Audi's new cars will tell you how long you'll be stuck at that red light

Audi is trying to make traffic lights less frustrating.

The company just introduced a new feature that is able to let drivers know exactly when the traffic light they are at will change. Called a "traffic light information system," it will be available on "select" 2017 models of Audi's Q7, A4 and A4 allroad.

Here's how it works: pull up to a red light and you'll see a countdown right in the car's instrument cluster (or heads up display), letting you know how much longer until the light turns green. If the car is moving, the countdown will start if the upcoming light will be red by the time the car reaches the intersection.

Behind the scenes, Audi has partnered with a number of cities in order to get access to traffic light data. The software that powers those systems is able to send its data -- both for timed lights and sensor-controlled signals -- to Audi's cloud in-real time. Audi then takes that data, runs it through its prediction algorithms and sends it to its cars, which surface the predictions to the drivers on the road.

Original image has been replaced. Credit: Mashable

Though the countdowns are technically predictions, Audi's General Manager for Connected Vehicles, Pom Malhotra, notes that the system is trained to only show predictions that have a high confidence level.

It's an intriguing and ambitious idea, to be sure, but there are a few caveats.

Since Audi is processing the data in real time, the feature is dependent on an in-car LTE connection (via an Audi Connect subscription). You'll also need to have a 2017 Q7, A4, or A4 allroad that was built after June 1, 2016.

It's also only going to be available in a few cities when it launches this fall. Audi hasn't said which cities will be part of the initial rollout just yet but says it expects to have the technology available in five to seven U.S. cities this year, with more to follow later on. Additionally, Audi won't have data for every single signal in the cities it has already partnered with. Instead, Malhotra says, the goal is to focus on the areas that see the most amount of traffic, since those are the intersections where information could be most useful.