Not for businessmen only: Apps for beating traffic

wazeTom, a building contractor,  is on his way to an important business appointment.  He is to make a final sales presentation to a major client.  He is coming well-prepared, with an attractive Power Point Presentation and a pitch on his service’s competitive edge over the two other companies with which he has been short-listed.

Having covered all bases, so to speak, Tom is confident he has a good chance of bagging the deal.  But he didn’t reckon with one base:  the traffic situation.

Though he gave a few minutes allowance for traffic, the traffic jam he got enmeshed with on that important day was monstrous due to a collision accident.  When Tom arrived at his destination, he was late by more than an hour and though he apologized profusely for it, he knew his clients were displeased.  He lost the deal and blamed it on the traffic.   

There are other negative effects of traffic congestion on business:

·         When employees arrive late for work or for meetings , productivity is impaired.

·         When our deliveries are delayed, our relationship with our clients is strained.

·         When we allocate more time to travel “just in case,” we have less time for productive activities.

·         Wear and tear on company vehicles result from idling in traffic and frequent acceleration and braking, leading to more repairs.

Whether we are in business or not, we have all experienced the frustration in being stuck in traffic with a mishmash of honking vehicles separating us from our destination. “So near and yet so far” is how we describe it sometimes.  Such situation has been detrimental to us, socially, professionally, and even in terms of our health and psychological wellbeing.

Do you want to outstmart traffic and avoid the losses that traffic incurs on our lives and our businesses?

One of the ways to avoid traffic is to avoid rush hours.  As far as possible, do not schedule any of your appointments between 8 to 10 a.m. and after 3:00 p.m.

Look for short cuts and alternative  routes to traffic-prone areas that is within your usual route.  Ask your friends.  Better yet, drive around one traffic-less day (Sunday or a holiday or best of all a Good Friday) to explore these roads less travelled.

And, of course, if the option is still open to you — choose a place to live in close to your place of work or business or to your children’s school.

Tatin Yang, in “Outsmarting Traffic” suggests the following:

 1. Waze (Free, iOS/Android)

Waze is unique in that it is both a social network and navigator at the same time. Its tagline, “outsmarting traffic together,” best describes this app. Waze lets you get to your destination via several routes—the fastest and the shortest. As you keep using Waze, it gets to know your favorite routes and will save them into its system. But the best aspect of Waze is its social network. Other Waze users on the road can make timely reports on traffic conditions, photos included, as well as more specific causes of bottlenecks and traffic jams, e.g. traffic accidents, repair work, etc. It also reports the presence of traffic enforcers, should you decide to run that yellow light past a certain intersection. If you’re bad with directions, you can even send your location to friends so they’ll know how to get to where you are. Waze also has a safety feature that prevents you from using the app when you’re on the move, unless you are the passenger doing the navigating. The app also lets you choose from several search engines when you’re looking for a specific location, ensuring that you’ll get accurate directions.

2. MMDA (Free, iOS/Android)

MMDA’s app is a favorite among motorists. It provides real-time traffic updates via a simple grid setup. Recent updates have also included weather information. The app will automatically create flash reports if certain roads are impassable due to floods or other weather-related situations. Another great feature is the FAQ section. No more arguing with a traffic enforcer over swerving or other traffic violations; you’ll be able to see for yourself what traffic violations you’ve committed as well as the corresponding penalties.

3. Google Maps (Free, iOS/Android)

While this app doesn’t contain any pertinent traffic information, the map is very accurate and its GPS navigation is so quick and responsive that it can correct its course whenever you make an unplanned turn, a handy tool to have when looking for a shortcut to avoid heavy traffic on major roads.

Photo: from bloomberg.com