David Pescovitz on how "wireless sensors, smart street signs, and real-time data services for mobile devices" are "helping manage traffic flow and inform drivers about what they'll face on the road ahead." Goes well with Way New Urbanism:

"In the United States, TrafficGauge is the critic's darling of traffic information systems. Every few minutes or so, the subscription service broadcasts traffic reports from the Washington State Department of Transportation to a palm-sized proprietary device. The WSDOT data streams in from loop detectors, hexagon-shaped wire sensors in the pavement that count cars and measure average speed. ...

"While these systems are certainly not lemons, the US seems to be miles behind Europe and Asia in terms of commercial deployments. For years, Tokyo's Vehicle Information and Communication System was the crown jewel of wireless traffic navigation aids. Free to anyone who buys a car navigation system with VICS capability, the service delivers various levels of traffic and parking information to the in-dash display over short-range radio transmissions, infrared beacons, and FM broadcasts."