Metro-North MCP Server

MCP server for Metro-North schedules, stations, service alerts, and real-time departures.

Uses public MTA GTFS and GTFS-Realtime feeds. No MTA API key required.

Install with an Agent

Paste this into your MCP-capable coding agent:

Install the Metro-North MCP server in this client as "metronorth".
Use command "npx" with args ["-y", "metronorth-mcp"].
After installing, reload MCP servers and test it by calling search_stations with query "Grand Central".

Install

npx -y metronorth-mcp

GitHub install:

npx -y --package github:NelsonSpencer/metronorth-mcp metronorth-mcp

Use metronorth as the MCP server name.

MCP Client Setup

Cursor

Copy and open this deeplink:

cursor://anysphere.cursor-deeplink/mcp/install?name=metronorth&config=eyJjb21tYW5kIjoibnB4IiwiYXJncyI6WyIteSIsIm1ldHJvbm9ydGgtbWNwIl19

Manual .cursor/mcp.json config:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "metronorth": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "metronorth-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

Codex

codex mcp add metronorth -- npx -y metronorth-mcp
codex mcp list

Claude Code

claude mcp add metronorth -- npx -y metronorth-mcp
claude mcp list

Run /mcp in Claude Code to confirm the server is connected.

VS Code

code --add-mcp '{"name":"metronorth","command":"npx","args":["-y","metronorth-mcp"]}'

Open Copilot Chat in Agent mode and enable the server from the tools picker.

OpenClaw

openclaw mcp set metronorth '{"command":"npx","args":["-y","metronorth-mcp"]}'
openclaw mcp list

Hermes

hermes mcp add metronorth --command npx --args -y metronorth-mcp
hermes mcp test metronorth

Restart or reload MCP servers after installing.

Other MCP Clients

Use this server entry:

{
  "command": "npx",
  "args": ["-y", "metronorth-mcp"]
}

Full MCP config:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "metronorth": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "metronorth-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

Agent Usage

This server exposes usage guidance through MCP:

• Read metronorth://usage for the recommended station, trip-planning, alert, and freshness workflow.
• Read metronorth://examples for common tool-call examples.
• Use the use-metro-north-mcp prompt when an agent needs a quick operating guide.

Recommended flow:

1. Search stations first when names may be partial or ambiguous.
2. Use plan_metro_north_trip for station-to-station questions.
3. Use get_station_pair_schedule for direct train options between two stations.
4. Use get_first_last_trains for first/last train questions.
5. Read metronorth://system/status when data freshness matters.
6. Treat realtime departures and alerts as best-effort public feed data.

Tools

Tool results include readable text and MCP structuredContent. Invalid inputs and unknown stations return structured errors.

| Tool | Use | | --- | --- | | search_stations | Search stations by name | | get_departures | Get upcoming departures from a station | | get_trip_details | Get stop-level details for a trip | | get_route_schedule | Get a route schedule by date and direction | | get_service_alerts | Get current service alerts | | get_station_info | Get station metadata and served routes | | get_system_status | Check feed availability and local data freshness | | get_station_pair_schedule | Find direct trains between two stations | | get_first_last_trains | Get first and last direct trains for a service date | | plan_metro_north_trip | Plan a direct trip with options, alerts, and freshness |

Example:

{
  "origin_station": "Grand Central",
  "destination_station": "White Plains",
  "limit": 3,
  "include_alerts": true
}

Resources and Prompts

Resources:

• metronorth://usage
• metronorth://examples
• metronorth://system/status
• metronorth://routes
• metronorth://stations
• metronorth://station/{station_name}

Prompts:

• use-metro-north-mcp
• plan-metro-north-trip
• summarize-service-status

Local Development

git clone https://github.com/NelsonSpencer/metronorth-mcp.git
cd metronorth-mcp
npm install
cp .env.example .env
npm run build
npm start

First run downloads the public Metro-North GTFS ZIP and imports it into SQLite.

Configuration

Create .env from .env.example.

NODE_ENV=development
LOG_LEVEL=info
REDIS_URL=
DB_PATH=
GTFS_UPDATE_INTERVAL_HOURS=24
CACHE_TTL_SECONDS=300

If DB_PATH is empty, schedule data is stored in ~/.cache/metronorth-mcp/metronorth.db.

Redis is optional. If REDIS_URL is empty, the server uses in-memory caching.

Development Checks

npm run typecheck
npm test
npm run lint
npm run build
npm run smoke:mcp

Docker

docker build -t metronorth-mcp .

MCP client config:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "metronorth": {
      "command": "docker",
      "args": ["run", "--rm", "-i", "metronorth-mcp"]
    }
  }
}

Docker Compose starts the MCP server with Redis and persistent storage.

docker-compose up -d
docker-compose logs -f metronorth-mcp

Additional Notes

• Static schedules are cached locally from public MTA GTFS feeds.
• Real-time departures and alerts use public GTFS-Realtime feeds and are best-effort.
• Tools handle dynamic lookups; resources expose reference data; prompts provide reusable workflows.
• Unofficial project. Not affiliated with or endorsed by the MTA.

License

MIT. See LICENSE.