Here is a list of frequently asked questions about the 511 traffic site. The answers will tell you what content you can find on the site, how to use the site?s features, and how to troubleshoot technical issues. If you have a question that?s not answered on this page, please contact us.

• What does the 511 Traffic Site have to offer?
• What browser versions does the 511 Traffic site support?

• How do I open and close the Traffic and Driving Times Map window?
• What are the different parts of the Traffic and Driving Times Map Window, and what do they do?
• How do I use the Map Tools?
• What kinds of information does the Traffic and Driving Times Map show?
• How are the different congestion levels shown in the Traffic Congestion layer translated into speeds?
• Why does the cursor change shapes (dependent on the traffic tool I select) on one computer and not on another one?

• What does it mean if there is a dash in place of a driving time under the Popular Driving Times section of the home page?
• How do I use the Driving Times feature?
• How do I use the Driving Times (text version)?
• On the Driving Times (text version) page, what do the "traffic info summary", "incidents", "events", "construction", and "cameras" links do?

• What are Breaking News and Construction?
• How can I view the site’s Breaking News and Construction?

• What is the purpose of the 511sd RSS Feed?
• What information does the Current Driving Times RSS Feed provide?
• How can I get the Current Driving Times RSS feed available on the traffic site?
• How else can I view the RSS Feed?
• Can I get the RSS Feed on my internet enabled mobile device?

• When I use the Traffic and Driving Times Map, why do my browser buttons disappear?
• How come when I click on an incident, event, construction, or color-coded roadway on the map, I do not see any information in the Information Detail window?
• I made a mistake when I picked my starting point circle. What do I do now?
• What are cookies and why are session cookies used on the 511 Traffic Web site?
• Sometimes the traffic data seems to be different in the different browser windows.
• Why can I use everything on the web site except Driving Times?
• My popup blocker won't let me view the Information Detail window. How can I fix that?
• Why does my browser update approximately every 3 seconds?

What does the 511 Traffic Site have to offer?
The 511 Traffic Site contains real-time traffic information and other tools to help you plan your trips and commute in the San Diego region. Its main features are:

• An interactive Traffic and Driving Times Map, which can give you driving times, traffic incidents, congestion levels, construction, and special events affecting traffic (Try clicking on the color-coded roadways to obtain speed information).
  
• Driving Times (text version), a text-based Driving Times feature, for those who prefer to calculate driving times through a text-based table as opposed to the Traffic and Driving Times Map;
  
• Traffic Information (text version), a tabular way to view the same data located on the Traffic and Driving Times Map: incidents, construction, and special event information. The table is sortable by all columns. If you sort by route, all traffic events affecting your roadway can be viewed together.
  
• Driving Times Coverage, a table illustrating where 511 can provide driving times
  
• Information on breaking news from around the region, giving needed information about conditions and events affecting traffic and identifying high and low message priorities
  
• Links to Traffic Partners
  
• This FAQ section
  
• Other helpful information about 511 and SANDAG, including our contact information, accessibility and privacy policies, and how to make suggestions and provide feedback
  

What browser versions does the 511 Traffic site support?
The 511 Traffic web site is designed to work with Internet Explorer 6 and 7, Firefox 2.x and above, Chrome, and Safari. Many features of the web site are accessible on older browser versions, but to enjoy all of the traffic site's features you may need to download the latest version of your favorite browser.

How do I open and close the Traffic and Driving Times Map window?
When you click on the Traffic and Driving Times Map graphic at the center of the Traffic Home Page or click the “Traffic and Driving Times Map” link on the navigation bar, the map will open in a pop-up window. This window may only occupy part of your screen. To increase the size of the map, click the “Maximize” button (for PCs), or the second-to-right button on the window (for Mac) and the Map window will expand to the whole screen. This browser window will not contain the standard set of browser tools. Refer to the first question under Troubleshooting for more information.

Once the map window appears, the map itself will take a moment to load. If during that time (or at any time) you decide you don’t want to see the map anymore, you can simply close the window to return to the Traffic Home Page.

What are the different parts of the Traffic and Driving Times Map Window, and what do they do?
The Traffic and Driving Times Map contains the following parts:

• The Navigation Bar on the top left-hand side, operates exactly like the Navigation Bar on the rest of the Traffic Site.
  
• Map Tools are located on the left-hand side beneath the navigation bar. These tools allow you to view different areas of the map and get different information. To learn more about Map Tools, see the question, "How do I use the Map Tools?".
  
