BE Magazine - Volume 4, Issue 3 - (Page 8)

is and how to improve operations.” Instead, they focus on speciﬁc systems or functions, such as integrating vehicle and roadway safety-control devices or weather reporting, he said. “We’re not talking about toys anymore,” he added, and trafﬁc engineers need to think more about systems concepts. To gauge awareness of ITS solutions, the U.S. DOT conducted a series of 20 focus groups in 2006. The research revealed that the overall familiarity of ITS as a program is “relatively low” among the traveling public, commercial vehicle operators, state and local DOTs, state legislators, and others. However, “the levels of awareness of individual elements of the program, such as 5-1-1 traveler information, coordinated signal systems, electronic toll systems, transit fare cards, ‘next bus’ arrival signs, and roadside variable message signs was quite high,” said Jeff Paniati, FHWA’s associate administrator for operations. ASSURING MOBILITY IN THE 21ST CENTURY Pete Rahn AASHTO The 47,000-mile Interstate Highway System represents only 1 percent of total system mileage, but carries 24 percent of all trafﬁc and 41 percent of combination-vehicle truck trafﬁc. However, as the capacity and the performance of the current Interstate Highway System are used up, this will reduce the Interstate’s ability to support the increased productivity the United States will need to compete in the global economy. As the U.S. economy becomes both more integrated and globalized, there is an ever-increasing economic premium placed on rapid, reliable transportation for goods and passengers. Our ability to compete will require a well-connected, nationwide, high-capacity system capable of high speeds and reliability. The role of ITS Capacity additions alone will not eliminate congestion or reliability problems. Trafﬁc disruptions—crashes, breakdowns, construction work, weather, and special events—cause about 50 percent of delays. These disruptions can be addressed through aggressive system operations applications such as incident clearance, snow and ice control, and construction work zone management. Advanced technologies can be used to collect real-time information on road and travel conditions, improve travelers’ information, and use ramp metering and lane management to improve trafﬁc ﬂow. The decade-long effort to develop, demonstrate, and deploy intelligent transportation system (ITS) tools, architecture, and standards is starting to pay dividends. Electronic toll systems have reduced backups at toll booths, and truck electronic pre-clearance systems allow many trucks to bypass inspection stations altogether. 5-1-1 travelers’ information systems now serve 50 percent of the U.S. market. Automobile manufacturers, technology suppliers, and government are collaborating on vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-system management communications technologies that will save lives and improve performance. This article by Pete Rahn, AASHTO vice president and Missouri DOT director, is excerpted from the March 2007 “Transportation/Invest in Our Future: Surface Transportation Policy Recommendations,” the second in six reports being provided by AASHTO (www.transportation.org) to the National Surface Transportation Policy and Revenue Study Commission. Added Valerie Briggs, program manager for transportation operations at the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Ofﬁcials (AASHTO), “We’ve been struggling for years to give the public something that motorists can use. We’ve reached that point, and we can’t go back.” Government support for ITS continues to increase, however slowly, with skeptics still abundant as to just how signiﬁcant the industry will really become. Earmarked congressional funding is now on ﬁrm footing; ITS also now has a shot at the core funds of highway programs, but must compete with big-money project funding to get any of that general ﬁnancing. Strong support for ITS comes from the federal House, with vigorous backing from a 50-member ITS Caucus, with somewhat less support in the Senate, where no such caucus exists. The Democratic party’s takeover of Congress is expected to give ITS increased backing on Capitol Hill, which will become manifest as lawmakers begin, in a year or so, to develop a new multiyear highway transportation law to succeed the $286.4 billion Safe, Accountable, Flexible. and Efﬁcient Transportation Equity Act—A Legacy for Users (or SAFETEA-LU), which was enacted last year after two years of extensions of its predecessor, and which itself expires Sept. 30, 2009. The law provides an estimated $150 to $200 million or more annually through ﬁscal year 2009, said Nelson Garcia, ITS America’s director of government relations. It also directs the Secretary of Transportation to establish a program to provide in all states the ability to monitor in real time the trafﬁc and travel conditions of the major highways in the United States. Here is a rundown on the various aspects of ITS’ potential and challenges: Systems deployment The FHWA’s ITS Deployment Statistics Database shows 63 of the 75 largest metropolitan areas with a basic level of infrastructure deployment in each of ﬁve trafﬁc management categories. Variable messaging is used by 66 of 78 metropolitan areas on freeways, but only a few estimate travel times to speciﬁed points. As of 2004, 93 of 8 BE MAGAZINE | Volume 4, Issue 3 http://www.transportation1.org/tif2report/execsummary.html

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of BE Magazine - Volume 4, Issue 3

Contents Rising to the Challenge News BE Newsletter Highlights More ITS Sightings Racing Concrete Canoes Lights, Camera, Action! Making the Cut People’s Choice Awards 2007 Executive Keynotes Building Clear Vision of a Dream Concrete Results Reaching New Heights Building News From Bentley Golden KIWI Awards 2007 Civil A Coordination of National Highway Proportions Training Troops Beautifying Highways, One Sign at a Time Civil News From Bentley Geospatial Facility Facelift Planning for Uncertainty Geospatial News From Bentley MicroStation at the Heart of LiDAR Surveying Solutions Plant Making the Grade Data Deja Vu Data Clouds Provide Clear Visual of Underground Saving Precious-Metal Mining Time Plant News From Bentley Advertisers Index Special/Academic The Art of Visualization Training Is Key To Delivering State-of-the-Art Solutions Bridging the Information/Infrastructure Gap

BE Magazine - Volume 4, Issue 3

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