Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Google Maps Adds More SoCal Traffic Info

Search engine giant Google is now pulling more traffic information from local streets around Southern California, saying Tuesday that it has added major traffic arteries and local street data to the firm's Google Maps service. Google is tapping data that the firm is gathering from cell phone users who use Google Maps on their mobile devices; the firm says that it is collecting GPS data from those users, who give it permission. That information is being used by Google to calculate speed and traffic congestion information, which is displayed on its interactive maps. Southern California's data is particularly rich in Orange County and Los Angeles, where it appears that Google is now covering all of the major streets across those counties.

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