WSDOT ends 511 traffic info service
STAFF REPORT | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 3 years, 5 months AGO
OLYMPIA — The Washington State Department of Transportation announced on Thursday that it is shutting the statewide automated 511 traffic information phone number, citing declining call volumes, the cost of maintaining the system and new technologies which give drivers other choices, according to a WSDOT press release.
WSDOT said while the 511 system received as many as 2.2 million calls every year at its height, since 2009 call volumes have fallen by 89%, the press release said. The program also costs around $150,000 per year to maintain, including staff time needed to update travel information.
Motorists looking for travel information should consult WSDOT’s app, available at both Google Play and Apple’s App Store, as well as the department’s real-time travel maps online wsdot.com/Travel/Real-time/Map/ and its Facebook and Twitter feeds, the press release said.
ARTICLES BY STAFF REPORT
Othello man taken into custody in connection with Connell assault
OTHELLO — An Othello man was taken into custody Sunday morning following an alleged assault in Connell.
Othello man injured in crash that kills one, possible charges pending
WALLA WALLA — Possible charges are pending against an Othello man in connection with a crash early Sunday morning that killed a Umatilla, Oregon woman.
Okanagan Specialty Fruits names new head of enterprise strategy
SUMMERLAND, BRITISH COLUMBIA — Okanagan Specialty Fruits has appointed Paul Carter as head of enterprise strategy, according to an announcement from OSF. In the new role, Paul Carter will work across OSF on enterprise strategy, investment decisions, long-range planning and major cross-functional initiatives, according to the announcement. The move follows OSF founder Neal Carter’s return to ownership of the company in June. Based in Summerland, British Columbia, Okanagan Specialty Fruits operates a packaging plant in Moses Lake and an orchard in the Frenchman Hills near Othello. “Paul brings a valuable combination of agricultural experience, strategic thinking and more than a decade helping organizations improve complex investment and resource-allocation decisions,” Neal Carter wrote in the announcement. “I’m very pleased to have him bring that experience to OSF as we build the next phase of the company.”