though it’s easy to call and it’s doing that matters, just saying: I called this 10 years ago.
Calling all cars: cell phone networks and the future of traffic
Ask someone what they think the future of driving is, and the most likely response involves self-driving cars. And it’s true that sensing and autonomy are dramatically changing the modern car, but there’s another information revolution taking place outside the windows. Cheap sensors and network availability are not only making individual cars smarter, but they’re also boosting the brainpower the environment cars drive in.
Networks of sensors connected by the Web are making it possible to monitor traffic, parking availability, air pollution, road quality, and more in real time and across large distances. Traffic monitoring in particular has been revolutionized by these changes. This kind of data gives drivers real-time travel time predictions, makes it possible to create smart roads where tolls and signals can adapt to changing conditions, and provides urban planners with accurate and detailed pictures of traffic usage and its effects, improving city layout and planning for the future.
One of the most widespread and powerful sensors is the mobile phone. Equipped with GPS and connected to the Internet, modern smartphones are an important source of information that many companies use to provide traffic data. Google Maps, for example, makes extensive use of data collected from users on mobile phones.
» via ars technica
