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Texas Using WiFi to Encourage Driving Breaks
squidfrog writes "An AP article reports: 'To encourage drivers to take more frequent breaks, the Texas Department of Transportation wants to set up free wireless Internet access at rest stops and travel information centers. TxDOT, which says Texas is the first state to provide such free access at rest areas, began experimenting with WiFi hotspots last fall... Andy Keith, manager of TxDOT's maintenance division, said the state hopes to reduce fatigue-related accidents by encouraging drivers to stop more often.' Is public WiFi becoming a trend?" We previously mentioned this scheme a couple of weeks back, although not the motivation behind it.
I doubt people will be too keen on the idea of using a government network to check email, IM, and surf the web. Also, not many people just carry their laptop with them in the car. Most drivers want to get to where they are going as fast as they can.
It could be awesome. How about setting up some Ad-Hoc network across cars driving in between the rest stations. If you get enough users, you would never lose connectivity!
Unknown host pong.
1. Give people a website addr via bathroom wall to report/get speed trap info
2. Share the info via CB and text to speech
3. ???
4. Profit
..the whole point is to make them a more pleasant place to stop.
and at least around here truckers have their driving hours limited so they have mandatory sleeping pauses(trucks have black boxes to record when it's moving and what speed to check they really stop at their breaks). So they're stuck on these stops sometimes without real choosing of where, and if they can check email from their family that's a good thing(or view porno, whatever).
world was created 5 seconds before this post as it is.
Beats the hell out of Virginia. Not only do we have the retarded law that you can't stop at a rest area for more than an hour, we enforce it when there's no indication of malicious intent. Gang laws gone too far.
At least if they're surfing the web and they crash, they crash into their laptop instead of oncoming traffic.
This could be a great way to do scheduled updates, maybe you won't get much rest, but truckers and others with the right automation could drive through and automatically log in, upload/download their messages and schedule changes, and just keep on going. Think of the productivity!
If you must moderate, please moderate as irrelevent, not something bad, because I'm sure someone will find this interest
When I'm traveling I generally use my cellphones gprs connection to get internet access on my laptop (the joys of bluetoothing). Given that basic browsing is readily available in my car, why would I want to stop anyway? It seems sort of silly that I waste time sitting in a rest-area just so I can browse the net...
They can already trace you using your cell phone. Even if you turn your phone off, they could track your gas purchases if you use a credit/debit card. Even if they don't do these things, what's to stop them from installing cameras along the highway and using your license plate to track you? In fact, if you drive on toll roads (or toll bridges) they're already doing this.
:) Mod parent +1 funny.
I wouldn't worry about the government using wifi to track you. Unlike the other methods, all they could get would be your mac address (and maybe a list of the sites you visited) anyway. Of course you were joking
Remember the days when Republicans were the party of fiscal responsibility?
This is entirely off-topic. Maybe it's on topic. I don't know. Maybe I'm just karma whoring.
A few years ago I was trapsing across the country for kicks. I stopped by a truck stop in the middle of Wyoming to fill up on fuel for the vehicle and fuel for me. I chatted up with a trucker while we waited for our orders.
This guy was hauling ass from Florida to Montana and he only had days left. His destination was getting back home. His daughter was graduating from high school. He didn't feel like he was going to make the ceremony, but he was trying. I don't know if he ever made it.
But really this effort isn't going to do anything. Truckers live their life away from their family and if the gentleman I had lunch with that day is any indication, their goal is to drop off the payload and get home to their family. The stuff in the middle might seem cool to the rest of us here. Our lives aren't 90% away from home missing our kids childhood. Maybe our angle is all wrong on this.
This is a very true statement. I only make it 'home' every couple years now. The last was for one of my old high school reunion. I was only going to be around the house for 4 days after the reunion 2 hours away. My father was supposed to be there for the last two days. His pickup was delayed. -12 hours. He is limited to 8 hours a day. minus a few more hours. His drop off was delayed. He waited 12 hours. He hightails it home. And misses me by 2 hours since I had to leave amongst hurricane evac traffic and needed an extra hour to get to the airport to get out. (gotta love the carolinas in the fall . . .)
Truck drivers don't want to spend time at rest stops. When they are resting, they are doing just that; resting. But, with limitations on how much they can drive in a given day and over a given week, there is time where they have to do something. Cell phones are getting cheaper, especially with family to family calling, but there are always limits and rules that eventually bring that bill up.
Getting connectivity during one of those stops would allow him to IM with my mother and youngest brother. And if they do this in enough places (he doesn't often get down here to Texas that often), I'd be motivated to outfit his rig with some good wifi gear and try out some VOIP stuff (which might bomb, but its worth trying).
Military pensions for those who've faithfully and honorably served decades just doesn't go far enough. It's bad enough that my father has to work his retirement years away from his family. Any little thing that could improve that time he spends away being a part of the grand interstate commerce scheme and let him keep in touch I see as a good thing. Truck drivers aren't the scuzzy hollywood stereotype (though I'm sure there're some that are, I haven't met any yet) . . . Many are ex-military. And most know how to use a computer since most of those semis are equipped with Sat driven comptuers to monitor their locations and times spent driving now . . . it's just too bad those don't allow for data uplinks for them to hookup pc's into or supply a voip connection.
Being from Wyoming, and now living in Texas, I am used to long stretches of nothing. I love rest areas. In Wyoming the rest areas are actually pretty nice, solar power facilities. Here in Texas they are not so nice (some nice, some not so nice). Wi-fi will be a welcome addition. I can really some opening up my laptop at the rest area.
As far as safety at rest stops, I have always packed my hand gun while traveling and always have it on-person at rest areas. Don't screw with me while I am taking a leak! This is just a force of habit, and a good habit at that. I know the "Michael Moore is God and we love Rosie O'Donnell" crowd will be all over my ass. Seriously, a rest area in the middle of nowhere means the only law might be you. So if you don't feel safe at a rest area (like a truck stop, etc is any better) please check into local gun safety classes and a nice Colt or Glock.
So there you go. When in Texas, carry your wi-fi enable device and a nice hand gun, and you will have a great stay!
Great ideas often receive violent opposition from mediocre minds. - Albert Einstein
Crime can happen, but if there's 10 truckers parked there resting (which is common), chances are people aren't going to try breaking into your car with you there as well. It's just too risky - the noise would bring additional help, and chances are at least one person at the stop is packing a piece.
That's one nice thing in Texas - I've seen it happen. If a person calls for help, people still generally come to see what's up. I've arrived a couple of times for others here myself and helped make sure people stayed polite.
I write code.
I guess in Mississippi the bathroom is the woods. Hehe. They may have added on more restrooms to their rest areas since I've been through there of course, but if it's still like that, they definitely need to fix that before they think about Wi-Fi.
The Present is the point at which time touches eternity. - C.S. Lewis
You folks can't really believe they are doing this to encourage sleepy drivers to pull over, can you? Let me spell it out for you plain and simple...
They want to track your travel habbits, that's it. Most folks aren't going to change wireless cards at every stop... so they'll be able to see where your mac address stops, for how long, and how often. Hello?!? Folks, this is more obvious than the RFID tag monitoring... and probably far more effective.
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