In plain English
It describes movement after leaving the starting place and heading toward the place to be reached. The direction is away from where the journey began, not back toward it.
In context
In this use, it labels the travel direction for services going away from the starting point and toward their destination.
- Situation
- Using rail, bus, metro, ride, and local-transit tickets and service updates
- What it communicates
- labels the opposite travel direction on signs, maps, or platforms.
Meaning limits
By itself, the term does not identify the specific destination or route involved.
Examples
“We caught the outbound ferry to the island and came back on the final sailing that night.”
“By noon, only outbound trains were still leaving the station.”