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Are radio traffic reports obsolete?

F

fredflintstone

Guest
First video killed the radio star. Now satellite radio and mp3 players are killing music radio. What's next? The Internet, cell phones and GPS systems kill "traffic and transit on the ___'s."

From Radiodailynews.com:
<blockquote>"Though traffic helicopters are still on the job, an era may well be ending. Nothing personal against the Cap'n Bobs, but because of technological advances in the way traffic can be measured and monitored from roadside digital sensors, "there is less and less need for a chopper in the air," said Christopher Rothey, the chief operating officer of Traffic.com, a company that provides traffic information generated by roadside sensors in major markets ... "
</blockquote>

Read NY Times article - registration required
 
> First video killed the radio star. Now satellite radio and
> mp3 players are killing music radio. What's next? The
> Internet, cell phones and GPS systems kill "traffic and
> transit on the ___'s."

And to access that traffic information, you'll have to do what while driving? ... punch a bunch of buttons on your cell phone or GPS system.
Stats show that drivers using cell phones are four times more likely to get into crashes serious enough to injure themselves, not to mention other people in or out of their car.
No thanks. I rather just punch one button for the local radio station on my presets that has the traffic report.
Local traffic and weather information will help save local radio, not cause it to suffer further. It's the stations that are just music juke boxes that are in more trouble.
 
I HAVE TO DISAGREE!!!

...Now satellite radio and mp3 players are killing music radio...

NO WAY! Local music radio is being killed by their corporate owners. They are shooting themselves in the testicles!<P ID="signature">______________
got ROCK?</P>
 
Radio Traffic Reports

The technology outlined in the New York Times story may make traffic copters obsolete, but won't make radio traffic reports obsolete.

The information would be gathered in a different way, but could still be broadcast.
 
> From Radiodailynews.com:
> "Though traffic helicopters are still on the job, an era may
> well be ending. Nothing personal against the Cap'n Bobs, but
> because of technological advances in the way traffic can be
> measured and monitored from roadside digital sensors, "there
> is less and less need for a chopper in the air," said
> Christopher Rothey, the chief operating officer of
> Traffic.com, a company that provides traffic information
> generated by roadside sensors in major markets ... "

>

Boy-o-boy...

I disagree. A "traffic sensors show that the XXX Highway is backed up because of a spectacular three-car wreck" radio report is hugely overshadowed by a traffic copter with video-cam, hovering over the scene, panning from blood-spattered car to blood-soaked asphalt in real-time! Hoo boy! Look at those red-stained sheets covering the carnage!

Give me video over audio any day! :) Beats the heck outta imagination, huh?
 
Re: Radio Traffic Reports

> The technology outlined in the New York Times story may make
> traffic copters obsolete, but won't make radio traffic
> reports obsolete.
>
> The information would be gathered in a different way, but
> could still be broadcast.

My feelings exactly. It's just simpler. No one is going to mess with their cell phone or laptop while driving just to get a traffic report when they can simply hear it on the radio.

Post 830 dedicated to WCCO, Minneapolis.<P ID="signature">______________
"Get educated. Read stuff on the web and believe all of it."
-- Phil Hendrie
http://theradioblog.blogspot.com</P>
 
Re: Radio Traffic Reports

I agree that radio traffic/weather info will be a part of keeping radio alive especially during drive times. It's pretty hard to watch a TV screen or a computer screen while driving. I don't get why TV stations are doing traffic reports. Why watch that while getting dressed when you could listen and not be glued to the TV screen? I guess it might be a generational thing. I'm 54 and far more into radio than TV it never occurs to me to turn on TV for the weather or traffic in the morning. My clock radio kicks on and my local news/talk station has the info there waiting for me as I get ready for work and while in my car driving. Even FM music stations that may not do any news, broadcast traffic and weather information, because most everyone out and about wants that information and they don't want to risk losing their music listeners as they scan the dial trying to find the traffic and weather on some other FM station or on the AM dial.

