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San Francisco and Inrix partner on expanding Bay Area 511 service

San Francisco Bay Area's popular 511 service is set to expand its traffic speed network. Coverage, now mostly limited to state roadways and interstates, will be expanded to include additional state roadways, major arterials, expressways and connectors. The Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC), which runs the 512 service, assembles data from a variety of sources – Caltrans, CHP, and other partners – to provide the most accurate and reliable information about incidents and traffic disruptions in th
October 30, 2013 Read time: 2 mins
San Francisco Bay Area's popular 511 service is set to expand its traffic speed network. Coverage, now mostly limited to state roadways and interstates, will be expanded to include additional state roadways, major arterials, expressways and connectors.

The 343 Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC), which runs the 512 service, assembles data from a variety of sources – 3879 Caltrans, CHP, and other partners – to provide the most accurate and reliable information about incidents and traffic disruptions in the Bay Area. To further enhance 511's traffic information, MTC's contractor, Leidos (formerly 6890 SAIC), is procuring traffic speed data from 163 Inrix, which began providing speed data in mid-July.

"The addition of speed data and driving times to additional state roadways, major arterials and key interregional connectors to 511 will be great news for the travelling public," said Melanie Crotty, Director of Operations at MTC. "We have provided traffic incidents and construction news, including lane closures, on several of these roadways for many years; the addition of speeds and driving times will complete the picture for motorists."

"In the third most congested metropolitan area in America, drivers depend on real-time traffic information to plan their daily commute," said Rick Schuman, Inrix vice president and general manager of Public Sector. "Through one of the most robust real-time traffic data and analytics platforms in the world, we will provide traffic speed data for 511, which when paired with 511's extensive breaking traffic news and incident, construction, and event information, will give drivers the insight they need to avoid frustrating delays. Not only will Inrix provide traffic speed data, the Inrix analytics platform will allow traffic engineers to measure and track congestion and assess system performance," said Schuman. "Given today's limited tax dollars, this analytics platform gives transportation planners the data they need to make Smart choices."

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