News Education Environment Traffic Crime

Google Maps turns green light on traffic updates in Vietnam

By Tuan Hung October 25, 2016 | 08:46 pm PT

Traffic jam on Giang Vo Street, Hanoi. Photo by VnExpress

The new feature will have its work cut out keeping up with the country's crowded streets.

Google has recently added a new feature to its Maps applications that allows Vietnamese users to get traffic updates before choosing a route.

The feature is already available in other countries like the U.S, the U.K, Singapore and Germany.

Traffic conditions are reflected by different colors. Green goes with low traffic roads while orange, red and dark red show increasing levels of traffic density. Grey indicates there is no data available.

An initial test by a VnExpress reporter found that the application produced accurate results with data being updated every five minutes.

Traffic conditions on Hanoi's major roads.

Google Maps is available on App Store (for iOS devices) and Google Play (for Android devices). The new feature can be tested by selecting "Traffic" from a drop-down menu on Google Maps.

> Saigon's 50-year long traffic jam