New Tool on 511 Web Page Lets Drivers Forecast Travel Times

Online Service Taps Historical Driving Time, Traffic Speed Data

OAKLAND, Calif., Feb. 13 -- The Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) has once again expanded its award-winning 511 traveler information service by adding a new Web-based feature that allows motorists to estimate driving times before they hit the road. Dubbed "Predict-a- Trip(SM),"the new feature builds on the popular 511 Driving Times(SM) service by using historical information on freeway traffic speeds and driving times to provide point-to-point travel time forecasts for about 90 percent of the Bay Area freeway network. Predict-a-Trip(SM) is available free of charge on the 511 Traffic page at 511.org, but is not available through the 511 phone service.

Predict-a-Trip(SM) works by calculating a "typical" travel time between various points along the Bay Area freeway network at 15-minute intervals around the clock. These "typical" values are updated daily using the most recent traffic speed and travel time data from the 511 system. There currently are seven different "day" designations used to categorize historical traffic flow data: Sunday; Monday; Mid-week (Tuesday through Thursday); Friday; Saturday; Thanksgiving (which includes the Thursday and Friday of Thanksgiving weekend); and Holiday (which includes Christmas, New Year's Day, Independence Day, Memorial Day, Labor Day, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Presidents Day, Columbus Day, and Veterans Day).

"We're constantly getting feedback from travelers who use the 511 phone and Web services," said former MTC Vice Chair John McLemore. "Since we added 511 Driving Times(SM) in 2004, the most requested enhancement by far from users of the 511 Traffic Web page has been a trip forecasting tool. Now with Predict-a-Trip(SM), all you have to do is select a Driving Times route on the Web and then choose the day of the week and the time of the day you plan to travel." McLemore noted that Predict-a-Trip(SM) is particularly helpful for motorists planning trips that are not part of their normal routine. "This is great for people who may be planning dinner at a hot new restaurant in San Jose on a Friday night, or who are catching a six o'clock flight out of SFO on a Wednesday morning. If you're thinking of moving to a different part of the Bay Area, Predict-a-Trip(SM) can even help estimate the length of your morning and evening commutes."

Predict-a-Trip(SM) can be accessed directly through an interface on the 511 Traffic page, or through the 511 Driving Times SM service via the text- based Driving Times page or the Traffic and Driving Times map.

In addition to Predict-a-Trip(SM) and the 511 Driving Times(SM) service, the 511.org Web site features a ridematching tool for carpoolers, MTC's popular TakeTransit Trip Planner(SM), and links to other helpful traveler services - including online enrollment in the FasTrak(R) electronic toll collection program.

The Bay Area is the largest metropolitan area in the country - and was the first in California - to activate a 511 system. The service currently generates more than 450,000 calls and 1.5 million Web visits each month.

MTC is the transportation planning, financing and coordinating agency for the nine-county San Francisco Bay Area.