During last week’s ITS European Congress in Strasbourg, France, TomTom announced the introduction of its Traffic information system in 10 new countries, extending the service’s reach to 64 countries.
With the expansion to Lithuania, Estonia, Latvia, Ukraine, Croatia, Romania, Oman, Qatar, Bahrain and Israel, TomTom now offers comprehensive traffic coverage in Europe, as well as the Middle East. The company’s Traffic platform offers up-to-date information on road conditions, such as traffic jams, roadworks and accidents. This information can be used not only by drivers to find the most optimal route and avoid congestion, but also by cities and road authorities to monitor, analyze and influence their traffic operations.
TomTom plans to further accelerate its Traffic geo-expansion plans with several additional countries expected to be launched later in 2017. The company says this rapid growth demonstrates the scalability of the Traffic technology, as well as its ability to support its clients globally with high quality maps and traffic services.
With rapid developments in connected and autonomous vehicle (CAV) technologies and pilot deployments, and an increased focus on smarter cities and intelligent transportation networks, accurate and fresh traffic information is playing an increasingly important role. As a result, TomTom is working on making its traffic technology available in a greater number of countries, supported by the continuous growth in the supply of the source data it receives from over 500 million connected devices, including smartphones, in-car systems, and portable navigation devices, which provide GPS data points.
“The further geo-expansion of our Traffic system into Eastern Europe and the Middle East will be a huge help to drivers, businesses and governments in better managing traffic flow, increasing road safety, and easing the impact of congestion on the environment,” noted Andreas Erwig, VP of business development and operations at TomTom.
While the ITS Europe event was taking place, TomTom’s On-Street Parking service won a TechXLR8 Award for Innovation in Mobility Services at a ceremony in London, UK. The TechXLR8 awards celebrate outstanding contributions in converging areas of technology, showcasing companies leading the way in 5G, virtual and augmented reality, IoT, Cloud, connected automotive, and artificial intelligence.
Antoine Saucier, managing director of TomTom Automotive, said, “Our On-Street Parking service is an incredible product that utilizes our historical Traffic data to offer drivers peace of mind and a hassle-free parking experience. It also represents another step toward the future of driving, where the service could be used by autonomous vehicles to find a parking spot.”
