As traffic congestion continues to worsen and Americans spend nearly 36 hours a year stuck in traffic, technology is stepping in to reduce travel time - and frustration. Navigation Technologies Corp. has expanded to reach more than 130 metropolitan markets with traffic-enabled NAVTECH(R) map data, that enables synchronization with real-time traffic-information services for all the applications which already use Navigation Technologies' navigable map database. As an example, traffic-enabled NAVTECH map data allows motorists to instruct a navigation system to calculate alternate routes based on real-time reports of accidents, delays, congestion, construction, slowdowns, and travel speeds that impact traffic flow and travel times. "We have reached our goal of providing coverage to every North American metropolitan area which has the infrastructure and services to support this technology," said John MacLeod, executive vice president for North American and World Markets. "Thousands of commuters already rely on navigational technology and we expect that number to rise significantly as traffic problems continue to increase." Navigation Technologies' coverage expansion comes at a time when traffic congestion has reached unprecedented proportions. According to a recent study by the Texas Transportation Institute at Texas A&M University, traffic-related delays result in billions of dollars of lost productivity and wasted fuel annually. The NAVTECH expansion marks the final phase of a strategic rollout by Navigation Technologies begun last year in 24 major metropolitan markets. The most recent of the 130 cities to benefit from traffic-enabled NAVTECH map data include Orange County, Calif.; Pittsburgh, Pa.; Memphis, Tenn;, Madison, Wis;, and Tampa/St. Petersburg, Fla., among others. Traffic-information service providers are able to report any incident adversely affecting the flow of traffic and assist commuters with making informed routing decisions. For example, a stalled vehicle is reported to the traffic agency, which uses NAVTECH data to compute such incident details as exact location, approximate time until the incident is cleared, and delays in terms of distance. With traffic-enabled NAVTECH map data, motorists can instruct their system or service to propose alternate routes to bypass congestion for a more efficient commute, according to Navigation Technologies. This could be even more important as real-time traffic information becomes widely accessible through a variety of delivery methods, including in-vehicle navigation systems, personal digital assistants (PDAs), WAP-enabled digital phones and pagers, as well as personal computers. In addition, traffic-enabled NAVTECH maps offer manufacturers and service providers a variety of benefits, including reduced product-development costs, increased speed-to-market and accelerated growth opportunities in the North American telematics market, according to MacLeod. "Our goal is to continue building strong relationships by offering traffic providers a uniform environment in which to operate," said MacLeod. "This not only results in increased efficiencies for manufacturers and service providers, but also offers commuters the flexibility to receive this information via the channel most convenient for them." About Navigation Technologies Navigation Technologies is a global provider of map data for vehicle, Internet/wireless, and business applications. Navigation Technologies Corp. creates the digital map database that powers location-based services and navigation around the world. For more information, visit www.navtech.com. NAVTECH is a registered U.S. trademark of Navigation Technologies Corporation.