Faretide privacy policy

Last updated: 2026-06-24

Faretide finds nearby places and ranks them by actual travel time — accounting for ferries, bridges, and water — rather than map proximity. This policy explains exactly what data the app uses, where it goes, and what we do (and don't do) with it. It is written to be honest to how the app actually works.

The short version

• Faretide uses your precise device location, while the app is open, to find and rank places near you.
• Your coordinates are sent to mapping backends (OpenStreetMap routing and places services, or the Faretide proxy that fronts them) only to compute travel times and find nearby places. They are used to answer your request and are not retained by us beyond transient request handling and caching.
• "Took longer than expected" corrections you submit are stored only on your device. They are not uploaded.
• There is no account, no advertising, no analytics SDK, and we do not sell your data.

What we collect and why

Precise location (foreground only)

To rank places by real travel time, Faretide needs to know where you are. The app requests foreground ("while in use") location permission and reads your precise coordinates. It does not request background location and does not track you when the app is closed.

If you deny location permission, the app cannot rank places around you and will explain this instead. (For demonstration purposes the app may show a fixed example location, such as Dauphin Island, AL.)

What we do not collect

• No name, email, phone number, or account — Faretide has no sign-up or login.
• No advertising identifiers and no advertising.
• No third-party analytics or tracking SDKs.
• No photos, contacts, reviews, or social data — Faretide is a sorting tool.

How your location is used and where it goes

When you use Faretide, your coordinates (and the coordinates of candidate places near you) are sent over the network to mapping backends so the app can find nearby places via an OpenStreetMap places service (Overpass) and compute travel times via an OpenStreetMap routing service (Valhalla), which models ferry and bridge crossings so the ranking reflects real travel.

These requests go either directly to public OpenStreetMap services or, where configured, to the Faretide proxy server, which forwards requests to those same backends on the app's behalf. In both cases the coordinates are used only to answer your request. We do not retain your location server-side beyond what is needed for transient request handling and short-lived caching, and we do not build a profile of you or your movements.

Map tiles are also served from OpenStreetMap-based tile servers to draw the map. Your use of those third-party services is subject to their own terms; see the OpenStreetMap copyright and privacy information at openstreetmap.org/copyright.

"Took longer" corrections stay on your device

When a trip takes longer than the app predicted, you can report it. These corrections are stored locally on your device (using the device's app storage) so the app can adjust future rankings for you. This data is not uploaded to us or to any third party. Deleting the app removes these corrections.

Data sharing and selling

We do not sell your personal information, and we do not share it with advertisers or data brokers. The only sharing that occurs is sending the coordinates needed to fulfill your request to the mapping backends described above.

Children's privacy

Faretide is not directed at children and does not knowingly collect personal information from children.

Your choices

• You can grant or revoke location permission at any time in your device settings. Revoking it stops Faretide from reading your location.
• You can clear locally stored corrections by clearing the app's data or uninstalling the app.

Changes to this policy

If we change how the app handles data, we will update this policy and revise the "Last updated" date above.

Contact

Questions about this policy or your data? Email jordan@mwsolves.com.