TrafficCast gets you out of traffic jams

03 September 2008, 9:45am

Can a cell phone help you out of a traffic jam? A Madison, Wisconsin-based start-up hopes so, and it has enlisted a former Motorola Inc. executive to help lead its foray into the wireless industry.

As digital mapping technology increasingly moves from car dashboards to mobile phones, TrafficCast wants to further improve navigation with real-time traffic information. To that end, the start-up has hired Neal Campbell, who helped Motorola develop navigation software for mobile phones, to be its chief executive.

The wireless industry has big expectations for "location-based services," which describes any service or feature that uses a gadget's geographical position. Because most cell phones have built-in GPS chips, software developers and advertisers see huge potential in being able to direct consumers to their nearest Starbucks, provide turn-by-turn driving instructions and even deliver coupons for businesses as pedestrians stroll past their storefronts. ABI Research forecasts that global revenue from location-based services will hit $13.3 billion by 2013, compared with $515 million in 2007.

"For the majority of users in large cities, you know where you're going, but what you don't know is the fastest way to get there," especially if drivers encounter unexpected road incidents or construction, Campbell said.

Campbell believes detailed traffic data will be useful not only for consumers, but also for public safety agencies and businesses that have to coordinate fleets of trucks. In a mass evacuation like the one that took place over the weekend because of Hurricane Gustav, technology like TrafficCast's could help government officials predict and manage traffic patterns, Campbell said.

TrafficCast, which is about a decade old and has 30 employees, has developed proprietary technology that aggregates traffic data from more than 350 sources, such as road sensors and weather patterns, and makes the information useful in real time. Last month, the company signed an agreement with Yahoo to provide traffic data for Yahoo Maps.

Campbell said he's been in talks with major manufacturers of portable GPS devices and mobile phones. Several trials are under way and Campbell said the company may announce partnerships by year-end. Eventually, cell phones themselves could be turned into moving sensors, feeding traffic flow information back to the company.

Source: Wailin Wong, Chicago Tribune (USA)
http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/chicago-trafficcast-sep03,0,825788.story

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Geo: International