Summary
Connects Claude to the U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics open data portal, which runs on the Socrata platform and covers everything from airline performance to freight movement and safety statistics. Part of the Pipeworx gateway system that bundles 693+ data sources behind a streamable HTTP transport. The interesting bit is the ask_pipeworx function that interprets plain English questions and routes them to the appropriate BTS datasets without needing to know the underlying API structure. Useful when you're analyzing transportation trends, building logistics tools, or need programmatic access to federal transit data without dealing with Socrata's API directly.
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mcp-bts
U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) — data.bts.gov open-data portal (Socrata platform).
Part of Pipeworx — an MCP gateway connecting AI agents to 1476+ live data sources.
Tools
| Tool | Description |
|---|---|
search_datasets | Search datasets published on the U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics open-data portal (data.bts.gov). Returns each dataset's Socrata 4x4 id (e.g. "crem-w557"), name, and description. Use the id with dataset_columns and query_dataset. BTS covers aviation (passenger counts, on-time performance, air fares, airline financials), freight movement, transit ridership, border crossings, and transportation safety. Example queries: "aviation", "border crossing", "transit", "freight". |
dataset_columns | List the columns of a data.bts.gov dataset: field name (used in SoQL $select/$where), human label, and data type (number, text, calendar_date, etc.). Call this before query_dataset so you know which fields exist. datasetId is the Socrata 4x4 code from search_datasets. |
query_dataset | Query rows from a data.bts.gov dataset using SoQL. datasetId is the Socrata 4x4 code from search_datasets. SoQL clauses: $select (columns / aggregates like "count(*)" or "avg(air_fare)"), $where (SQL-like filter, e.g. "date > '2024-01-01' AND state='TX'"), $order ("date desc"), $group, $q (full-text across the row). Use dataset_columns first to learn field names. Returns an array of row objects keyed by field name. Default $limit is 50 (Socrata max per page is 50000). |
Quick Start
Add to your MCP client (Claude Desktop, Cursor, Windsurf, etc.):
{
"mcpServers": {
"bts": {
"url": "https://gateway.pipeworx.io/bts/mcp"
}
}
}
What this endpoint actually serves
tools/list at https://gateway.pipeworx.io/bts/mcp returns the tools in the table
above plus the shared Pipeworx meta-tools — ask_pipeworx,
discover_tools, search_within, remember/recall and the rest of the
gateway-wide set. So the tool count you see is larger than this table: a
single-pack endpoint currently lists roughly 30 shared tools alongside the
pack's own. The connection's initialize response states its exact scope, and
is the authoritative answer for a given day.
This is deliberate, not multiplexing by accident. The meta-tools are what let a
scoped connection answer a question this pack does not cover — via
ask_pipeworx, which routes across the whole catalog — without you adding a
second MCP server. There is currently no way to mount a pack endpoint without
them; if the extra schemas cost you more context than the routing is worth,
connect to the full gateway once rather than to several pack endpoints.
Or connect to the full Pipeworx gateway to get every pack's tools listed directly, instead of just this one's:
{
"mcpServers": {
"pipeworx": {
"url": "https://gateway.pipeworx.io/mcp"
}
}
}
Both URLs reach the same gateway and the same 1476+ data sources. The
only difference is which pack's tools are listed directly; ask_pipeworx
reaches all of them from either one.
Using with ask_pipeworx
Instead of calling tools directly, you can ask questions in plain English — this works on the pack endpoint above as well as on the full gateway:
ask_pipeworx({ question: "your question about Bts data" })
The gateway picks the right tool and fills the arguments automatically.
More
License
MIT
No MCP client? Call it over HTTP
curl -X POST https://gateway.pipeworx.io/v1/tools/bts_search_datasets \
-H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
-d '{"q":"aviation"}'
No account needed for the first calls. Inspect any tool: GET https://gateway.pipeworx.io/v1/tools/bts_search_datasets. Find one: POST https://gateway.pipeworx.io/v1/tools/search_packs with {"query":"..."}.
Featured
Fastest browser for AI agents to run web automation tasks, always free.
Download Free life-time →Integrate web data into your AI product. One API to scrape website & brand data.
Get API Key Now →belt cli automatically finds the best tools and skills for your agent. image, video, music, tts...
one prompt install →Connect your Claude agent to live crypto prices and trading routes via 1inch
Get the MCP →