Big brother is watching. Not watching in the terrifying manner described in the scary novel ‘1984’, or in a low-rent TV show, but in a benign way to make life easier for Australian motorists – indeed, for all Australians not just motorists.

We all benefit from free flowing traffic, either directly by getting to our destination more easily, or indirectly by the lower levels of pollution that results from engines working at greatest efficiency because delays have been minimised.

Keeping traffic moving is aided by the SUNA Traffic Channel. Put simply, this organisation collects information on what is happening on our roads, then passes this information to drivers to warn them of problems or potential trouble areas.

Information is gathered in a variety of ways; by sensors beside the road or under the surface of the road, from the loops under the road that control traffic lights, from cameras (not speed cameras) that monitor traffic in strategic areas. Information is also supplied by tow truck companies.

As well as data from these stationary sources, SUNA also receives information from vehicles on the road. Many thousands of taxis, buses, courier vehicles, road service vans and some private vehicles are fitted with units that send back details on their location, speed and direction of travel once every minute.

The information from the data is analysed by operators in the SUNA control room in Melbourne and is then provided to motorists. Most people current receive this through broadcasts by radio stations, with some TV stations getting into the act as well.

However, SUNA is chiefly aimed at the increasing number of drivers who want to receive the information directly. They can do so via a satellite navigation system, another GPS device or by way of the car’s radio. This applies both to built-in satellite navigation systems in cars, as well as to aftermarket units. Other units that can receive the traffic information are smart phones, Google Maps, even Telstra’s new T-Hub system.

We recently toured the SUNA control room in Melbourne and were impressed with the large amount of data that are available to the operators. As well as the instantaneous information they are receiving from the sources detailed above, they also have lists of events that are sure to generate a lot of traffic. So they have calendars showing the dates of major sports events, concerts, shows such as Sydney’s Royal Easter, Brisbane’s Ekka, and so on.

Long weekends are another source of traffic holdups, so SUNA keeps track of these and publishes warnings, based on knowledge of traffic flow from the corresponding period in previous years, that may help drivers chose the best time to start out on that long trip home.

Drivers can use the SUNA system before setting out on a trip to receive information on anticipated average traffic speeds based on normal conditions on the route. Perhaps making a decision to leave a little later, or maybe take a route that's less direct, but which is actually more time efficient.

We were fortunate that a group of protests decided to stage an event outside Parliament House in Sydney while we were in the control room, so were able to watch the information being first of all monitored, then passed to drivers.

We also saw the very extensive list of standard warnings that can be called up and broadcast at a moment’s notice. These included such fascinating items as ‘Camels Crossing the Road’, ‘Gunfire in Area’ and ‘Bullfight in Progress’!

SUNA is a division of Intelematics which is a wholly owned subsidiary of the RACV. It uses international standards and operates in all Australian capital cities with the exception of Hobart, as well as on the Gold Coast and Geelong. The network is being rapidly expanded and will soon cover all freeways and major arterial roads.