BMW to soon have traffic light timers on dashboards

Should I be slowing down in case that upcoming green light turns yellow? How long am I going to be stopped at this red light? These are questions all drivers ask but never really expect to get answers to — unless they're driving a BMW, soon.

The German carmaker recently announced integration of the EnLighten iOS app which uses GPS speed and location data to help drivers anticipate when a traffic signal is going to change. It promises to increase safety since drivers will be less likely to try and race through a green light, and also improve a vehicle's fuel efficiency.

Now that the EnLighten app is integrated into a BMW's built-in navigation display, drivers no longer have to glance at their iPhone or rely solely on audible signals about the status of an upcoming traffic light. The app's easy-to-understand interface shows the status of the next traffic light ahead of a vehicle, including a timer counting down to when it will next change and an indication of whether or not they'll make a green light traveling at their current speed.

There's a catch, though. Besides requiring your iPhone to be in the vehicle for the connected EnLighten app to work with your Beemer, it also requires your city to have already set up a network of smart traffic signals. So right now it's restricted to a very limited number of cities in the United States.