NORFOLK, Va. — The navigation platform, Waze, is launching a brand new feature to help drivers navigate icy roads.
Users will now get alerts if they're about to approach a road that hasn't been plowed after winter weather hits their area.
This feature was in part thanks to a recommendation by the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT), which is a Waze for Cities Data partner.
VDOT was the agency to make the suggestion to provide that feature on the navigation app to better highlight snow conditions in a user's area.
“Our work with the Virginia Department of Transportation on the development of the ‘Unplowed Road’ feature perfectly exemplifies what can be accomplished when we collaborate with public sector partners to meet community needs.”
The new feature can be found under "Hazards >>> Weather >>> Unplowed Road."
“At VDOT, our people are constantly exploring innovations and new technologies with the ultimate goal of providing the best service to the residents of the Commonwealth and all those who travel our roads,” said VDOT Chief Deputy Commissioner Rob Cary. “Many use crowdsourcing in their daily lives. We wanted to explore this method of information gathering to help improve safety and better assess the conditions of our roads during winter weather. We value our partnership with Waze, and look forward to monitoring the real-time reports on road conditions and determining how best to incorporate the data into our future operations.”
Waze for Cities Data is part of the Waze for Cities program, where partners can also access Waze Beacons, Waze Carpool, and solutions for managing communications with drivers and traffic during crisis situations and other major events like marathons, football championships, and large concerts.