Alberta province in Canada has launched an improved road report system, 511 Alberta, to provide people with up-to-date data on road conditions.

511 Alberta helps users plan trips and makes the highways safer, particularly during the winter.

The first phase of the new 511 Alberta service will offer travellers access to over 100 highway cameras via the new mobile-friendly website, www.511.alberta.ca.

The site features interactive maps that link to current information on highway conditions, weather information, construction updates, incident reports, such as detours and closures, and ferry crossing times.

Users can also get information on national and provincial parks and border crossing waiting times. They can get similar information through the phone by calling 511 toll-free from anywhere within the province.

"511 Alberta helps users plan trips and makes the highways safer, particularly during the winter."

Future phases of the 511 Alberta are expected to include more features and information to respond to travellers’ needs.

Federal Minister of Public Works and Government Service Rona Ambrose said that the new system will help Alberta by providing them with the most reliable road condition information available and encourage them to use safer and less congested alternate routes.

The $314,000 project has been equally divided between the provincial and federal governments, while an estimated annual operating cost of $410,000 will be funded by the province.

511 Alberta replaces the current AMA Road Reports, which had been operated through a number of formats by the Alberta Motor Association (AMA) since 1927, using information supplied by the Alberta Government.