Crowd sourced traffic reporting

Abstract

A traffic reporting service may allow for the generation of more reliable and accurate traffic reports, maps, and forecasts based on various data types and sources. Data sources include public sector sources, private entities, and end users providing crowd sourced data. Crowd sourced data is collected, verified, and used to generate a traffic report which is displayed to a user via a computing device. A user may use various information presented in the traffic report to make informed decisions when choosing travel routes and a departure time to reach a desired destination.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A method for recommending a departure time, the method comprising:
 receiving, at a network interface:
 crowd sourced data from a user device, wherein the crowd sourced data is associated with a plurality of other users traversing a plurality of travel routes, and 
 traffic data from one or more information sources, the traffic data associated with the plurality of travel routes; 
   receiving, at an user interface of the user device, user input including a destination and an arrival time;   executing instructions stored in memory, by a processor, to:
 calculate a trip time for a travel route associated with a starting point and an ending point, wherein the starting point is a real-time location of the user device and the ending point is the received destination, and wherein the trip time is based on the received arrival time, the crowd sourced data for the travel route, and the traffic data for the travel route, and 
 provide the user with a recommended departure time at the user device, wherein the recommended departure time is determined based on the calculated trip time and the received arrival time. 
   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the execution of instructions by the processor further:
 calculates additional trip times for the travel route, wherein each additional trip time is calculated based on a respective arrival time that differs from the received arrival time, the crowd sourced data for the travel route, and the traffic data for the travel route.   
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 2 , wherein the execution of instructions by the processor further:
 provides the user with alternate recommended departure times at the user device, wherein each alternate recommended departure time is determined based on a respective additional trip time.   
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the execution of instructions by the processor further:
 generating a traffic report based on the crowd sourced data and the traffic data, wherein the traffic report is associated with the travel route, and wherein the traffic report includes the trip time and the recommended departure time.   
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 4 , wherein the execution of instructions by the processor further:
 displays the traffic report on the user device.   
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the crowd sourced data includes:
 passive data collected about users traversing the travel route, wherein the passive data includes location, heading, and speed data each respectively associated with one or more other users traversing the travel route.   
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 6 , wherein the crowd sourced data further includes:
 active data provided by the one or more other users that is associated with a planned or unplanned traffic incident, wherein the active data includes a location of the incident and a time associated with the incident.   
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the information source is a public sector source. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the information source is a private sector source. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein calculating the trip time is further based on weather data associated with the travel route, wherein the weather data is received, at the network interface. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein calculating the trip time is further based on a scheduled public event affecting the travel route. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the scheduled public event includes a sporting event. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the scheduled public event includes a road closure on the travel route. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the scheduled public event includes a concert.