Patent ID: 7894980

Claim:
A method for estimating a travel time over a transportation network comprising a plurality of links including at least a first link and a second link and a plurality of nodes at which two or more of the plurality of links intersect, the method comprising: receiving at least one data feed associated with a real-time traffic flow over said first link; estimating a first travel time over said first link based at least in part on said at least one data feed; estimating a second travel time over said second link based at least in part on said at least one data feed; observing data representative of an inconsistent traffic flow on one or more of said first link and said second; and responsive to said observing, using said data representative of said inconsistent traffic flow to generate an artificial node in said transportation network that is different from said plurality of nodes, where said artificial node merges one or more characteristics of two or more of said plurality of nodes and incorporates said one or more of said first link and said second link.