Your Audi may soon give you a countdown to a green robot
Guessing when the lights will change when sitting at a busy intersection will be a thing for the past.
Audi A4 Intrument Cluster Photo: Audi
I too do not enjoy waiting at red traffic lights, exclusively when I don’t know how long it’ll take until I can get moving again.
Hence the Ingolstadt-based carmaker wants to introduce some Audi models that will make it a little bit easier for drivers with the launch of a new traffic-light information system.
Yes, your Audi will alert you about how long until the traffic light turns green.
With the use of the car’s infotainment system, the Audi will use the built-in LTE data connection to download information about the status of traffic lights, and then shows a countdown timer on the instrument cluster or head-up display that indicates when a red traffic light will turn green.
So … guessing when the lights will change when sitting at a busy intersection will be a thing for the past.
“In the future we could envision this technology integrated into vehicle navigation, start/stop functionality, and it can even be used to help improve traffic flow in municipalities,” Pom Galhotra, Audi general manager for connected vehicles, said in a statement. “These improvements could lead to better overall efficiency and shorter commuting times.”
As far as we know, the feature will only be available in Germany and some United States cities with ‘smart’ traffic lights.
Sadly, the feature won’t be making its way to our shores, but then again, AudiSA confirms that it has plans for it probably in the next couple of years.
More about Traffic light information
Traffic light information is the latest in a line of pioneering connected car innovations by Audi. In 2010, Audi was the first manufacturer to offer a broadband enabled vehicle. Since then, Audi connect® has continued to expanded on its industry-leading services and capabilities.
In 2014, Audi was the first manufacture to offer 4G/LTE Broadband connectivity. Strategic partnerships and a proprietary scalable infotainment architecture has allowed Audi to continuously offer our customers the latest in mobile connectivity solutions.