> > The technology outlined in the New York Times story may
> make
> > traffic copters obsolete, but won't make radio traffic
> > reports obsolete.
> >
> > The information would be gathered in a different way, but
> > could still be broadcast.
>
> My feelings exactly. It's just simpler. No one is going to
> mess with their cell phone or laptop while driving just to
> get a traffic report when they can simply hear it on the
> radio.
>
> Post 830 dedicated to WCCO, Minneapolis.
>
 
Not yet. Maybe soon.

The article focuses on getting traffic info from sensors rather than choppers. But the article also mentions (and so does the company's website) that you can program in your commuting routes and their computer will call you (cell phone, pager, wireless PDA or GPS) with instant updates on any traffic problems or changes on the routes you selected delivered via computer voice or text message. Doesn't sound like many buttons to push, if any.

What's interesting is you don't have to wait for a scheduled traffic report and maybe get the info in time to detour. Also you don't have to listen through all the reports for traffic on the other side of town. And on a bad traffic day you don't have to worry that the traffic announcer will run out of time before they read the highway your on. Downside is you have to pay for this and if you don't take the same roads every day this doesn't help. It's not there yet, but...

Maybe radio needs to pay attention and start figuring out ways to send immediate customized alerts and updates with either digital audio technology or that system they use in Europe that lets radio stations put text on the receiver display.



>
> And to access that traffic information, you'll have to do
> what while driving? ... punch a bunch of buttons on your
> cell phone or GPS system.
> Stats show that drivers using cell phones are four times
> more likely to get into crashes serious enough to injure
> themselves, not to mention other people in or out of their
> car.
> No thanks. I rather just punch one button for the local
> radio station on my presets that has the traffic report.
> Local traffic and weather information will help save local
> radio, not cause it to suffer further. It's the stations
> that are just music juke boxes that are in more trouble.
>
 
Re: Radio Traffic Reports

Maybe the "generational thing" is idea of having to be "glued to the TV screen." Gen X'ers and Gen Y'ers have grown up with having TV on as background noise, maybe looking at the screen occasionally. They do their homework to MTV like baby boomers did their homework to Top 40 radio.

Morning TV news programs are designed so you don't have to listen to them. Many homes have bedrooms, family room or den and kitchen TV's. People can walk around and still hear the TV (as an older generation used to move from room to room during their morning routine and still listen to their radios). In-home listening for all-news and news-talk stations has been declining, especially in the morning, since 24 hour cable news and before-7am local TV news became established. Cable news, in particular, is designed to be listened to (XM and Sirius carry cable news audio; many radio stations run CNN Headline News audio). Even the Today Show was designed to be listened to going back to the days of Dave Garroway and Pat Weaver. The idea of listening to morning television is not new, it just took a while before most people were actually listening most of the time, rather than watching.

The main problem with TV traffic reports is that for the most part they are too short, not nearly as complete as reports on radio stations. And people have always checked traffic reports on the radio before they leave the house; now a lot check them via TV.

> I agree that radio traffic/weather info will be a part of
> keeping radio alive especially during drive times. It's
> pretty hard to watch a TV screen or a computer screen while
> driving. I don't get why TV stations are doing traffic
> reports. Why watch that while getting dressed when you
> could listen and not be glued to the TV screen? I guess it
> might be a generational thing. I'm 54 and far more into
> radio than TV it never occurs to me to turn on TV for the
> weather or traffic in the morning. My clock radio kicks on
> and my local news/talk station has the info there waiting
> for me as I get ready for work and while in my car driving.
> Even FM music stations that may not do any news, broadcast
> traffic and weather information, because most everyone out
> and about wants that information and they don't want to risk
> losing their music listeners as they scan the dial trying to
> find the traffic and weather on some other FM station or on
> the AM dial.
>
 
I can agree, but only from a personal point of view. Worked traffic in a top 10 market in the early 90s, then relocated to another top 10 market.

