Maryland drivers can get traffic updates by dialing 511 starting this week, but the state law against talking and driving means they better pull over first. The new program, called “Know Before You Go,” connects motorists to the latest travel-related news, including lane closings, weather-related conditions and traffic jams. Drivers are encouraged to log on to the website or call before getting behind the wheel.
Maryland banned talking on a handheld device while driving in 2010.
“If you do come across a traffic backup, you could call and check on it by route. That would mean you’d have to pull off at a safe place before you start messing around with the phone,” Maryland Highway spokeswoman Valerie Burnette Edgar said.
The service currently is limited to state highways and toll roads, but Burnette Edgar said that information on major roads in Baltimore County is being added now.
Traffic information from counties with automated call centers, like Montgomery and Prince George’s, are the next local roads to be added to the system, she said.
“Baltimore is hosting the Grand Prix on Labor Day weekend and we think this should be helpful for out-of-towners,” she said.
Burnette Edgar said the program also helps tourists who usually call 511 for traffic information in their home states. The national program, which started 12 years ago, operates in a number of other states including Virginia, Pennsylvania and New York.
“We’re kind of late in the game because we were providing a lot of other traffic information online,” Burnette Edgar said. “Before we started, we wanted to make sure we could do it statewide because we’re relatively small.”
The customizable options are targeted to in-state users who can add six of their most traveled routes on the 511 website at www.MD511.org.
Motorists who register their numbers receive route and region-specific updates when they call. Selecting the capital region gives callers updates on District roads, as well as Southern Maryland highways.
The service is operated through Telvent, a Rockville company that signed a five-year, $4.7 million contract with the state Board of Public Works last year.
