News

Saving you time on the road
Virginia's 511 service pinpoints traffic on your route

By PAT MCGLONE

Virginia’s 511 system for traffic information by phone or Web is saving drivers time and frustration on the highway.

Photo by BRITT STANAR

Rockbridge County residents are familiar with traffic on U.S. Route 60.

The 511 system is an online and phone service that tells travelers where accidents have occurred within minutes of a crash. When a state trooper radios the dispatcher about a wreck, the information is also sent to the Virginia Department of Transportation.

VDOT then posts trouble areas as red markers on a map of Virginia on www.511virginia.org as well as on a phone service that can be reached by dialing 5-1-1.

Fred Altizer, a VDOT engineer, said that the hope is that drivers will use 511 before they begin to travel.

The system works 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Phone calls cost no more than any other local call. If a driver does not have access to the Internet and is not yet in Virginia, he or she can call 1-800-578-4111 to get updates before coming into the Commonwealth.

The system covers problems that include not only traffic but construction, road conditions and weather as well. Information on gas and lodging, in addition to reports on public transportation are also included.

When a driver calls 5-1-1, a recording asks which is of interest, highways, public transportation, weather or travel services. Callers then specify county or city. The system then asks the caller to specify whether they would like information on weather conditions or traffic and construction in the area they have chosen. If asked for traffic incidents, an automated voice gives the number of incidents in the area and when asked for details, will give mile markers stretching the length of the problem. Callers give the system directions through voice commands, not using the number pad. The system is quick and easy to use.

On the Web site, users can set up e-mail alerts to notify them when problems occur on specific roadways, or at certain times of the day.

The system covers 98 roads and can handle 264 simultaneous calls, while putting another 98 people on hold.

Nationally, since the inception of 511 in 2002, it has received 47 million calls. Virginia had its one millionth call this past December.