Drivers Of The New Look Mondeo Benefit From 'Live' Traffic Message Channel Service

Drivers of New-Look Mondeo, and shortly the Ford Focus, will benefit from Ford’s contract with traffic data company ITIS Holdings Plc, which will provide its RDS –TMC (Radio Data System – Traffic Message Channel) service with immediate effect on New Look Mondeo, followed by the Ford Focus. The service will be standard on all satellite navigation systems and will allow drivers to receive real-time, and predictive, traffic information from ITIS, enabling them to re-route around traffic congestion.

Ford’s brand new compact MPV, the Focus C-MAX, will also benefit from this new traffic information service when the car goes on sale later this year.

RDS-TMC enables the driver to receive the latest traffic information specific to their position at any time on a journey, giving them the option to dynamically re-route around any congestion or hold-ups via satellite navigation. Drivers will already be familiar with the RDS system, which displays the name of a radio station and constantly retunes to the strongest signal as their car moves around the country. However, the TMC feature, often already built in to vehicles’ satellite navigation systems, is gradually being enabled as vehicle manufacturers commit to the industry standard, RDS-TMC protocol.

ITIS traffic information is collated from a combination of journalistic and real-time sources using its own FVD (Floating Vehicle Data) network. The data is then transmitted directly to the TMC in-car receiver, a satellite navigation system, using a carrier of the Classic FM radio network, which provides coverage of 90% of the strategic road network.

ITIS Holdings’ three-year contract with Ford heralds the first of Motor Company brands to standardise the RDS-TMC service, and is part of a larger framework agreement to provide RDS-TMC across other Premier Automotive Group marques including Land Rover, Aston Martin, Volvo and Jaguar.

Peter Fleet, Ford of Britain Marketing Director said, "The adoption of the ITIS RDS-TMC service is a clear example of Ford Motor Company’s ongoing commitment to telematics and to providing our customers with innovative technology. The New-Look Ford Mondeo embodies craftsmanship and technology and this service will ensure we continue to offer our customers the leading edge technology they demand. Customers are increasingly looking to in-car navigation systems to support their journeys and following the introduction of RDS-TMC, Ford Motor Company plans to offer customers fully integrated, real-time dynamic traffic information as an integral part of the satellite navigation system."

Stuart Marks, Chief Executive of ITIS Holdings commented, "We are delighted that Ford will be the first of the Ford Motor Company brands to standardise RDS-TMC and our dynamic traffic information on their satellite navigation system offering. This agreement adds to contracts in place with manufacturers who already use the ITIS TMC service including BMW and Toyota, and in the aftermarket Vauxhall and Mitsubishi. "