he City of Calgary, Alberta, now uses Bluetooth-based tracking to give people real-time information about travel time during their commute. The system collects information from Bluetooth devices and estimates travel times and congestion. The times are then displayed on electronic signs at key locations along the highway. The Bluetooth signals come from mobile phones, headsets, or built-in entertainment systems. The City activated what is called the Travel Time Information System along the Deerfoot Trail.
Bluetooth devices including GPS, cell phones, and other mobile devices have a unique ID code assigned to them. The City’s detection system reads this code at various points along the route where the Bluetooth sensors are installed. The data is collected at a central server at the city traffic management center. The traffic monitoring system is an estimated $400,000 outlay on a stretch of highway, the Deerfoot Trail.