Not sure about earlier models but with my 2006 Prius when I am using the FM radio I notice a "TRAF" button. I assume it is to be used for the RDS traffic information service which is supposed to be available in many cities in the USA. But I have never heard anything from its use. I click on the button and it does a scan. It ends each time with a message which basically says "service not found". Do you have any traffic service using this feature of our FM radios in the Prius? Is it perhaps a premium service where you must pay an annual payment? If so who do you purchase it from? Cheers
I thought it did a scan to see if it detected a traffic report. Perhaps when that happens a special signal is sent at the same time. I never got any report with it.
I thought I read somewhere when a station which provides traffic info that station is remembered and if there is a bulletin or some kind of emergency info the receiver will automatically receive it and display it. Not entirely sure if that is correct or not.
I've tried it a few times, but each time it has stopped on a generic station...and they are just doing the normal news... Will have to experiment more with this and get back to you.
The way the system is supposed to work, the stations will broadcast a flag if they are doing a traffic report, and your radio will seek to whatever station is currently broadcasting that flag. But unfortunately, a number of stations broadcast the flag full-time if they offer traffic reports at all, even if there won't be one for hours, making the system far less useful. - Bob R.
I have had that Traffic button since my '01 Prius and it has never found anything. Japan has an automated traffice control system in its large cities and I wonder if it only works in Japan! marjam
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(bobr1 @ Jul 7 2006, 07:32 PM) [snapback]282784[/snapback]</div> hmmmm.....so this system does not grab your attention when there is a traffic bulletin? So you are supposed to push that button each and every time you want to get an update? Is that how it is supposed to work? Also, if a station does broadcast a flag full time doesn't that give you a clue where to look for info? I guess I am still in doubt as to what makes this whole system work as I have never experienced it working yet. Any clue whether this is supposed to be a free system or is there a payment required. I appreciate your comments
This functions as explained by bobr1. There are just so very few stations that broadcast traffic info via RDS, so most people will never get any use out of it.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Three60guy @ Jul 7 2006, 08:05 PM) [snapback]282856[/snapback]</div> No, you have to initiate a search for traffic info by pressing the button. In major markets, there are a lot of "news" stations that have frequent traffic reports. The idea is that before starting your journey, or if you find yourself in heavy traffic, you can push the button to find out what is going on. The more stations that participate, the greater the odds of a traffic report being given somewhere when you push the button. Yep. Well, most people already know what stations in their area are "news & traffic", so I don't think it gives you a clue. In fact, the worst abusers (in my area) of this system are music stations that maybe have a traffic report once an hour during daytime working hours, but they leave the damn flag set constantly. Free system (since most traffic reports have commercials surrounding them, you could call it an advertiser supported system.) In a perfect world, IMHO, broadcasters would only turn on the flag approx 2 minutes before a traffic report is going to be broadcast, and turn of the flag immediately at the beginning of that report. That way, the seek feature would only find stations that were about to broadcast a complete report in the very near future, and would not catch any half-finished broadcasts. - Bob R.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Three60guy @ Jul 7 2006, 06:20 PM) [snapback]282752[/snapback]</div> It works only too well for me (I'm about 40 miles to the west of London, England). I don't normally listen to radio when I'm in the car but every hour and half-hour traffic announcements from at least one local radio station come blasting through at a loud volume, even though the volume of my radio is turned to 0. It can be quite a shock so I've now managed to turn it off. I never heard a useful announcement anyway. It's a free service A much more useful service is obtained by dialing 1200 on the mobile. You then hear a recorded voice telling you your location and the state of major roads near you.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(bobr1 @ Jul 8 2006, 11:43 AM) [snapback]283043[/snapback]</div> What's interesting is that I normally would go to AM for traffic, not FM. I guess that AM stations can't send that "flag" so it's useless to have the Traffic button there. Of course, now that I have XM I can go to the channel for my city.
Even if you are playing a cd, the cd will stop and you will receive the traffic news message. No need to get a manual update every time.
Is this an audio delivered traffic report or is it a text based service? Based on your responses I can not be certain. If it is an audio delivered traffic report does one merely hit the TRAF button, have it find the station and then as Sho-Bud implied switch to a CD if you want? Then if there is a traffic report the CD will stop and the traffic report is heard?
