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Map That Traffic Jam

How many times have you had this experience: You're driving along the highway, either in a highly congested area or a road you're not familiar with, and you hit a traffic backup that leaves you effectively parked for, say, an hour. You curse the road, the cars around you, your fate. You ponder how useless radio traffic reports are, since they only help you if they occur--and how unlikely is this?--five minutes before you need to jump off that road at a particular exit and take an alternate route. Perhaps you've pondered the Internet's potential to solve this problem in the distant future. Well the future may be here sooner than you think, courtesy of Google's addition of traffic data to Google Maps.

Users will download Google Maps to their mobile phone and select a "show traffic" option that delivers up-to-date data. When they request directions, they'll see expected drive time and likely delays. We're looking to review this service in the near future and welcome any reader comments, experiences, or even your own reviews in the meantime. We'd be thrilled to serve as a forum for readers' experiences with new products and services such as this. Also, we encourage suggestions on major traffic routes where you'd like to see this tested; if possible, we'll accommodate in order to deliver the most real-world conditions possible.

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