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Joined: Oct 15, 2005 Posts: 123 Location: Somerset, England
Posted: Sat Nov 24, 2012 2:02 pm Post subject: TomTom Traffic
Hi
has anyone else noticed this flaw in the TT traffic.
I believe the system works by collecting anonymous data from vodaphone users.
Taunton in Somerset has suffered considerable road flooding in the last few days. A couple of days ago I was due to travel to Minehead. I checked TT and was surprised to see that traffic into Taunton on the A358 had an hours delay, whilst traffic outbound on the same road was clear. "Why was there no traffic control around the obstacle?" I thought.
When I got to the obstruction, it turned out that the road was flooded just of the roundabout at the Cross keys Pub.
So why did TT show traffic congestion only one way? Well, there were no vehicles able to get past the flood the other way, so no Vodaphone users! TT did not show congestion south of the flood because of the roundabout, everyone going north simply went around the roundabout and either gave up or sought another route, hence the traffic is moving and not showing up as a holdup.
In instances like this I don't see what TT could have done differently.
Joined: Jan 04, 2006 Posts: 9323 Location: Durham, UK
Posted: Sat Nov 24, 2012 2:20 pm Post subject:
Quote:
I believe the system works by collecting anonymous data from vodaphone users.
In part, yes, but not totally.
It also uses other data feeds from Highways Agency and road side traffic flow monitors. The Vodafone (and LIVE device) data is used to enhance the other data flows.
Quote:
In instances like this I don't see what TT could have done differently.
Other data sources would have told them it was closed in BOTH directions. Either they are not getting that info or they are not implementing it.
As a personal example, my TT tried to route me onto a M class road (i forget which one) near Newcastle a couple of years ago. The M road was showing as clear but the surrounding A roads were packed. I soon found out why. The M Road was closed for surface repairs but it wasn't showing as closed on the TT so it insisted on sending me down that M road. When i was forced off that road and onto A roads and side streets it insisted on trying to get me back onto the M road which it believed was clear. Had it implemented info from the Highways Agency and it had been marked as closed on the TT I would have been diverted right around all the trouble. Instead it kept trying to lure me back into it and I had to work out my own route eventually....
Joined: Jun 04, 2005 Posts: 19991 Location: West and Southwest London
Posted: Sat Nov 24, 2012 2:30 pm Post subject:
Before we start, to be specific, only "TomTom HD Traffic" uses probe data from Vodaphone users as one of it's data sources, ordinary "TomTom Traffic" doesn't.
--------
As just said the GSM "probe data" is only one of the sources used to work out the traffic situation. That data has to be managed (quite cleverly) to remove all the spurious stuff from phones and satnavs that are NOT sitting in cars on roads (eg in houses and on speeding trains)
It's then mixed with details from all the other normal sources to produce the final "Traffic" situation.
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