Mobility Technologies announced Jan. 14 it is providing its new voice recognition traffic service to selected consumers in the Philadelphia area during the pilot phase of its planned full-scale launch.

Called Traffic Pulse Voice, it is a speech recognition application that enables users to obtain personalized real-time traffic updates--including point-to-point travel times, advisories and incidents along major roadways--from any cellular or regular phone at any location, according to Mobility Technologies. A commercial application is also planned as part of its enterprise solutions package.

According to the company, the system uses voice prompts. Users specify the highway they're traveling on and provide entry and exit points to receive travel times plus details about accidents, disabled vehicles or activities that affect their route. Information is derived from the firm's Digital Traffic Pulse SM radar and acoustic sensor network deployed at roadside along Philadelphia's key highways including I-95, I-76 and I-476. Data is refreshed at 60-second intervals to provide continual traffic updates and is supplemented by incidents and events reported by the company's Operations Center in Wayne.

John Collins, Vice President of Intelligent Transportation Solutions and Telematics for Mobility Technologies, commented: "Our research has shown that consumers want accurate, on-demand traffic information that tells a person how long it'll take to get from point A to point B."

"The challenge to Mobility Technologies was to design a telematics application that can be used by people on the go. Traffic Pulse Voice accomplishes that, since it does not require expensive on-board units or special connectivity. A simple cell phone handles it, even though the data can be fed to virtually any digital on-board device as well."

The company is offering free trial subscriptions (at www.trafficpulse.com) to a limited number of participants during its pilot phase in Philadelphia. Participants will have the option of subscribing to the service, along with the general public, when it is officially launched. Pittsburgh will soon be the second market to receive Traffic Pulse Voice.

According to Mr. Collins, Traffic Pulse Voice will also be positioned as a key element of its package of services offered to commercial enterprises such as fleet operators and mobile workforces.

About Mobility Technologies

Mobility Technologies (www.mobilitytechnologies.com) is creating a traffic information franchise with its Digital Traffic Pulse sensor network, an Intelligent Transportation System which continually measures traffic flow along major highways, providing motorists with actual speeds, point-to-point travel times and traffic congestion data.

Enterprise software applications deliver mobility solutions to fleets, mobile workforces and engineering users. Traffic information for 13 major markets is distributed on its interactive Web site at www.traffic.com and featured on select radio and TV broadcasts through its nationwide Traffic Pulse Networks.