Traffic TV

Every now and then I get contacted by companies that offer products to motorists that they say could be useful to readers of this site. Some products don't even get to the review stage because they are total rubbish. Some however do get to the review stage because I feel they are worthy of the mention.

A company called mxdata contacted me to introduce their new software called Traffic TV for java mobile phones. This is a map based application for your mobile that gives you live real-time traffic flow information provided by Trafficmaster™ for the entire UK trunk and motorway network. (Excluding Ireland) CCTV camera pictures can also be overlaid on the phone.

The cost for Traffic TV is a very reasonable £39.99 for a year. Even more of a bonus the software comes free. You can have Traffic TV on your mobile phone for as little as £14.99 for three months, a great way to try the service first. The cost is pennies compared to the amount of time and money you can waste in a traffic jam. Being late to your appointment also never looks good.

Traffic TV works on most handsets that have a colour screen and support Java. The software will display a map of the entire UK trunk and motorway network. When connected to the Traffic TV service the latest delays are sent to your mobile phone. The service supports 3G and GPRS and is available to all networks that support True GPRS. A refresh for traffic information uses about 10kb depending on road conditions. A still image will use about 25kb and a clip around 80kb.

So how does it work.

You know those blue cameras by the side of the road or on bridges, well there are over 8,000 of them in the UK and they enable Trafficmaster to accurately tell where the delays are. The data is never older than 4 minutes. This live traffic information is then delivered direct to your mobile phone enabling you to see exactly where the delays are before you set off on your journey or during your journey.

Above Left: Fully zoomed out map showing the coverage.
The entire UK Motorway network and Major Trunk roads are covered
Above Right: Part zoomed in on London.
Red is longest delay, then orange and then yellow

Above Left: Zoom in a bit more and you get more information.
This time it is showing the average speed.
Above Right:Zoom in a bit more still and you get even more information.
Again showing average speed, but more detail on
places making it easier to work out your location.

The delays are shown on the map as a small symbol. The symbol flashes as an overlay on the map showing the direction of the delay. Depending on your setting the symbol will display the average speed over the last 4 minutes or the expected delay time based on an average speed over the last 4 minutes on that stretch of road.

Above: Settings Screen.

Traffic TV also allows you to see live CCTV images (or clips). Just click the CCTV symbol on the map to view the current (live) image. This is far more of a novelty, but never the less, still quite cool. They don't have full UK CCTV coverage yet, but I am told they are working on it.

Above. Traffic TV CCTV footage from one of the
Reading cameras.

If you do a lot of driving Traffic TV is a great addition to you mobile phone, even if you don't but are planning to do a driving holiday round the UK then the three month option is great value.

In use.

I have been using Traffic TV for a few weeks now and it has been very useful and I know it has saved me time and money which in this day and age can't be bad. Traffic TV runs smoothly with other programs on my Pocket PC such as Tom Tom Navigator. The way I have been using, it is to get Tom Tom going and then set it to the background and run Traffic TV as the main screen. Tom Tom gives me the speech directions for my journey and Traffic TV the warnings of delays.

I have also noticed my mates now ring me for traffic reports, it used to be just the weather they wanted to know about. (see www.ukstorms.com)

The software has one main let down, its easy to move round the map screen using the touch screen or the joystick but having to access the menu to zoom in and out is a real pain when driving and not that safe either. It needs a simple way of zooming. Everything else is easy. The software is a doddle to install and setup.

On the wish list would be..

An easier way to zoom rather than using the menu.
GPS compatibility to show you where you are in relation to a delay, making it easier to see a problem in relation to your position at a glance. The less time your eyes are off the road the better.
Some kind of alarm to make a sound if you get within a user defined radius of a problem, so you can keep your eyes on the road more and be informed only when needed.

Can we recommend it, YES, we can.

Mobile phones cost money to use, Traffic TV saves you Time and Money.
Make your mobile phone work for you.

What do we like.	What don't we like.
Clear easy to see display. Colours are well laid out. Purchase cost Low running cost Easy install and easy to use. Real time data, no out of date radio alerts Easy to plan a trip to avoid traffic problems Help in avoiding congestion during your trip Customer service	Lack of easy zoom function No GPS link to show you where you are making it easier to see at a glance where you are compared to the delays.

Traffic TV is a software based system, changes can be made
so I suggest you check on their site for any developments.

Review June 2005