NJToyMan

In my TLX V6 Tech, after the ODMD software upgrade, I noticed a change with the traffic flow indicators displayed on the NAVI maps. Instead of the usual solid thin green, orange or red lines running parallel to the roads to display traffic conditions-- since the upgrade, I now occasionally see the colored lines as "colored dashes" for some segments of the same road or highway.
I can't seem to find any info in the new updated Owners Manual as to what the "dashed" segments represent. I don't recall ever seeing dashed lines with the previous software.
Anyone with ideas??

bdwpac81

I have noticed the same thing since the software update but have no idea what it means.

4WDrift

see this post RLXers think dashes are predicted traffic for unsensored roads

tlxsteve

Good to know. I haven't got the update yet. Figured I would wait for the first oil change and get it done in one session.

NJToyMan

That's an interesting thought, but I think that the exact same stretch of road I drove on one night had the dashes, and then the next night had solid lines. So, unless they installed lots of sensors there overnight...

How wonderful that we all have to "guess" about undocumented (at least publicly) changes to the software!

tlxsteve

It feels like we signed up to be the beta squad. Trying to find the bugs and also document how the TLX works or does not work.

4WDrift

Could be that they were temporarily offline and were interpolating it.

neuronbob

Ooo, Easter eggs!

George Knighton

Yes, that's exactly right.

The hyphens are what *usually* goes on, not necessarily what is actually going on.

I have been in more than one full stop traffic jam on US 1 when the NAV was showing me green hyphens.

So just be aware, and be careful. :-)

9SpeedTran

I'm not concerned, in every other way it is an excellent upgrade, I just want it for my 2014 MDX as well!!!

Ian Andrews

There is a charge for this upgrade. In Canada 1 believe it is $80. Plus labor.

NJToyMan

Not sure I agree with this theory.

As you can see from the above screenshot I took last night, one side of the road has solid lines while the other side just has dashes. I can't imagine that sensors were just installed on ONE side...

tlxsteve

Man, this is a good puzzle.


Could it be with something to do with direction of travel? I would think you would be more concerned about your side of the road, but might have a secondary interest on the other side. It's a stretch.

NJToyMan

And if the dashes actually are for what "usually" goes on- how useful is that?? It would be like turning on the TV to watch the weather forecast, and instead of telling you it is raining out- they give you yesterday's weather because it has been sunny and warm out the last few days!

There are plenty of times that I see "NO" lines or "NO" dashes. That to me would mean "NO information", whether the sensors are not working, or there are no sensors at all.

Isn't it better to have "NO' info rather than "wrong" info or "guessed" info??

NJToyMan

I don't think it has to do with direction of travel, as 10 minutes after I took this pic- I drove the other way on this same segment of road, and the dashes were then on "my" side.

tlxsteve

The mystery continues...

Quandry

It is not a change from the new software as I get the green dashes and the new software is not even available in Canada. Saw it on the northbound road near my home this morning and it was still there a few hours later. There was very light traffic on the road. I will continue to monitor to see if this it changes at any time.

tlxsteve

Wow! Never seen the hyphens on mine but that could be a good guess. My roads are usually busy or near busy.

So in this case, we shouldn't see yellow or red hyphens? Seems light traffic with heavy congestion is a problem, unless a meteor ripped out the road. I would think green solid already means lightly travelled or easy flow. Although, good flow on the DC beltway is 70 MPH bumper-to-bumper traffic.

What about road construction? That might make more sense, maybe. Patches of easy flow with road construction (Green)? Where Red hyphens would be congestion with road construction?

NJToyMan

I think we should start a contest (or at least a new thread) called "Guess the Software Feature"-- we can have members here post their theories or thoughts, and then maybe one day Acura will tell us what these things mean, and we declare a winner!!

I've seen red, yellow and green "dashes" on segments of roads- none of which have, or recently had, any construction : )

Maybe the green dashes are alerting us to another detected TLX that just passed us by so we can know when to wave?? (a hidden AcuraLink feature??)

tlxsteve

You could be onto something.

jim256

Dashes= no current data, but based on prior data.

If you subscribe to AcuraLink, the first 30 days you get Feature Guide messages every day. I got one today for Traffic Data, and it explained the solid and dashed lines, Solid is current, Dashed is based on typical prior conditions.

tlxsteve

Fantastic. Thanks for resolving the puzzle.

Someone else said that but they were laughed off.

Glad you found the answer.

NJToyMan

Thanks for this "official" info. Still not sure how useful this is... and what is meant by "prior data"? Prior that day; prior that week or month??
In the summer in NJ, the traffic going down to the shore is not too bad on a Thursday night, but is immense at the same time the next day on a Friday night. Thus, are "typical prior conditions" the SAME time the day prior (not very useful)- the SAME day, but a week prior (maybe more useful)- or some sort of monthly average??? The traffic going doen to the shore on a Friday night in winter is non-existent!
As I said before- how useful is a "guess"?? I've seen red dashes (which I now assume meant that at some "typical" time prior there was severe traffic) only to find it smooth sailing- and I've been in green dashes segments that were very congested.

tlxsteve

I guess any color of hyphen is useless.