• The actual Traffic and Driving Times Map is located in the middle of the window.
  
• The Overview Map is located in a small box on the upper right-hand side of the Traffic and Driving Times Map. This Overview Map shows the entire region with a smaller red rectangle that shows the area currently being viewed on the Traffic and Driving Times Map. By clicking on the small black triangle in the top-right corner of the Overview Map, you can hide the Overview Map to only show the title bar. By clicking the triangle again, you can restore the Overview Map to its normal size.
  
• The map legend, labeled Traffic Congestion, is located on the left-hand size, underneath the Show/Hide Box. The legend explains the different color codes used on the Traffic and Driving Times Map. By clicking on the small black triangle in the top-right corner of the Traffic Congestion box, you can conceal the map to show just the title bar. By clicking the triangle again, you can restore the legend to its normal size.
  
• The color scheme option control is an accessibility feature and is located in the Traffic Congestion legend box. This allows you to choose, if needed, a better color scheme for viewing the map.
  
• The Information Detail window is a popup window that opens to display requested information regarding traffic conditions.
  
• The Show/Hide Box appears on the left-hand side of the window. This box lists the different types of information, which can be seen on the map and allows you to choose which information you want to view. All the boxes are automatically checked when you first start, meaning all the information can be seen. If you click any of the check boxes, the check mark is deleted and that feature is removed from the map seconds later. Click the box again, and the feature reappears.
  

How do I use the Map Tools?
The Map Tools are the buttons that appear on the left-hand side of the map window. These tools help you navigate around the map and get the information you want. They include:

• Information Tool: Click this button to highlight it. Now, click on any part of the map that contains traffic information, including the color-coded roadways. The relevant information will appear in the Information Detail window.
  
• Driving Times: Click this button to highlight it. You can then select starting and ending points for your driving times.
  
• Zoom In: Clicking this button does not automatically zoom in on the map, but rather allows you to choose where you want to zoom in. When you click the Zoom In tool, the button highlights. Move the cursor to the area you want to zoom into and click and hold down the mouse button. While holding down the button, drag the cursor until the rectangle being drawn represents the area you want to see. Release the mouse button, and the map zooms into the area you selected. You can also just click on the map with the Zoom In tool selected and the map automatically zooms in one level.
  
• Zoom Out: Clicking this button highlights the tool. Click on the map to zoom out one level with the map now being centered where you clicked. Continue clicking if you need to zoom out more. If the map is already zoomed out fully, this tool will have no effect.
  
• Pan: Click this button to highlight it. Click on the map and hold down the mouse button. You can now drag the map in any direction. Release the mouse button to stop the panning.
  
• Re-center Map: Click this button to highlight it. Click on the map, and it will re-center on the position where you clicked, Please note that the zoom level will stay the same.
  
• Zoom to Entire Map: Click this button to zoom out and show the full map. Note that whatever tool was previously selected remains selected.
  
• Refresh Map: Click this button to update the map with the most current information. Whatever tool was previously selected remains selected.
  

What kinds of information does the Traffic and Driving Times Map show?
The Traffic and Driving Times Map shows five main kinds of information, all of which reflect real-time conditions:

• Traffic Congestion: The map shows the highways in the region and color-codes each according to how congested it is at the current time.
  
• Speeds: Select the Information Tool and click on any portion of a color-coded highway to view speeds at that location. All information will appear in the Information Detail window.
  
• Incidents: “Incidents” refer to traffic accidents, stalled vehicles, debris, etc. that affect traffic conditions. The incidents are located on the map using the incident icon . Click on an incident icon after selecting the “Information” tool to see a description and relevant details all found in the Information Detail window.
  
• Events: “Events” refer to sporting events, concerts, parades, and any other public event that can affect traffic. The icon shows the locations of all events. As with incidents, you can click on an event icon with the “Information” tool selected to show event details in the Information Detail window.
  
• Construction: The icon shows locations where road construction is affecting traffic. Again, clicking on a construction icon with the “Information” tool selected will show relevant information in the Information Detail window.
  
• Cameras: The icon shows locations where local traffic cameras are deployed. Clicking on the camera icon with the "Information" tool selected will display the camera's still image snapshot in the Information Detail window.
  

Remember that the “Information” tool must be selected if you want to view specific traffic information in the Information Detail window.

