WeatherShare Phase 1 was a proof-of-concept system that showed promise for increasing the efficiency of situation assessment for a variety of purposes including incident management, highway maintenance, emergency medical services, traveler information and, possibly, homeland security applications. While Phase 1 covered seven counties in District 2 and 13 counties in the adjacent Caltrans districts, Phase 2 expands on this to include the full state of California with all 12 districts and 58 counties. During Phase 2 additional data sources were added providing recent conditions and data available for 24-hour forecasts.
Phase 2 also introduced the use of the Google maps platorm for displaying spacially accurate data. This solution implements more robust mapping with Map, Satellite, Terrain, or Hybrid views of the mapped area. The Google Maps API facilitates the easy use of controls for Panning and Zooming into a desired sectionof the map. Users are generally already familiar with the Google Maps interface.
The success of the WeatherShare interface led to additional projects based on the WeatherShare interface and data. These projects include: Integrated Corridor Management Clearinghouse and One-Stop Shop. These platforms employ the WeatherShare weather data, along with other traveler information streams (CCTV, chain controls, etc.) to provide a map-based display of conditions throughout California. In all cases, these platforms combine weather data from various sources to provide detailed information in a comprehensible format regarding current and forecast conditions. When combined with multiple data streams such as closed circuit television cameras (CCTV), this weather information provides Department of Transportation (DOT) personnel and travelers with a more complete picture of data at a route-specific level.