Waze Traffic App Trades Data For Hit-And-Run, Other Info With City Of LA

Drivers who use the navigation application Waze in Los Angeles will soon be getting more than just notifications that there is traffic on the freeway at 5 p.m.

The Los Angeles Times reports Google-owned Waze has partnered with the city in a new data-sharing program. As a result users will receive alerts about hit-and-runs and kidnappings. Los Angeles departments will get real-time data about traffic patterns and roadway conditions.

This information will include reports made by the 1.3 million users in the area. The data will be cleared of any information that could reveal users' identities.

The partnership comes four months after the Los Angeles Police Department Chief Charlie Beck asked Google to stop allowing users to report police locations, saying the tracking puts police officers' lives in danger.