Traffic Tracking from Phones
States to Test Cell Phones to Gauge Speed
The Associated Press
W A S H I N G T O N, Dec. 22 ? Highway officials in
Maryland and Virginia think cell phone users
might make good traffic reporters ? simply by
yakking on the phone behind the wheel.
In an experiment early next year, the two states plan
to measure traffic flow by tracking the speed motorists
travel while talking on their cell phones, The Washington
Post reported today.
Actual phone conversations will not be monitored.
Radio signals emitted from cell phones used by
motorists will be tracked by cellular towers. Computers
will pinpoint the caller?s location and calculate the speed
of the phone user?s automobile based on how long the
call lasted and how far the auto traveled.
Pilot Program
?A lot of people in my position in other states will be
watching to see if this works,? said Mike Zezeski, who
directs traffic information services for the Maryland State
Highway Administration.
By monitoring when cars change speed, officials
might be able to predict backups ? up to an hour before
they happen ? and post messages in electronic sign
boards to encourage commuters to take alternate
routes.
?This could potentially provide a lot of data at a really
low cost,? said Brian Smith, a civil engineering professor
at the University of Virginia who advises the Virginia
Department of Transportation. ?If this works, it?s going
to take off really quickly.?
Eventually from In-Car Signal
Motorists might eventually be able to obtain this
up-to-date traffic information from in-car computers,
Zezeski said. ?Ten years from now, you might be able to
get into a vehicle, punch in your destination and it will
tell you which is the fastest route to take,? he said.
Under a $750,000 contract, U.S. Wireless Corp. of
San Ramon, Calif. will install computer equipment on
cellular towers that will monitor the location of cell phone
users as they drive on a 15-mile stretch of the Capital
beltway south of Washington. Cell phone use will be
monitored between U.S. 5 in Maryland and the
interchange of Interstates 95, 495 and 395 in
Springfield, Va.
Copyright 1999 The Associated Press. All rights reserve |