How are the different congestion levels shown in the Traffic Congestion layer translated into speeds?
Traffic conditions are delineated by color bands along the roadways. Each color denotes a different level of congestion. The following table shows the defined congestion levels displayed in the Traffic Congestion legend. Note that speed ranges are calculated as a percentage of the speed limit for each roadway segment. The "No Data" congestion level is used to indicate roadways for which there is no information currently available that would allow a congestion level to be determined.

Why does the cursor change shapes (dependent on the traffic tool I select) on one computer and not on another one?
To remind the user what map tool is selected the cursor is designed to change shapes based on the selected tool. For example, the cursor will become a magnifying glass with a “+” sign when the Zoom In tool is selected; a magnifying glass with a “-“ sign for Zoom Out; a “?” when the Information tool is selected; etc. However, because many different browsers allow users to either knowingly or unknowingly override these cursors, you might be able to see the different-shaped cursors on one computer but not on another. Nevertheless, be assured that all cursors have the same impact on the Web site and no functionality is lost if you do not see the different-shaped cursors.

What does it mean if there is a dash in place of a driving time under the Popular Driving Times section of the home page?
The dash means that for some reason the 511 system is currently not able to provide a driving time. The reasons are either that a driving times sensor is not functional or that traffic is moving at less than 2 mph somewhere along the corridor, thus making our prediction unreliable.

How do I use the Driving Times feature?
The Driving Times feature calculates the current driving time between two points in the region. To use this feature, first click on the “Driving Times” tool in Map Tools, which looks like this:

A set of light blue circles will appear on the Traffic and Driving Times Map. These circles represent starting points and future starting points. Therefore, to receive a driving time please only choose starting and ending points along the corridors where we have Driving Times data. Refer to Driving Times Coverage for more information on current road coverage for Driving Times.

To begin, click on the circle closest to the point from which your trip will start ensuring that the point is along those corridors where we have data. Your selected circle remains light blue and all others turn magenta. These magenta circles represent destination points and future destination points. Click on the magenta circle closest to your destination again making sure that the point is along the corridors where we have data. The Information Detail window will show the heading, “Driving Times,” and will display a selection of routes, along with the current travel time for each route, given current conditions. Click on the “More details…” link below the routes to display more detailed information in a pop-up window. If only one route is given, it means the system can only calculate one available route given your choices. When you are finished finding the driving time for your route, you can always click the driving time icon again to calculate the travel time for another route.

Please note that Driving Times is designed to allow you to use the other map tools while still having the Driving Times feature active. Therefore, if you want to exit Driving Times at any time, please click on the link, "Cancel driving time calculation." found in the Information Detail window.

There may be occurrences when the driving times are calculated using historical data instead of real-time information. This will happen if there is a system problem and real-time data for a particular part of your selected route is not available. A message is displayed indicating when historical information has been used to calculate driving times along the route.

The selected route may also contain segments for which no data is available for calculating driving times. In this case, no driving times will be shown for the selected route. Again, to see where we do have Driving Times coverage, check out Driving Times Coverage.

How do I use the Driving Times (text version)?
The Driving Times (text version) feature allows you to calculate the current driving time for your route without using the map.

Getting current driving times using the Driving Times (text version) involves a two-step process. When you arrive at this page, you will see a heading saying “Step 1: Please enter your origin.” Beneath this heading are three input boxes, labeled “City”, “Route”, and “Intersection.” In the “City” box, select the city where your trip will begin. You can type the first letter of the city to jump to that part of the list. For “Route”, select the highway you will start on (note that only routes passing through the selected city are shown). Finally, for “Intersection”, choose the closest intersection where you will enter the highway (the “Intersections” box will now contain only intersections on that highway in that city). When you have filled in all three input boxes, press the “Submit Query” button.

You will be taken to a screen with the heading: “Step 2: Please enter your destination.” Enter the city, route, and intersection where you will exit the highway, and press the “Submit Query” button.

A new page will appear containing a number of tables where each table represents a trip option between your origin and destination points. The tables show driving times and speed.

The heading for each table reveals the driving time for the trip option, while the columns in each table show details for different parts of the route. These details include:

• Road: each route is divided into segments, one for each highway taken on the route. The segments (highways) are listed in this column in the order in which they occur along the route.
  
• Min Speed: the lowest current speed along that highway (This will indicate if there are any bottlenecks or slowdowns on this highway).
  
• Max Speed: the highest current speed along that highway (this will indicate areas of no traffic congestion along the highway).
  
• Avg Speed: the current average speed along that highway.
  

