goes:
| Feature | What leaves your device | Where it goes |
|---|---|---|
| Route & station search | The station names or coordinates you typed - never your GPS location | Our route servers (backend.trainatlas.app) and Transitous, a non-profit transit router |
| Live delays & platforms | The train number and date for a saved trip, plus the anonymous per-install token | Our delay-archive service |
None of these requests are linked to an account or your identity. All connections use HTTPS/TLS, and server access logs are short-lived and used only for operations and abuse prevention.
4. Crash & performance diagnostics (opt-in)
TrainAtlas contains no third-party crash or analytics SDK - no Sentry, Firebase, Crashlytics, or similar. If, and only if, you switch on "Share crash diagnostics" in Settings (it is off by default), the app uses Apple's MetricKit to send anonymised crash and performance reports - stack traces, hang and launch metrics, device model - to our own server to help us fix bugs. These reports contain no location, no trip data, and no personal identifiers, and you can switch the toggle off at any time. Separately, Apple may share its own anonymised crash reports with us if you have enabled "Share With App Developers" in iOS Settings - a flow controlled entirely by Apple.
5. In-app purchases
Pro subscriptions and the lifetime purchase are processed by Apple via StoreKit. We never see your payment information - no name, email, or card details.
Purchase receipts are validated by RevenueCat, our subscription infrastructure provider. RevenueCat receives an anonymous app-generated identifier and Apple receipt data - never your name, email, or payment details. RevenueCat's privacy policy: revenuecat.com/privacy.
6. Third parties
The complete list of third-party services we rely on:
| Service | Purpose | Privacy policy |
|---|---|---|
| Apple App Store / StoreKit | Distribution, payments, and reviews | apple.com/legal/privacy |
| Apple iCloud / CloudKit | Your private device-to-device sync - we cannot read it | apple.com/legal/privacy |
| RevenueCat | Purchase-receipt validation (anonymous identifier only) | revenuecat.com/privacy |
| Transitous | Non-profit transit routing for trip search | transitous.org |
We do not use Google Analytics, Firebase, Facebook, Amplitude, Mixpanel, Sentry, or any advertising networks.
7. Children's privacy
TrainAtlas is rated 4+ on the App Store and is suitable for all ages. We do not knowingly collect information from children. Because we hold no data linked to any user's identity, no special handling is required for users under 13 (US COPPA) or under 16 (EU GDPR).
8. Your GDPR rights (EU/EEA/UK users)
Because TrainAtlas holds no data linked to your identity, most GDPR rights are satisfied by design - there is no identifiable personal data for us to access, correct, or port. The only data tied to your device is the anonymous per-install identifier and any aggregate route contributions, neither of which is labelled with your identity. In practice you are always in control:
| Right | How you exercise it |
|---|---|
| Erase all data | Settings → Delete all data instantly wipes every trip, achievement, and preference, and removes your contributions from the aggregate route map. |
| Erase by removal | Deleting TrainAtlas from your device removes all local data immediately. |
| Access & portability | Settings → Export data downloads a copy of your trips; all data is also readable within the app. |
| Questions / complaints | Email privacy@trainatlas.app. You may also lodge a complaint with your local data-protection authority. |
9. Your CCPA rights (California users)
We do not sell personal information, and we do not share personal information with third parties for cross-context behavioral advertising. California residents have the right to know, delete, and opt out of the sale of personal information. We hold no information linked to your identity to sell or disclose, and the anonymous data described above is never sold.
10. This website
The trainatlas.app website is a static site hosted on Vercel, with DNS provided by Cloudflare. It does not set cookies, does not use analytics, and does not embed any third-party scripts. Our hosting providers may keep minimal server-level access logs (IP address, request path, timestamp) as part of their infrastructure - see the Vercel and Cloudflare privacy policies.
11. Changes to this policy
If we change this policy in a material way, we will update the effective date at the top of this page. We do not have your email address to notify you directly, so changes will be reflected here. If we ever introduce data collection of any kind, we will update this policy before the feature ships and note clearly what is collected and why.
12. Contact
Privacy questions or requests: privacy@trainatlas.app
We aim to respond within 5 business days.