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Get inside WGN's traffic center


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Posted by chicagomedia.org on June 05, 2008 at 09:18:36:

Inside Traffic Central

As Chicagoans unfortunately know all too well, summertime means construction and traffic just about everywhere. Luckily, WGN Radio's team of Traffic Central reporters is always ready to keep you up-to-date and informed on all things traffic! But how do we gather all of that information? Afternoon Traffic Reporter Leslie Keiling gives us the inside scoop in this special feature.

"If it's true that we here in the Chicago area know only two seasons - winter and construction, then we're well into a cycle of back-to-back-to-back-to-back seasons of travel pain.

This winter wreaked a special kind of havoc on the roads, thanks to freezing and thawing that turned many streets, ramps and bridges to rubble. The magnitude of the patching and repair work necessary to rectify that situation alone is likely to dog us for months and months to come.

And now we find ourselves looking at a construction season featuring massive reconstruction projects including: two major lengths of the Tri-State Tollway, the entire length of the Edens Expressway, I-90 near Rockford, I-88 between York Road and Aurora, I-55 between Weber Road and I-80, and the north end of Lake Shore Drive just to name a few.

Thank goodness we're from the Midwest. We are defined by our grit. By our backbone. By our never-say-die attitudes, and by our ability to look misfortune in the eye and laugh. Oh yes, we can handle whatever Mother Nature and the state throw at us. But since grit and backbone don't tell us where the back-ups are, we here at WGN have one of the most advanced traffic monitoring systems in the U.S. 4izr

The GCM traffic map you can link to through our web site uses multiple high-tech sources to calculate the most accurate travel times of any local traffic provider. In addition, we here in Traffic Central have access to dozens of traffic cameras mounted at key locations along the expressway system giving us a bird's eye view of the places most likely to experience accidents and congestion. And speaking of bird's eye views, the reporters in Copter One are invaluable in getting to the scene of breaking traffic stories far and wide. These resources, along with phone tips from a fleet of stringers combine to create a network aimed at getting you where you want to go with the least amount of hassle.

So as you hit the roads this summer, know that Mike Mathis, Mary Van de Velde, the Traffic Central support staff and I are here for you and committed to providing you all the information you need to survive this rough driving season, and the next one, and the next one... ."


(from "The Voice" - WGN's newsletter)


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