MANUFACTURERS have been urged to ensure hi-tech in-car traffic information systems are 'affordable and accessible' to help motorists beat congestion hot-spots. The plea comes from Pete Johnson, AA managing director, as the motoring organisation publishes its latest quarterly traffic index which reveals that 'the stretched seams of Britain's road network burst open' in the summer.

The third quarter of 1997 saw a 10% rise in the number of incidents logged by AA Roadwatch, Europe's largest broadcaster of traffic information, with just under 33,000 traffic snarl-ups a month in July, August and September. And drivers escaping motorway jams regularly clogged surrounding roads, creating widespread congestion and frustration for both long-distance and local motorists.

Johnson said: 'Motorists need earlier, specific information about their journeys if they are not to waste hours each day in snarl-ups. Technology that can give drivers back their freedom of the road is available now, and it's up to manufacturers to make sure it is as affordable and accessible as the mobile phone, as soon as possible.'