INRIX has announced it has expanded its European real-time traffic coverage to 18 countries making it the largest traffic network in Europe.

With the launch of real-time traffic information in Ireland, Hungary, Poland and Slovenia since February, INRIX traffic services now cover more than 1 million kilometers of motorways, city streets and secondary roads, throughout Europe - more than 2X the amount of real-time road coverage of its nearest competitor.

"Whether driving across town or across borders, European customers uniquely benefit from INRIX's ability to reliably help drivers avoid traffic congestion wherever their travels take them," said General Manager of INRIX Europe Dr. Hans-Hendrik Puvogel.

"Through our expanded coverage, continuous technology innovation in support of standards like TPEG over IP, and growing customer base, we're proving to the market everyday why we're the best provider of quality traffic services across Europe."

In a separate announcement, INRIX introduced a breakthrough in the delivery of traffic information called TPEG Connect.

Based on the new encoding and transmission standard for traffic and travel information developed by the Transport Protocol Experts Group (TPEG), INRIX TPEG Connect provides automakers and navigation application providers with the ability to optimize payloads and bandwidth for delivering richer real-time and predictive traffic flow, incident, and location-based services like weather conditions on the road to devices using TPEG over IP.

By providing delta support that can reduce data payloads by up to 50 percent on each message request, INRIX TPEG Connect helps OEMs and consumers save on connectivity costs by reducing data consumption in ways that ensures only the most location-relevant real-time information is delivered to the device.

"TPEG Connect provides the industry with a better way to deliver pan-European traffic information that enables the delivery of more dynamic traffic and traveler information at less cost both to the OEM as well as the consumer," said INRIX Vice President of Product Management Ken Kranseler, "By removing key technical and commercial hurdles for our customers, we're accelerating the delivery of next generation traffic applications and driver services that will improve mobility for millions of people worldwide."

INRIX delivers the broadest and most accurate real-time traffic information through its distinctive Smart Driver crowd-sourced traffic information network and Total Fusion data analytics technologies. The company offers real-time traffic information today in the following European countries:

Austria, Italy, Sweden, Belgium, Ireland, Switzerland, Denmark, Luxembourg, Slovenia, Finland, The Netherlands, United Kingdom, France, Norway, Germany, Poland, Hungary, Spain

INRIX also announced an agreement with road safety products and services company Coyote Systems to provide real-time traffic information in future Coyote products. As Coyote's preferred global provider of traffic information, INRIX and Coyote will work together to apply each other's expertise in user-generated content for the development of future products and services across Europe.

As INRIX in Europe expands, the company has hired Rolf Kanne, the former head of sales for NAVTEQ's T-Systems Traffic, and Guillaume Taton, an experienced mobile and navigation industry professional. As these two industries converge, Rolf and Guillaume offer European customers a unique perspective having worked in mobile and automotive companies throughout the course of their careers.