The term Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) was coined over two decades ago to designate applications of information and communication technologies to the operational management of transportation networks. The main promise of ITS has been very consistent over that period: network capacity can be freed up by optimizing traffic controls and empowering users with accurate travel information. It can be debated how much faith practitioners and policy makers have placed in technology by investing their resources, as well as the extent to which Intelligent Transportation Systems have delivered on their promise. However, there is no question that steady and sometimes spectacular advances in computing technologies and usage trickle down to transportation applications in important ways. As a result, new products and services emerge continuously. They include systems that address the direct needs of networks managers, as well as others that are developed in tangential markets (e.g. automotive) or even through non-market mechanisms (e.g. many mobile web applications). This talk presentation reviews major trends in information and communication technologies and demonstrate how each of them is driving innovative transportation services. We attempt to envision how those trends might develop in the future, so that we can finally examine some of their implications for travel demand and network management. There lie both challenges and opportunities for transportation engineers and planners, but either way, profound changes appear inevitable.

1. Intelligent Transportation J.D. Margulici
Trends and Perspectives jdm@novavia.us
2011 www.novaviasolutions.com
Chapter 3: Traffic Monitoring
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2.  ITS primer and brief history
Intelligent Transportation
 State of the art: traffic monitoring
Trends and Perspectives
2011
 Information technology trends
 Prospective and implications
J.D. Margulici
jdm@novavia.us
www.novaviasolutions.com

3. You cannot manage what you cannot measure…
Traffic sensors are the technological
backbone enabling system
management
ITS Trends and Perspectives - April 2011 3

4. Traffic Sensors: State of the Art
ITS Trends and Perspectives - April 2011 4

5. Sensor Data
Point Detection Segment Detection Floating Data
• Fixed locations • Fixed segments • Possibly random
• Samples volume, • Samples travel locations
occupancy, speed times • Samples speed
n(x,t) T(i,[x1,x2]) v(x,t)
k(x,t)
v(x,t)
Completeness True Trips Coverage
ITS Trends and Perspectives - April 2011 5

6. Traffic Sensors: Point Detection
Inductive Loop (ILD)
Doppler Radar
Video
Doppler Microwave
Passive Acoustic
ITS Trends and Perspectives - April 2011 6

7. Segment Reading
Toll Tag Readers
License Plate Readers
Magnetic Signature
Bluetooth / MAC ID
ITS Trends and Perspectives - April 2011 7

8. Travel Time from Portable ALPR
Average Hourly Volume at CA154NB
CA-154 US-101
Tube Count LPR Camera Count Matched Plate Count
Two-lane local highway 4-lane national divided highway
900
Length: 31 miles Length: 47 miles
Winding
800
Slow speeds
700
Volume (Vehicles)
600
500
400
300
200
100
0
0:00 3:00 6:00 9:00 12:00 15:00 18:00 21:00
Time of day
ITS Trends and Perspectives - April 2011 8

9. Floating Car Data
ITS Trends and Perspectives - April 2011 9

10. Mobile Century: GPS-Equipped Phones as Traffic Probes…
ITS Trends and Perspectives - April 2011 10

11. Mobile Century: Design of Experiment
165 Berkeley students drivers
100 GPS-enabled cell phones (N95)
100 rented cars
6 to 10 mile loops, I-880
10am to 7pm
2-5% penetration rate
1/3Hz data stored on phones
Real-time, online flow reconstruction (VTLs)
ITS Trends and Perspectives - April 2011 11

12. Mobile Century 2.8.8
12
ITS Trends and Perspectives - April 2011 12

13. Virtual Trip Lines vs. Local Log vs. Speedometer
ITS Trends and Perspectives - April 2011 13

14. Penetration Rates
A.M.
P.M.
ITS Trends and Perspectives - April 2011 14

15. Collected Trajectories (20% subset)
ITS Trends and Perspectives - April 2011 15

16. Shockwave
ITS Trends and Perspectives - April 2011 16

17. Contour Plots
Loop Detectors Phone Logs
ITS Trends and Perspectives - April 2011 17

18. Speed Scale
Contour Plots (2)
17 Loops Phone Logs
17 VTLs 30 VTLs
ITS Trends and Perspectives - April 2011 18

19. Video Validation
ITS Trends and Perspectives - April 2011 19

20. Travel Times
ITS Trends and Perspectives - April 2011 20

21. Speed Dating: Loops + VTL…
ITS Trends and Perspectives - April 2011 21

22. Traveler Information
ITS Trends and Perspectives - April 2011 22

23. 511
2003
December 10, 2010
ITS Trends and Perspectives - April 2011 23

24. Traffic Information: Value Chain
Surface
Streets
Roadway Probe Filter & GIS Phone / PDA Navigation Radio Web Mobile Car
Sensors Data Interpret Integration Apps. Units Broadcasting Publishing Networks Makers
Data Data Application Delivery Branding &
Collection Processing Packaging Channels Distribution
Incident Weather & Trip Logistics & Mobile Information Mass
Aggregate Predict TV Reports
Data Events Planning Professional Delivery Portals Media
Freeways
ITS Trends and Perspectives - April 2011 24

25. Real-time Traffic Detection: Supply and Demand
Infrastructure-Side Technology Vehicle-Side Technology
3,900
Actual
U.S. Freeway Miles Covered with Real-time Detection Worldwide Navigation Units Sales (10,000s)
Source: ITS Joint Projects Office Source: SiRF Technology
ITS Trends and Perspectives - April 2011 25

26. Procurement of Private Data
Federal Intelligent Transportation Infrastructure Program Current Challenges
$2 million appropriated for data services in up to 25 Procurement
metro areas
• Data quality audits, QA
Traffic.com deploys, operates and maintains sensor • Licensing rights
network
Traffic.com provides data to TV, radio, satellite radio,
in-vehicle systems, and maintains public Web site Systems Integration
• Traffic systems operate with volume/occupancy
Agencies get unlimited real-time and archived data
for internal use • GIS integration with different segment definitions
Data Policies
• What fusion / selection procedures?
• Where are detectors still needed?
ITS Trends and Perspectives - April 2011 26

27. Traffic Information Quality
Traffic information has become abundant but quality remains seldom monitored
• End users are relatively clueless about information quality
• Margins of error are not well understood and used in practice
There are no widespread metrics or evaluation procedures to measure data quality
• Each customer (e.g. car manufacturer, DOT…) conducts its own benchmark
• Evaluation results cannot be readily compared
Postulate:
Harmonized benchmarking methods would benefit both suppliers and customers
• Improve consistency and fairness of evaluations
• Lower overall costs by eliminating duplication of efforts
• Better recognize true value-added and pull quality upward
ITS Trends and Perspectives - April 2011 27

28. About NATWG
The North American Traffic Working Group (NATWG) works
collaboratively to define, accept and advocate for the unique
needs of North America traffic information services. NATWG
seeks to develop a coordinated, proactive market driven
implementation of traffic and travel information services and
products by both influencing international standards efforts
and coordinating the development of non-competitive
commercial agreements.
Members sampling:
ITS Trends and Perspectives - April 2011 28

29. Key Takeaway
If counting cars keeps you awake at night, start counting sheep instead…
ITS Trends and Perspectives - April 2011 29

30. Intelligent Transportation J.D. Margulici
Trends and Perspectives jdm@novavia.us
2011 www.novaviasolutions.com
Next is
Chapter 4: Vehicle Technology