Every day,?Bay News 9's Real Time Traffic uses cameras to give you a glimpse of what your commute looks like before you hit the road.
With?a new and improved?Florida Department of Transportation?5-1-1 app, drivers can see the same images on?their smartphones?before?their?morning -- or nightly -- commute.
St. Pete College student Deandre Callins has a Blackberry, but the?basic?traffic information he gets on his phone isn't cutting it.
"Usually, it will take an hour or two for them to clear an accident, and I might be able to (see that), but by then it could have been over. It might have cost me an extra 30 to 35 minutes to work or something," Callins said.
The FDOT's website has been offering iPhone and iPad users current traffic?cameras for a couple of months. Now, the department is upgrading?its 5-1-1 app.
"We have the camera images now on the new app for iPhone or iPad products and these are the same cameras that I use every day," FDOT spokesperson Kris Carson said. "You can see construction. You can see what the bridges and the roads look like. It's very cool."
The images on the app are not streaming video, only still shots of the current camera view on a given camera view. To make?using the app?easier, there is a voice function that will read the accidents to you.
"Planned construction on Interstate 275 northbound, beyond mile marker 35. Right lane blocked," the app read in a test of the voice function.
The FDOT's message is "Know before you go," so the app is not designed to be used while you're driving.
Callins said he's ready to try out the new app in his daily commute.
"I travel a lot between school and Largo (and) Clearwater. Every now and again, I have to go to Tampa or Lakeland. This will help me a lot more," he said.
Right now the application is available in the iTunes store for free for?Apple products. The app can be found by searching iTunes for?'Florida 511'.
For Android users, it's not in your market just yet. According to the FDOT, the 5-1-1 app will be available for Android users sometime in 2012.
Post a commentWhat are you thoughts on the FDOT 5-1-1 app?
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