Subject: [NEXTEL-1] News article - from eyeforauto

From: Alan Dixon <[email-masked]>
Date: Wed, 28 May 2003 12:36:05 GMT

NEXTEL-1 List - Telematics News:
I believe J. McClellan of
SmartRoute Systems is a member of
this Board...
This e-mail has been sent from the http://www.eyeforauto.com website by Alan Dixon.
Four major ITS firms form National 511 alliance (5/22/2003)
Alliance offers states and local agencies rapid and complete deployment of 511 systems

Telematics Update Upcoming Events 2003

2 day Conference
Gothenburg, June 4-5

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Telematics 2003
2 day Conference
Chicago, Sept 25-26

PBS&J, SmartRoute Systems/Westwood One (SRS), Tele Atlas and Meteorlogix have announced the formation of a national alliance to provide 511 traveler information telephone services to state and local agencies.

The alliance will offer comprehensive content, full integration of existing ITS services, and strong project management capabilities, according to the companies.

The companies announced the alliance today in Minneapolis at the Intelligent Transportation Society of America (ITSA) Annual Meeting. They spelled out the roles each will play:

PBS&J - Project management, project design, Documentation, Telecommunications Carrier Coordination

SRS/Westwood One - National traffic content, operations, 511 Interactive Voice Response (IVR) telephone system implementation

Tele Atlas - Map databases, interface development, traffic workstations, traveler information servers, Web sites, and traffic-television products

Meteorlogix -Travel-related weather information, highly accurate travel times, and real-time alerting capabilities.

"This group of companies represents a 'best-of-breed' in the traveler information industry," said Rick Schuman, PBS&J's national business manager for Traveler Information Services.

"We have been working to find the best way to leverage our national traffic content and this alliance offers that opportunity," said Richard Marks, SRS/Westwood One Senior V.P.

Larry Sweeney, V.P. for Government and Industry Relations at Tele Atlas North America, explained that the alliance gives state and local agencies a "one-stop shop" for 511 services. He added, "For markets that have their own data and for those with little or no data of their own, we can launch a 511 service in 90 days. No one else in the industry can match that."

Weather is a vital component in the 511 equation, according to Steve Goertz, V.P. for Meteorlogix, based in Minneapolis. "Being able to access accurate, timely weather information via 511 is a tremendous public service," he said. "Coupled with SRS/Westwood One traffic content, Tele Atlas' traveler information servers and PBS&J's ITS planning and engineering expertise, our weather content is an integral piece of the 511 puzzle," said Goertz.

The companies are part of the 511 Deployment Coalition, a consortium of government agencies and private companies working to bring 511 services to U.S. markets. "Working together on the 511 Deployment Coalition created a forum within which the four companies looked at the market and decided a strategic alliance could allow for a more efficient and cost effective delivery of services that can meet the national 511 implementation guidelines today," said Schuman.

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