Traffic congestion? call 511!

511 will be Traffic hotline -- ''511'' traffic service - a proposed nationwide telephone network like 911 and 411, providing up-to-the- minute reports on traffic congestion, accidents and construction.

The two new additions will be similar to 911, the well-known nationwide phone number for emergency assistance, and 411, which provides directory information.

The commission also voted to require phone companies across the country to offer services for the hearing impaired through the 711 number, which was set aside for that purpose in 1997.

The 411 on 511

"I think it can make a difference," says Deputy Transportation Secretary Mortimer Downey. His department, which is behind the petition to the FCC, believes that a 511 number will help ease the overall congestion on the nation's crowded roads.

"The fact that people can have choices will allow more efficient use of the [highway] system," he says.

The Department of Transportation reports that in one comparison of 3- and 7-digit traveler information services in Kentucky and Ohio, the shorter number received 72 percent more calls.

And unlike listening to road reports on the radio, 511 could provide customized information through a menu of choices for the caller, and provide more detailed reports. The DOT reports that there is generally 10 times as much traffic information available as can fit into a standard 30-second radio spot. The 511 number will also be easily accessible to travelers and people who don't know the local radio station for news and traffic.

"The idea is to make it real easy for the American public to access up-to-date transportation information," says Downey. "The thing is to give people a single access point -- a three-digit number."

The American Automobile Association promised a "huge effort" to get the word out about the new 511 service.

"We think this national number will be really important," he says. "We're definitely in favor of it," Mantill Williams, the group's national spokesman, said Thursday.

Intelligent Traffic Systems, a non-profit transportation industry group that supported the DOT's proposal, has found over 300 different phone numbers around the nation for road information. A person driving from Baltimore to New York City on I-95 would have to call at least 11 different 7-digit numbers for information, says ITS engineer Paul Najarian.

Who Pays? How Will It Work?

Implementation of the two N11 numbers falls to state and local government and aid agencies. They decide what to provide through the numbers, and how to pay for the service.

Downey says that many traffic information hotlines in place now are generally funded through existing funds for transportation services, and that a direct tax on phone users would not be likely.

"I don't think we need to see another line on our phone bills," he says.

Likewise, Beene says she doubts anyone will see a 211 tax on their bills, either, pointing out that the 211 pilot programs in Atlanta and Connecticut are funded through the United Way and existing governmental funding.

The N11s

Although standard 7-digit numbers exist for many services, the 3-digit numbers, known as "N11s," are "easier to remember, and easier to use," says the FCCs Michael Balmoris.

Since N11s are a scarce resource, the FCC has been reluctant to assign them. Already, 911 and 411 are used nationwide. The FCC hasn't officially assigned 611, but it is used broadly by carriers for phone repair service. In 1997, 311 was assigned nationwide for non-emergency police and other government services, and 711 was assigned for access to Telecom Relay Services for the hard of hearing.

The FCC has voted to require implementation of 711 service nationwide.

With 811 unassigned but used by local telephone carriers for business office use, and 011 and 111 not available because they begin with numbers reserved for call routing information, only 211 and 511 are left.