The Texas Department of Transportation launched a new interactive voice response interface for the Texas Travel Information Line, which provides both road conditions and travel information at 1-800-452-9292.


For the first several weeks, the new system will be "learning" to understand caller's voices. The first 10,000 calls to the new hotline will supplement months of beta testing by Texas DOT employees to help the automated system understand different voice tones and accents.

The new system will be available 24 hours a day. The new system was designed by the state DOT and AT&T and will contain near real-time information on traffic and weather impacting conditions for the Texas roads and highways. In just one phone call, drivers can learn everything about current road conditions - from hurricane evacuation routes to construction delays.

The new Travel Information Line IVR system is programmed to recognize the names of more than 1,200 cities and towns. The system is also designed to recognize multiple names for the same highway, such as "MoPac" and "Loop 1" in Austin or "Central Expressway" and "U.S. 75" in Dallas.

The new Texas Travel Information Line can handle as many as 900 calls for automated information at any time. In the event of a large-scale event like a winter blizzard or a hurricane, TxDOT and AT&T will have the ability to expand the IVR system to handle higher call volumes.

Automated information on highway conditions is updated every five minute.

The previous TxDOT Travel Information Line included pre-recorded information that was potentially irrelevant for a traveler with a specific question about a road in one part of the state. With the new IVR technology, callers will have direct access to updates on the highways on which they want to drive.