A partnership has been announced between Waze - the popular free crowdsourced traffic and navigation app - and Esri, designed to help governments of any size develop intelligent transportation systems.
Governments already using the ArcGIS platform can now quickly and easily exchange data through the Waze Connected Citizens Program – creating a two-way data share of publicly available traffic information.
Waze connects the world’s largest network of drivers, who together share information that helps them avoid congestion and save time and money.
It has set the benchmark for how to share and harness the power of anonymous, aggregated data to promote greater transportation efficiency and provide deeper insight into travel conditions and safer roads.
The app consistently recommends the fastest routes based on real-time driving and data from tens of millions of users. From traffic reroutes to low gas price alerts and relevant offers from leading brands, Waze is one of the most comprehensive driving companions in the marketplace.
”Councils can now leverage real-time reports without having to invest in sensor networks or an Internet of Things infrastructure,” said Terry Bills, global smart transport specialist at Esri.
“Waze allows local governments to share open data with a purpose – in an application that is already popular with citizens, commuters and tourists.”
The simplicity and structure of the data feeds allow local governments to merge information into their existing enterprise systems – tracking things like emergency dispatch and street maintenance – to make their communities smarter and safer.
Importantly, the partnership enables communities to extend the reach of the data they map and manage by sharing it with Waze, which has more than 65 million monthly active users worldwide – allowing for greater government transparency and collaboration with citizens, to help people better navigate their local roads.
”The Waze Connected Citizens Program empowers governments to harness real-time driver insight to improve congestion and make more informed planning decisions,” said Paige Fitzgerald, head of new business development (data acquisition) for Waze.
”Waze is already connected with more than 100 government partners worldwide – from London to Montreal, Jakarta to Rio de Janeiro – providing each with the same set of free, data-driven tools and resources to foster collaboration and communication.
“Working with Esri allows Waze to further scale the program, and creates additional opportunities for partners to collaborate with each other and incorporate the power of crowdsourced data into their traffic management strategies.”
Waze is considered the standard for data collection relating to road closures and incident reporting, supplying governments with real-time, anonymous, Waze-generated incident and slowdown information directly from drivers.
In exchange, these partners provide real-time, government-validated construction, crash and road closure data to Waze, creating one of the most thorough records of current road conditions available to commuters.
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