Startup Idea: Mobile App for Navigation and Scheduling for Traveling Technicians and Service Workers

Startup idea to develop a comprehensive mobile application specifically designed for travelling technicians and service workers. The app would provide an integrated platform that combines real-time roadwork, road closure, and traffic congestion information along with the ability to sense user’s position and integrate with existing scheduling tools like Google calendar to plan the most efficient routes.

Mobile App for Traveling Technicians and Service Workers.

I have been a mobile landscaping and lawn irrigation technician for over 15 years. I am often handed a tight schedule that often has me driving over a hundred miles a day, which translates to about 4 hours of driving in a typical work day. There is nothing that impedes my ability to get my job done than unforeseen traffic congestion and road work.

To aid in getting around, I do use Google Maps and the Maps app on my iPhone; however, these apps are lacking and I think they can be greatly improved upon.

First off, I would like an app that can alert me at the beginning of each day with new and upcoming roadwork information so that I can know beforehand which streets I should avoid throughout the day so I can plan my route as efficiently as possible.

Second, I would also like this app to sense my position and direction while I'm on the road and alert me to any road work or road closures I am approaching.

Thirdly, if a developer wanted to be even more ambitious, the app could be made to scrape the location information from a calendar (we use Google Calendar for our scheduling), plot the day's location's on a map, and then devise what is likely the best possible route based on roadwork and road closure information.

The back-end of this app would take a certain degree of human legwork, I would think, to aggregate roadwork and road closure information most efficiently. Many construction companies are required to post their projects, but often they use inadequate signage, and any signage they do use is often not placed in the best location for avoiding the roadwork! Also, many utilities are not required to post information about their projects in the paper, with radio stations, etc., so any it would be necessary for someone to visit with them regularly to obtain this information.

Fourth, adding accident information that similarly slows down traffic would also be useful to such an app. This information might best be obtained from app user data, where people on the road can help alert other drivers to what's ahead. This information would be useful, but it is also fleeting, so there would also need to be some sort of followup devised to let people know that traffic is back up and running.