The quality of accurate reporting absolutely stinks in my current market. That includes the company I left and the other local companies.

During a recent natural disaster affecting several counties on a weekend, the service my station used did not even have a live staffer! We changed services shortly after that.

Is there a quality fall-off in other markets? My pals at the old job (in the other market) would disagree, but that's personal pride speaking.
 
Re: Not yet. Maybe soon.

>
> Maybe radio needs to pay attention and start figuring out
> ways to send immediate customized alerts and updates with
> either digital audio technology or that system they use in
> Europe that lets radio stations put text on the receiver
> display.
>

Many stations these days are using RDS (the technology you're talking about), but mostly just for title/artist info or station slogans.

It's very distracting trying to read the scrolling displays while driving, and other than GM vehicles made in the last 4-5 years there aren't many RDS capable receivers out there.
 
I also agree regarding the quality - my experience is that when I am in the car I find that the reports lag well behind the facts, rendering the whole system as pretty unreliable. I'm in Boston and there are too many roads for one copter to cover and report accurately. It seems like a lot of the smaller problems have cleared by the time they make it to the radio.

Plus the busiest road in the city now goes underground for a couple of miles, and is invisible to a traffic copter.

I agree that the best system would combine both air and any traffic sensor data available.

By the way, I don't know if the Times article was strictly a puff piece or what, but even a puff piece should strive for more balance than that article. The reporter basically interviewed the COO of Traffic.com and asked him what he thought of radio and TV traffic reports. What did the reporter think he would say? It appears no radio or TV person was consulted for the article or given any chance to respond.
 
Maybe we spoke too soon

This press release was issued today. It looks like they are planning to use HD radio technology to distribute traffic info.
<blockquote>
Traffic.com and HD Radio Extend Partnership; Agreement Provides Framework to Explore New Avenues in Digital HD Radio

WAYNE, Pa.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 22, 2005--Traffic.com, Inc., the nation's leader in traffic data collection and reporting, and iBiquity Digital Corporation, sole developer and licensor of HD Radio(TM) technology for digital AM and FM radio in the United States, today announced the extension of a joint marketing and testing agreement which allows the partners to further explore technological and commercial opportunities for digital HD Radio.

Currently, more than 2,500 radio stations across the country are in the process of converting to the HD Radio system, with more than 440 HD Radio broadcasters already on the air. Sixty percent of Americans have access to digital HD Radio broadcasting.

"With stations from most of the large independent radio groups included in our Traffic Pulse(R) solutions customer base, we strongly believe in the future of digital radio, and we're delighted to be partnered with a next generation technology pioneer and industry leader like HD Radio," said Chris Rothey, chief operating officer, Traffic.com, Inc. "We are working aggressively to distribute Traffic.com's solutions across all broadcast platforms and see opportunity in the digital wireless delivery of our flexible, real-time traffic data technology and content via AM/FM HD Radio datacasting."

HD Radio is designed to provide enhanced audio quality, crystal clear reception, multichannel broadcasting in a single frequency and the transmission of data services. The next generation of radio receivers in the U.S. is expected to include data-enabled monitors that will receive both digital AM/FM audio and data services. With distribution possible to other wireless devices, the digital AM/FM datapipe provides application developers and content providers the potential to reach an unlimited audience.

"Using the HD Radio system to deliver Traffic.com's unique content will deliver useful information to daily commuters on a highly localized basis," said Joseph D'Angelo, vice president, advanced services, iBiquity Digital Corporation. "We are very enthusiastic about our partnership and combined abilities to effectively reach consumers with vital, up-to-the-minute information."
</blockquote>
>
> Many stations these days are using RDS (the technology
> you're talking about), but mostly just for title/artist info
> or station slogans.
>
> It's very distracting trying to read the scrolling displays
> while driving, and other than GM vehicles made in the last
> 4-5 years there aren't many RDS capable receivers out there.
>
 
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