There is more than just a new building to greet travelers from out of town when they arrive at the new Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport Rental Car Center. There’s a new and better way for them to get information about how to get to their next destination on the ground.

Rental car drivers have access to up-to-date travel times on Valley freeways on four large (40-inch) video monitors located throughout the Customer Service level, giving them advance information about routine travel and alerting them to accidents or other major traffic incidents between the Rental Car Center and their on land destination. This is the first such operation in the United States.

Each display shows a map of major freeways with current travel times to various sites around the Valley. The information updates every three minutes.

This innovative project was funded and led by the Maricopa County Department of Transportation (MCDOT), in partnership with the City of Phoenix and the Arizona Department of Transportation. Monitors are part of a regional traveler information program led by AZTech--a partnership of state, county and municipal transportation agencies, and private companies, in the Phoenix metropolitan area. AZTech applies innovative technologies and integrated systems to improve the safety and mobility in the area.