ALDOT expands traffic center operations, upgrades ALGO app

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (WSFA) - The Alabama Department of Transportation is expanding its traffic monitoring system and making big upgrades its app, all to make sure your drive to work goes even smoother.

ALDOT opened its Traffic Management Center in Montgomery in October 2016. At that time it was in operation for 12 hours at a time, five days a week. Today, it is manned and operated 24/7/365 days a year.

The goal is to minimize the negative impact traffic can have on your quality of life.

The average motorist loses nearly a full work week, 36 hours, sitting in traffic because of traffic incidents. Traffic incidents account for up to 25 percent of all congestion on the roadways. And then there are secondary incidents which make up 14 to 18 percent of all crashes, and are estimated to cause up to 18 percent of deaths.

The TMC uses technology like traffic cameras and the WAZE app to detect any incidents on the road and alert police or other necessary first responders. It monitors more than 120 cameras along the interstates and major highways around the river region, as north as central Autauga County, as east as Lee and Chambers County, and as south as Dothan.

Those cameras are also accessible on the ALGO App, which has just been updated to include several new features. One of them is the “Drive Mode”, which will give you audible alerts about construction zones, crashes, or any other incidents so you can decide if you want to change your course.

You can check traffic, watch traffic cameras, and download the app here.

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