TRIP Talk

 

iPhone FAQ

Click here to return to the Trip Talk home page.

 

Below are a few of the questions you might have or problems you may experience, along with our suggested resolution.

 

1. The Application will not install.

TRIP Talk was targeted primarily at the iOS versions 5.0 and up and should install properly on those versions and subversions of the OS. You may want to uninstall any previous versions of TRIP Talk before installing a new version. Otherwise, a phone reboot before installation may solve the issue.



2. I've started the app, but I am not hearing any advisories, what's going on?

Several items can be occurring if you are no longer hearing advisories:

 

• You may be in an area where no advisories are in the radius you selected. If you think there should be, try pressing the "replay all" button on the far right of the audio controls. This will reset your connection and replay active advisories near you.

 

• Your advisory radius may be set to a low value.

 

• You may not be in range of a cell tower to provide data access. Ask a passenger to look at the phone (or when you are stopped) to check for any possible error messages related to the cellular network. Once you are back in range of your network, advisories should resume.

 

• Your phone may be simply attempting to acquire a location for your device. If you have wireless location (settings -> Wi-Fi) enabled, you can generally get quicker response times as the phone can utilize this less accurate location while it acquires a more solid GPS lock. If you only have GPS location enabled, allow the device sufficient time to acquire a lock.

 

The next time you experience issues please toggle the “Debugging Mode” option on, through the “Settings” page, to send us back information so we can better troubleshoot the issue.



3. I am sitting in traffic/an incident and TRIP Talk did not tell me about it. Why?

You may be arriving to the incident before it has arrived to our system. If you don’t hear an advisory shortly, then there could be other factors.

Your phone may have lost internet access. Some areas along the Turnpike have weak cellular coverage, so this is possible from time to time. The app will not work without internet access, but when it loses internet access, it will continue to try to automatically reconnect. The next time you experience issues please toggle the “Debugging Mode” option on, through the “Settings” page, to send us back information so we can better troubleshoot the issue.


4. TRIP Talk continues to tell me “There are no active advisories”. Shouldn’t it be silent?

If the app continues to say that there are no current advisories, your phone may have lost internet access. Some areas along the Turnpike have weak cellular coverage, so this is possible from time to time. The app will not work without internet access, and when it loses internet access, it will continue to try to automatically reconnect. When TRIP Talk automatically reconnects, the “No advisories” message will be replayed when there are no advisories. The next time you experience issues please toggle the “Debugging Mode” option on, through the “Settings” page, to send us back information so we can better troubleshoot the issue.

 

5. TRIP Talk is giving me advisories that are in an incorrect location. Doesn’t it know where I am?

If the app does not give any advisories, your phone may have lost internet access. Some areas along the Turnpike have weak cellular coverage, so this is possible from time to time. The app will not work without internet access, and when it loses internet access, it will continue to try to automatically reconnect.

You should also check your phone’s GPS Settings-make sure the phone’s GPS is turned on and the phone has a clear view of the sky so your GPS can be read and your location and direction of travel identified. This process may take several minutes. If TRIP Talk experiences a GPS error, it will be displayed in red on the main screen.

The next time you experience issues please toggle the “Debugging Mode” option on, through the “Settings” page, to send us back information so we can better troubleshoot the issue.


 

6. The screen shows that advisories are playing, why can’t I hear them?

If the screen displays that an advisory is playing, but you cannot hear it, turn up your phone’s media volume. There are typically volume controls on the side of the phone, but each phone model may function differently. Check the user guide for your particular phone.

 

7. How do I minimize the Trip Talk App to leave it running in the background while I use my phone for other functions?

You can click the “home” button and Trip Talk will continue to play advisories for you while you use other phone functions. If you just want to turn off the sound from playing, simply toggle the On/Off switch to “Off”. To have sounds resume playing again, toggle it back to the “on” position.


 

8. How do I close the TRIP Talk App?

Trip Talk uses the controls right on your device. First, Press the Home button once to minimize the app.

Then, Press the home button twice quickly to display the list of running applications. Locate the TRIP Talk icon (on this screen or by scrolling). Press and hold down the TRIP Talk icon. Now the icons on the screen will start to wiggle and each icon have a red on the top corner. Find the TRIP Talk icon and press the red . The app will now be closed.

