511 Traffic Systems

What Is 511?

While Sooner State residents may be familiar with the 911 and 411 telephone services, most probably aren't aware of the useful 511 traffic-information service being unrolled throughout the country, as it is not yet active in the state.

Background

The U.S. Department of Transportation, with the approval of the Federal Communications Commission, developed the Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) to increase traffic efficiency and safety on the nation's roadways.

The ITS gathers information about:

• Detours

• Accident

• Road closures

• Poor weather

• Dangerous roadway surfaces

511 Access

The master plan was to have a national system in which individuals throughout the country could simply dial 511 on their cell or landline phones and access this information. However, like many plans, this one has been slow to unfold.

Much of the country is still waiting to have this mostly-free service activated in their state.

The information you receive by calling 511 is much more detailed than you'd get from a local television or radio traffic report. Some areas offer additional services, such as allowing you to check airport conditions.

Motorists can test out the service when traveling through states that deploy it. After dialing 511, just follow the voice instructions to access the information you're seeking.

Some states also have Web sites which allow you to review the information online.

Cost

The 511 Deployment Coalition stipulates that using 511 should only cost as much as making a local call.