Twitter allows free API access for emergency and transport services: what it means
Twitter on Wednesday reversed its decision to put its application programming interface (API) behind a paywall and allow emergency and transportation service providers to use the APIs for free.
Twitter announced in February that it would end free access to its API and instead release a paid version for developers worldwide.
After the controversial decision, several emergency and transportation accounts faced problems sending alerts to the platform.
The US Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) and Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) also experienced disruptions to their API connections.
Now the Elon Musk-run platform has reversed its decision for some users.
“One of the most important use cases for the Twitter API has always been for public utility. Approved authorities or public services that tweet weather alerts, traffic updates and emergency notifications can use the API for these critical purposes for free,” the company said.
What the platform means by “confirmed” is still unclear.
The MTA responded: “Glad Twitter got the message. We are pleased that they are committed to making API access free for the MTA and other public sector agencies. In light of this turn of events, we will evaluate our options for service alerts in the future.”
Other services, such as the NWS, the United States Geologic Service, and the US Forest Service, had directed users to other ways to receive real-time alerts.
With the free version of Twitter’s API, users can only send 1,500 automated tweets per month.
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