 

9. Advisories were playing, but suddenly playback stopped, what's happening?

Be sure first that you are still connected to your provider's cellular network. (You need to be connected to receive the sound files). If you are connected, the most likely reason for the playback to stop is that another application began playback of another audio file and halted the TRIP Talk application's audio stream. If this occurs, simply switch back into the TRIP Talk application and press "play" to continue TRIP Talk audio, if hitting play does not resume the audio or you wish to rehear all advisories, press the "Replay" button on the far right of the audio controls to restart your connection. The next time you experience issues please toggle the “Debugging Mode” option on, through the “Settings” page, to send us back information so we can better troubleshoot the issue.


 

10. I cannot retrieve a connection upon startup of the application, what's happening?

Either you are not in an area where the cellular data network is not available, or permissions for network usage have been disabled for TRIP Talk. Ensure your network is within range, and permissions have been set to allow access for this application. The next time you experience issues please toggle the “Debugging Mode” option on, through the “Settings” page, to send us back information so we can better troubleshoot the issue.


 

11. I receive a GPS error upon starting the application, what’s happening?

Ensure that you have provided permissions to the TRIP Talk application to use your GPS and location settings. You can find this option on your home screen under Settings -> Location Services and then look for the "TRIP Talk" toggle which should be in the "ON" position. The "Location Services" toggle at the top of the screen must be "ON" as well.

Note: If you are unable to toggle the Location Services for TRIP Talk to “ON”, you might have Location Services blocked through Restrictions. Go to Settings -> General -> Restrictions, and enter your passcode. Switch the toggle next to TRIP Talk to the “On” Position.

If you are still seeing the message after those options are set, you may be in an area where location data is not available. Try to move into range of several cell towers, or provide the phone a clear view of the sky to collect GPS coordinates. The next time you experience issues please toggle the “Debugging Mode” option on, through the “Settings” page, to send us back information so we can better troubleshoot the issue.


 

12. How do I change the settings?

With the Trip Talk app open, tap the “Settings” link at the bottom of the screen. You may return to the main Audio Control screen by tapping the “Audio Controls” button located at the bottom of the screen.

 

13. Can I select which type of advisories I hear?

Yes. You can filter the advisories by 4 incident types: Construction, Informational, Traffic, and Detour. Construction and Informational advisories generally do not impact traffic. If you wish to exclude or include any advisory type from your broadcast, you may do so through the settings page. Tap on the Settings button, and then tap on the Advisory Preferences button. You may select or un-select your preferences. All incident types default to selected, meaning you will hear all types unless you unselect them.

 

 

14. I need to call the PA Turnpike - how do I reach someone?

Have a passenger dial, or dial when you are not driving. Tap the “Additional Features” link at the bottom of the main screen. You will be prompted to acknowledge you are not driving. A listing of “Additional Features” will be displayed. Select “Emergency Numbers”. Select the “Emergency Numbers” button. A list of important PA Turnpike numbers is displayed. Tap the number to dial. You may return to the main screen by tapping “Audio Controls” at the bottom of the screen.

 

15. Can I calculate my toll through TRIP Talk?

Yes. Have a passenger operate the phone, or operate the phone when you are not driving. Tap the “Additional Features” link at the bottom of the main screen. You will be prompted to acknowledge you are not driving. A listing of “Additional Features” will be displayed. Tap the “Toll Calculator” option. First, select your entry interchange and tap “Done”. Then, select your exiting interchange and tap “Done”. Select your vehicle’s class and number of axles and tap “Done, and then click the “Calculate your toll” button. E-ZPass and Cash rates will be displayed.

 

16. Can I view the travel advisories on a map?

Yes. Have a passenger operate the phone, or operate the phone when you are not driving. Tap the “Additional Features” link at the bottom of the main screen. You will be prompted to acknowledge you are not driving. A listing of “Additional Features” will be displayed. Tap the “Map” option. A map will appear with your current position. Advisories are pinned on the map. Tap on an incident to view the advisory text.

 

17. I have a comment about TRIP Talk. How do I contact you?

Have a passenger operate the phone, or operate the phone when you are not driving. Tap the “Additional Features” link at the bottom of the main screen. You will be prompted to acknowledge you are not driving. A listing of “Additional Features” will be displayed. Tap the “Feedback” option. Enter your name and your comments in the appropriate boxes. If you would like a reply, include your e-mail address. Click “Send Comments” to send your comment.

 

18. When I connect my cellphone via Bluetooth to the car, I cannot hear the alerts.

Depending on the version of Bluetooth you have and the devices you own, the ability to hear media via Bluetooth can vary from “not at all” to “full support”.
 
A2DP Bluetooth devices support media playback, and some vehicles contain special Bluetooth settings that will allow your device to play media files through your built-in stereo system. 

Trip Talk attempts to play via Bluetooth through compatible setups, but unfortunately not all Bluetooth users/devices will work well.