On the Driving Times (text version) page, what do the "traffic info summary", "incidents", "events", "construction", and "cameras" links do?
If you click on the "traffic info summary" link, you will be taken to a page that will list all current traffic information (incidents, events, and construction). The information is sorted by route and the route name, type of information (incident, event, or construction), and a brief description of the information can be seen immediately. Clicking on the [+] next to each item will expand it to show detailed information, including the incident’s start time, estimated duration, and, if available and applicable, a diagram showing the traffic lanes affected by the incident and a list of nearby cameras. Clicking on the name of one of the cameras will open a still image from that camera in a popup window. All items on the page can be expanded by clicking on the "Expand All" link at the top of the list.

If you click on the "incidents," "events," or "construction" links, you will be taken to a page that operates the same as the "traffic info summary" page but that contains only the specified type of traffic information.

If you click on the "cameras" link, you will be taken to a page that lists all cameras for which a still image is currently available, sorted by the route on which the cameras reside. Clicking on the [+] next to a route will expand it to list all of that route’s cameras by name. Click on a camera’s name to view a still image from that camera in a popup window. All routes on the page can be expanded by clicking on the "Expand All" link at the top of the list.

What are Breaking News and Construction?
Breaking News and Construction are warnings or information about major incidents that may affect traffic. Each message includes a brief title, the date and time the message was posted to the 511 Traffic site, and a description of the incident.

How can I view the site’s Breaking News and Construction?
A selection of the highest-priority messages (i.e., those likely to affect the most people) appears on the 511 Traffic home page located in a box below the Popular Driving Times on the right side of the screen. Clicking on any of these will bring you to the Breaking News and Construction page, where all messages are listed with full details. You also can access the Breaking News and Construction page by clicking the “Breaking News and Construction” tool on the left-hand navigation bar.

The Breaking News and Construction page lists messages in two sections based on priority (High or Low). Within each section the messages are sorted by date and time (starting with the most recent).

What is the purpose of the 511sd RSS Feed?
The 511sd RSS Feed is a free service where traffic, transit, and traveler information is supplied from the 511sd.com Web site directly to those who subscribe or select the RSS Feed from the 511sd.com site.

What information does the Current Driving Times RSS Feed provide?
The feed provides the current driving time for the most popular routes in the region. These popular routes display travel times from regional communities to major employment centers. Travel times are related to the direction of typical commute patterns. For example, Oceanside to Sorrento Valley is a route displayed for the morning commute, while for the evening commute the direction is reversed with Sorrento Valley to Oceanside displayed.

The current driving time calculation is contained in the feed, as well as a link to a page on traffic.511sd.com that contains more information about the current state of the route.

How can I get the Current Driving Times RSS feed available on the traffic site?
On the top right side of the 511 Traffic website (traffic.511sd.com) is a list of Current Driving Times, and near the top of that list is the orange RSS icon . Clicking on a link (in Internet Explorer) or a button (in Mozilla Firefox) near the top of the feed will establish a subscription to the feed. Subscribing to the feed means that the feed will be placed in "Favorites" under the Feeds list, and it will be routinely checked behind-the-scenes for new content.

The image to the left is an example of what the feed looks like in Microsoft Internet Explorer 7. The green arrows next to the update time, as well as the names of the routes in bold, blue text, are links to more information; clicking on them will redirect the browser to the route's details page on traffic.511sd.com. The blue "Subscribe to this feed" text, or the star with the green plus sign next to it, can be clicked on to establish a subscription to the feed by adding it to your list of Internet Explorer "favorite feeds."

The image on the left is an example of what the feed looks like in Mozilla Firefox. The names of the routes in bold, underlined, blue text are links to more information; clicking on them will redirect the browser to the route's details page on traffic.511sd.com. To establish a subscription to the feed, first select a program or service from the "Subscribe to this feed using" drop-down box, and then click the "Subscribe Now" button.

How else can I view the RSS Feed?
The RSS feed can be used on a stand-alone "feed aggregator" program on the Web. Examples include Bloglines and Google Reader. In these types of programs, feeds are subscribed to by entering the URL of the feed. The URL of the Current Driving Times RSS feed is http://traffic.511sd.com/feeds/currentDrivingTimes.rss.

Can I get the RSS Feed on my internet enabled mobile device?
These sites also have mobile-friendly versions so that feeds can be viewed on your mobile device. The mobile version of Bloglines is http://www.bloglines.com/mobile and the mobile version of Google Reader is http://www.google.com/reader/m/. The URL of the Current Driving Times RSS feed is http://traffic.511sd.com/feeds/currentDrivingTimes.rss.

