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A driver who is familiar with all the available routes on a particular trip may find these apps less useful than a driver from out of town.Īccuracy will improve when data can be gathered from future smart cars that communicate with one another, he says. Information on the apps becomes less reliable as users seek more granular levels of detail. Overall, Resendes says on our trip to NPR, the apps did a good job of reflecting traffic conditions, but not with pinpoint accuracy. Tall buildings surrounding a roadway can make it harder to receive and process GPS signals and accurately reflect traffic conditions. He tells us tunnels and sunken roadways add extra challenges to traffic app precision. Increased accuracy, down to centimeters, requires more equipment to use a system called differential GPS, Resendes says. So, even if only one lane is backed up, the entire roadway may show red. Still, there are limits to the instruments that drive the GPS.Īpps like Waze can't tell which lane you're in. This information, called "probe data," is aggregated and displayed on your phone or your dashboard. The District Department of Transportation has sensors and cameras planted along streets. Right now, data is gathered from cell phone signals inside cars and sensors from government agencies or fleet trucks. Resendes says, "You're going to have that frustration with almost any application you use, because they're all using the same data." This also explains the non-existent accident we encountered at K Street when using apps. Radio traffic reports are often out of date and geographically irrelevant to one's commute. VTTI does research with many traffic app companies. Ray Resendes of Virginia Tech's Transportation Institute joined our carpool for a second trial. To better understand how the apps work, we turned to an expert. But it wasn't a very convincing one either. This wasn't a very scientific test of traffic apps. The commute ends up totaling about 30 minutes, longer than most of the apps predicted. Reported six minutes ago," Rachel announces.īut everything looks green on INRIX, and there's no evidence of a major accident at that intersection. "A Waze reporter says there's a major accident right at North Capitol and K. We twist through city streets, neither helped nor hindered much by the carload of apps, until we're a few blocks from the office. Robert's phone, set to Apple Maps, tells him 22 minutes via a route he had never thought to take in more than 20 years of driving the same commute. Screenshots of a few of the apps All Things Considered host Robert Siegel tested, from left to right: Google Maps, Inrix, Nokia Here, and Apple Maps.
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It also approximates speeds.įour different apps can sometimes present four different routes. Users tap the phone to indicate where they spot an accident or a police officer. Waze is the Google-owned app that's enhanced by reports from motorists. Using Waze, producer Rachel Rood's phone has the longest and most accurate forecast at 30 minutes. INRIX offers views from traffic cameras in addition to a clear display of estimated arrival times. INRIX projects 23 minutes from editor Franklyn Cater's phone. Some apps not only display red for heavy traffic, but also deep red for really congested spots. But it's now morning rush hour.Įach app has its own advantages in terms of the interface. This ride is about 15 minutes in no traffic. The All Tech Considered team put a few competing traffic apps to the test in Robert Siegel's usual short commute from Arlington, Va., to NPR's D.C. But which ones are the most accurate? And how? A number of apps are out there to help shortcut one's route and evade traffic jams.
Traffic to work drivers#
The challenge of strategizing the best route to work against the herd of other drivers can be as routine as the daily commute itself. As varied as the options are for apps that are available to help you navigate your daily commute, the future of GPS may be more accurate.