Posted on 12/25/2005 5:28:12 PM PST by elkfersupper
KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Missouri transportation officials approved a controversial contract Friday that will allow a private corporation to track signals from motorists' cell phones to map traffic snarls and highway congestion on major roads throughout the state.
As early as next week, that company, the National Engineering Technology Corp. (NET), will start monitoring thousands of cell phones in Kansas City and St. Louis, using their movements to test how to relay traffic conditions to the public in real time.
While officials say the program will make Missouri a national leader in "intelligent" traffic management, privacy advocates are concerned that getting more frequent travel time updates on road signs and Web sites may come at a price.
"This is a leap forward in our nation," said Missouri Department of Transportation Director Pete Rahn, minutes before the Highways and Transportation Commission's unanimous vote to authorize the contract. "No other department of transportation will be able to keep the users of their system as well informed."
The program charts drivers' relative speed by measuring the time between the intermittent signals cell phones send to towers along a stretch of road. Then, that information - stripped of the personal identification and serial numbers that identify the cell phone's owner - is overlaid with highway maps to determine where the phones are and how fast they are moving.
In six months, transportation officials say, Missouri motorists will be able to calculate their commute times by viewing such maps on the government's Web sites. Distilled versions of the information will also be displayed on electronic road signs along major highways, they said.
Cell phone monitoring already is being used by transportation officials in Baltimore, though not yet to relay traffic conditions to the public. Similar projects are getting under way in Norfolk, Va., and a stretch of Interstate 75 between Atlanta and Macon, Ga.
But monitoring phone signals along Missouri's 5,500 miles of major roads, many of which run through rural areas where cell phone coverage is spotty, makes for an additional challenge. On Friday, state officials had not determined which cell phone companies would provide information for the program.
That raised eyebrows at the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC).
"Consumers should have the right to opt into this public service," said Lillie Coney, associate director of Washington, D.C.-based EPIC. "Missouri may be creating a base for a new industry on the shoulders of the taxpayers."
Don Hillis, the director of system management for the Department of Transportation, said the state explored other options to provide the traffic flow information that motorists and logistics planners now expect and decided that wireless data collection was the cheapest way to go.
"We'll be able to give our drivers traffic information throughout their trips," said Hillis, who has overseen the project since its inception. "That said, we recognize the importance of the privacy issue, and we wouldn't do business with any company that would take any steps in the future to infringe on those rights." Hillis said regional planning commissions like the Mid-America Regional Council and the East-West Gateway Council of Governments will also have free access to the data to tackle congestion problems.
And as wireless technology evolves, Missouri officials believe there may be so much interest from users outside the government - such as trucking companies, satellite radio, mobile phones and GPS devices - that their investment could pay for itself.
Under the terms of the $6.2 million, two-year contract, NET will wholly own the information and is free to sell it to outside vendors that could profit from offering just-in-time travel updates. The government has no authority to monitor where the information ends up, but Hillis said that after two years, the state may enter a revenue-sharing agreement with NET.
"If you travel on a certain route every day, we'll eventually be able to give you alerts to see if an instance would keep you from getting to work on time," said Steven McDonald, a senior project manager for NET. "This has a lot of potential."
Isn't that the truth. Even the Interstates are bone-jarring.
btt
thanks for the heads-up, elk!
I'll be turning the cell phone off if this ever gets to Texas.
Be careful out there.
Until they make them illegal to drive!
Is Jim Rob simply a FRONT for finding and IDing patriots and their ilk?
Suck 'em in for 8 years to make feel 'safe' and then round 'em up?
I didn't list my guns.
If it gets to that point, the new revolution will be on!
I could clean out some room here if you want to get rid of the GT-6 or the Willys.
And just the other day, my mother was castigating me loudly for getting rid of my cell phone.
She had no idea why I wouldn't have one. As if a legal marketer needs to be available 24/7 . . . in case a legal marketing emergency arises, I guess.
I'm not aware of RFID memory cards- for what?
What do you use them in?
Here is a clip from a cell provider about privacy. It says they won't share personal information, but if they strip the personal information from their datastream, it's not personal- it's just a cell ID ping.
There really is nothing personal about a cell ping itself, it's the carrier database that links it to who you are.
This is nothing like the British programme to use a computer camera on your auto license tag to track your car- it uses a big linked database and an OCR to read your plate and record the time.
Your Privacy
We have a duty under federal law to protect the confidentiality of information about the quantity, technical configuration, type, destination, and amount of your use of our service, together with similar information on your bills. (This doesn't include your name, address, and wireless phone number.)
Except as provided in this agreement, we won't intentionally share personal information about you without your permission. We may use and share information about you:
(a) so we can provide our goods or services;
(b) so others can provide goods or services to us, or to you on our behalf;
(c) so we or our affiliates can communicate with you about goods or services related to the ones you already receive (although you can call us any time if you don't want us to do this);
(d) to protect ourselves; or
(e) as required by law, legal process, or exigent circumstances.
In addition, you've authorized us to investigate your credit history at any time and to share credit information about you with credit reporting agencies. If you ask, we'll tell you the name and address of any credit agency that gives us a credit report about you.
It's illegal for unauthorized people to intercept your calls, but such interceptions can occur. For training or quality assurance, we may also monitor or record our calls with you.
Having a cell phone means that you transmit stuff all day, usually without being aware. I dislike it and am careful of what I do with a phone.
I still pick up baby monitors on the scanner in the truck if I don't restrict the scan freqs- I'm pretty sure the folks who have them are unaware they are transmitting audio from their homes.
Like most cellphone owners are unaware of how they work and that they frequently send pings to towers and recieve digital data (like software reconfigurations) from the carrier.
I don't think you can expect privacy when you are broadcasting.
Last month the phone company sent me a new card for my phone. I don't remember all the benefits they claimed but determining my location was one 'safety feature'. All I had to do was install the new card and the police would be able to locate me if I ever called 911 and asked for help.
I figure that since I don't drink enough to get drunk I alwasys know where I am. I'll keep the card in the drawer.
You got GUNS?!?!?!
(Agent 26: get this dude's IP and track him down: soon!)
|
We may use and share information about you:
(a) so we can provide our goods or services; (b) so others can provide goods or services to us, or to you on our behalf; (c) so we or our affiliates can communicate with you about goods or services related to the ones you already receive (although you can call us any time if you don't want us to do this); (d) to protect ourselves; or (e) as required by law, legal process, or exigent circumstances. In addition, you've authorized us to investigate your credit history at any time and to share credit information about you with credit reporting agencies. If you ask, we'll tell you the name and address of any credit agency that gives us a credit report about you. It's illegal for unauthorized people to intercept your calls, but such interceptions can occur. For training or quality assurance, we may also monitor or record our calls with you. |
How did I miss THIS???
so others can provide goods or services to us, or to you on our behalf;
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.