RICHMOND – Feeling totally stressed by traffic because delays caused by crashes, road work and unexpected incidents are beyond your control? Now you have an easy, free way to avoid those travel problems and save gas, time and wear on your nerves – and you don’t have to wait for the next radio or TV traffic report to do it.

The Virginia Department of Transportation’s (VDOT’s) new 511Virginia.org Web site launched this week offers a comprehensive set of tools to help you take control of your travels like never before.

The 511 system provides continuously updated traffic and travel information any time, any place.

You can access 511 however it is easiest for you – by going online to www.511virginia.org; receiving personalized traffic information via e-mail, text pager, Blackberry, PDA, or other mobile device; or by calling 511 from a cell phone or land line.

And the best part – it’s free!

Through VDOT’s 511 service, you can receive personalized information including:

• Accident and incident alerts
  
 
• Live traffic camera images
  
 
• Bridge and tunnel reports
  
 
• Road construction info
  
 
• Free mobile alerts – e-mails or text messages sent whenever conditions change on the roads you most often travel
  
 
• Driving directions
  
 
• Gas-saving tips on how to get where you’re going without a car by using trains, buses, subways, ferries and bike paths
  
 
• Weather conditions

The heart of the system – a customized “511 Control Room” – lets you set up your own personal traveler information resource.

You can select cameras, maps, traffic reports and construction information tailored for those roads or areas that interest you.

You can also get detailed trip planning resources that include driving directions, anticipated delays on selected routes during hours of travel, and suggestions about alternative forms of transportation to get where you need to go without using your gas.

“The improved 511 system represents the evolution of traveler information tools that let drivers make educated travel decisions before they leave home and while they are on the road,” said VDOT Commissioner David. S. Ekern.

“Keeping Virginia moving is about more than paving roads and patching potholes,” Ekern said. “By providing accurate and timely traveler information through 511, highway message signs and radio broadcasts, VDOT is maximizing the efficiency of our highway network and keeping motorists safer while they are on the road.”

VDOT gathered citizens’ suggestions over the past two years to improve the 511 traveler information system to meet their needs.

The 511 system improvements will continue as VDOT collects customer feedback through research programs and as users leave recorded messages or send correspondence about 511.
 
“This upgraded system shows that we are listening to the hundreds of 511 comments we receive each month and looking to help our customers to enjoy safer, more reliable travels,” Ekern said.

For more information about 511 and other transportation-related information, visit www.511Virginia.org, or www.VirginiaDOT.org.

Fast Facts

• 511 is a 24/7/365 free resource.
  
  
• VDOT launched its 511 system statewide in February 2005, after piloting the program in the Shenandoah Valley for three years.
  
  
• Since its inception in 2002, 511 Virginia has received more than 5.2 million calls and two million Web site visits.
  
  
• Motorists can call 511 from any landline or cell phone in Virginia.
   
• Those calling from out of state can access the system via a toll-free number, (866) MY511VA [(866) 695-1182].
  
 
• The 511 system conveys incident and construction information gathered from VDOT crews, Safety Service Patrols, Virginia State Police dispatchers and some local law enforcement partners. As soon as information is entered into any of these agencies’ dispatch systems, it goes into the 511 system.

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Page last modified: Aug. 27, 2008