When I use the Traffic and Driving Times Map, why do my browser buttons disappear?
The map is a separate application and thus the normal browser tools are not functional with it. Additionally, the deletion of the browser tools provided more space for a larger map, resulting in greater usability.

However, we have provided functionality that mimics the browser tools of “Back” and “Refresh”. If you need to go back to the traffic home page, just close the map window. If you need to update the map’s information, you can do so at any time by clicking the “Refresh Map” tool located in the Map Tools bar.

How come when I click on an incident, event, construction, or color-coded roadway on the map, I do not see any information in the Information Detail window?
Before you click on any icons on the map, make sure you have selected the "Information" tool from the Map Tools bar. If you have selected this tool, the button will appear yellow in the Map Tools bar. If it is not selected, the button will be white and will not work to provide information on the icons.

I made a mistake when I picked my starting point circle. What do I do now?
If you picked the wrong starting point while using Driving Times, just click on the "Cancel driving time calculation" link shown in the Information Detail window. This will cancel the Driving Times feature and select the Information tool. To start over with another Driving Times request, select the Driving Times tool again and click a starting point.

What are cookies and why are session cookies used on the 511 Traffic Web site?
Cookies are a small amount of data sent to your browser from a web server and stored on your computer's hard drive. The 511 Traffic Website uses session cookies and persistent cookies. Session cookies expire after the user exits the web site, or shortly after, and are not generally considered to be a privacy or security concern. Persistent cookies tend to have a longer life-span and are used to retain user session information such as settings and configuration parameters. Cookies are unique to each web site and information in them cannot be accessed by other web sites. The cookies utilized by the 511 Traffic Website do not provide any personal information about the user and are only used to enhance the user's experience with the 511 Traffic Website. Please refer to the privacy page for more information on the use of cookies.

Sometimes the traffic data seems to be different in the different browser windows.
There may be times when you are using the 511 Traffic Web site that you have multiple browser windows open. An example would be when displaying the detailed information of a driving time route that was generated through the use of the graphical map tools. Each browser window is refreshed every three minutes and this interval starts at the time the browser window was first displayed. Therefore, there may be times when one browser window has refreshed based on its refresh interval and initial display time, but the other browser window has yet to reach its refresh interval time.

Why can I use everything on the web site except Driving Times?
It is because you are not using a browser version designed for the 511 Traffic web site. The 511 Traffic web site is designed to work with Internet Explorer 6 and 7, Firefox 2.x and above, Chrome, and Safari. Many features of the web site are accessible on older browser versions, but to enjoy all of the traffic site's features you may need to download the latest version of your favorite browser.

My popup blocker won't let me view the Information Detail window. How can I fix that?
Pop-up blockers may prevent the Information Detail window from opening. Setting your pop-up blocker to allow pop-ups from the SANDAG 511 site and will fix this problem. Please see your pop-up blocker's help section for more information. Many popup blockers can by modified via a "settings," "options," or "block/allow" button.

Also note that if you have configured your browser to open new windows in a new tab, the Information Detail window will open in a new tab in your existing browser window, and not in a popup window.

Why does my browser update approximately every 3 seconds?
If you are using one of the supported browsers to view the Traffic and Driving Times Map yet the map is automatically refreshing itself every 3 seconds or so, this is often an indication that some kind of browser plug-in is interfering with successful operation of the Traffic and Driving Times Map. It is suggested that you try running your browser with all add-ons and plug-ins disabled to see if this solves the problem.

To do this in Internet Explorer: Click the Windows Start button, select Run, type iexplore -extoff, and press Enter. Or check your Start Menu for a shortcut named "Internet Explorer (No Add-ons)."

To do this in Firefox: Click the Windows Start button, select Run, type firefox -safe-mode, and press Enter. Or check your Start Menu for a shortcut named "Mozilla Firefox (Safe Mode)." A window will appear with several checkboxes. Ignore these and simply click "Continue in Safe Mode."

To do this in Safari: Inside Safari, select Edit from the menu, then Preferences. On the Security tab, un-check the box "Enable plug-ins." Close the Preferences window and restart Safari.

Chrome does not yet officially support add-ons and plug-ins, though several websites do offer third-party extensions of the browser. Due to the unofficial nature of these add-ons, the only way to disable them is to uninstall them. Chrome does not yet offer a "Safe Mode" option.