Archive for the ‘traffic’ Category

Punch your destination into the navigation system in a new vehicle—especially a luxury-brand model—and you’re likely to get more than just driving directions. Many of today’s systems alert you of upcoming traffic congestion and even adjust your route on the fly to help avoid it.

But there’s a catch. Most of the real-time traffic features offered as original equipment use satellite radio-based data services—called either XM NavTraffic or Sirius Traffic—that require a monthly fee of about $10 a month (four dollars if you add it to satellite radio service). Past the trial period, if you don’t subscribe, you’re out of luck.

Mitsubishi is an...

Creeping along from red light to red light on your way from a major sports event or concert, or stopped by every red light on the way home late at night, on empty roads, you've probably wondered why traffic lights in the U.S. aren't a little more adaptable.

The short answer: they're not at all smart, and at least here in the U.S. they're horribly outdated. The typical U.S. traffic signaling system is (sorry, fellow GenXers) 30 to 40 years old. And the result of these inflexible geezers signaling traffic is a lot of needless idling and the lack of easy adaptability in most cases to either sudden events like traffic accidents or even daily...

First, the good news: technologically speaking, the Aha Mobile traffic app is at the front of the pack. It pairs the iPhone's built-in geolocation capabilities with data from INRIX, Yelp, SitOrSquat, and PhotoEnforced, making Aha your one-stop-shop for data on traffic, food, bathrooms, and speed cameras -- without having to deal with itty-bitty maps. Other features allow you to communicate with nearby drivers and post to Twitter and Facebook. Also, it's totally free.

The bad news? Aha works better in some cities than others, its geolocation tools occasionally go off-track, it's a memory hog, and it's somewhat unstable. But as long as Aha is...