Will a city need all the latest technology and they will solve the traffic problems? If not, then what are the correct choices.

Technology has been playing an important role in promoting vehicular safety, reducing driving stress, comfortable travel and increased  efficiency of the whole transport system. These technologies applied in a package are called “Intelligent Transport System (ITS)”. When carefully applied the ITS will create an efficient, safe and comfortable transport system.

Often, policy-makers are in a situation where they are not properly informed on the right technological choices. The GTZ Sourcebook module  on “Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS)” focuses on the choices for a city and also informs the reader of the various viable ITS options, their function and advantage. (German Technical Cooperation Agency (GTZ) is a member of the Sustainable Urban Transport Project (SUTP – ASIA).  The project is carried out in cooperation between German Technical Cooperation Agency (GTZ), the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP), CITYNET, UNHABITAT and the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA). The office is based in Bangkok (Thailand).

The focus of this module on ITS is on ITS applications that support the concept of sustainable transport by encouraging the following desirable outcomes which can be expected to find general acceptance:

• Equitable access and improved mobility and including reduced demand for motorised private transport; and improve the modal split in favor of walking, transit, and cycling;
• Improved transport efficiency and productivity;
• Improved safety and security; and
• Reduced environmental impact and improved ‘liveability’, especially in congested city centres.

The module was written by Mr. Phil Sayeg and Prof. Phil Charles and updated by the authors. The authors also wrote ITS Australia’s Intelligent Transport Systems Hand- book that was published in 2003 and edit their quarterly Members’ Information Pack. They are currently contributing to the development of the first ITS Strategy for Bangkok, Thailand.

More information on the updated module (3.15 Mb) and download links are available from the Sustainable Urban Transport Project (SUTP) website.

ITS World Congresses gather some 5,000 participants from around the world looking to share experiences and build networks. As a decision-maker, manufacturer, supplier or consultant within the private or public sector, the World Congress is an opportunity for you to learn more about what ITS can do to improve the efficiency of your operations. What’s more, it is an excellent opportunity to show the general public how ITS can help them in their daily lives.

Delegates will include representatives from:

• International organisations and national governments
• Regional, local and municipal authorities
• Security and safety organisations
• CEOs from industry
• Equipment manufacturers and suppliers
• Service developers and service providers
• Software developers and systems integrators
• Automotive and industrial designers
• Public transport and freight operators
• ITS project management and financiers
• ITS consultancies and advisors
• ITS users and members organisations
• Public interest groups and press

There will also be an opportunity for the public to visit the Exhibition and demonstration sites on the last day of the World Congress in Stockholm.

The Congress format consists of several different types of sessions.  Along with the traditional types of sessions (Plenary, Executive, Special Interest and Technical/Scientific), this year the Congress organizers are introducing the two new formats: Interactive Sessions and Lunchtime Debates.  Sessions typically last 90 minutes.

The Exhibit Hall provides a venue for public sector organizations and private sector vendors to show off their latest technology.  The Exhibit Hall will be open to Congress delegates September 22-25; on Friday, September 25, it will also be open to the public.

The 2009 ITS World Congress will also feature four demonstration sites where Congress delegates can watch ITS in action: one is located inside the Exhibit Hall, two are located just outside the building in the parking lot, and one is accessible by shuttle bus.  Congress delegates can also go on any of 11 technical visits to see ITS in action in and around Stockholm.

Social events include receptions on Monday (September 21) and Tuesday (September 22) evenings and a gala dinner Wednesday (September 23) evening in Stockholm City Hall, famous as the location where Nobel Prizes are awarded.

For all other event related information, please visit the ITS World Congress website.

The proceedings from the recently held Intelligent Vehicle Technology Transfer (IVTT) Joint Military/Civilian Workshop on IntelliDrive are now available online for your perusal and downloading.   The Workshop was held at the Holiday Inn, Gaithersburg, Maryland on July 30, 2009.

For those who are not in the know, the Intelligent Vehicle Technology Transfer (IVTT) Joint Military/Civilian Workshop on IntelliDrive^sm is sponsored by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA); and it is supported by the Department of Transportation Intelligent Transportation Systems Joint Program Office (DOT ITS JPO), the Army Tank Automotive Research, Development and Engineering Center (TARDEC), the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI); the Intelligent Transportation Society of America (ITS America); and the Intelligent Systems Division of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (ISD NIST)

Please link to the IVTT website at www.Intelligent-Vehicle.com and go to the “Prior Events” tab and then click on “Workshop 2009” to access the Presentations and other Workshop information. (Alternatively, you can copy paste the following link: http://www.intelligent-vehicle.com/index.php/events-2009). Or you can simply click each of the following hyperlinked files to simply download them.

• Agenda 31 March 09.pdf
• Presentation 01 Scott Welcome.pdf
• Presentation 02 Finkelstein IVTT Technological Transformation.pdf
• Presentation 03 Dumas Intelligent Vehicle Technology In DARPA.pdf
• Presentation 04 Wilcox Robotic Systems Joint Project office.pdf
• Presentation 05 Rossi Emerging Intelligent Vehicles In FCS.pdf
• Presentation 06 Govers Guardium UGV.pdf
• Presentation 07 Shoemaker Autonomous Intelligent Vehicle Research.pdf
• Presentation 08 Scott Autonomous Intelligent Vehicle Technology At NIST.pdf
• Presentation 09 Schmidt Intelligent Vehicles And IntelliDrive.pdf
• Presentation 10 Fitch Intelligent Vehicle Perception And Autonomy.pdf
• Presentation 11 Pilutti Autonomous Vehicles And Collision Avoidance.pdf
• Presentation 12 Schmitt Intelligent Commercial Vehicles.pdf
• Presentation 13 Langer Autonomous Driving At VW.pdf
• Presentation 14 McBride Autonomous Vehicle Research At Ford.pdf
• Presentation 15 Rajkumar Making Autonomous Driving Real.pdf
• Presentation 16 Kern Intelligent Cars Trucks And Buses.pdf
• Presentation 17 Snyder Autonomous Intelligent Vehicles Now.pdf
• Presentation 18 McCormick Connected Vehicle Proving Center.pdf
• Presentation 19 Dallas Robotics Technology Consortium.pdf
• Presentation 20 Bishop Intelligent Vehicles Global Perspective.pdf
• Presentation 21 Albus Intelligent Vehicle Technology Gaps.pdf
• Presentation 22 Ayyub Intelligent Vehicles Towards Cognition.pdf
• Presentation 23 Finkelstein IVTT Roadmap.pdf
• Registrants List.pdf

The workshop was deemed a great success, and the DOT’s developing IntelliDrive system of systems can help satisfy the DOD’s needs for complex networks of sensors, vehicles, communications, and control centers. Please stay tuned to your website for the announcement(s) regarding the next event.

Do not forget to thank, Dr. Bob Finkelstein, the manager of IVTT Program for making these presentations publicly available.

The Intelligent Transportation Society of America (ITS America) is pleased to announce a series of Webinars focusing on how climate change can affect surface transportation.

• 
  “What Does Climate Change Legislation Mean for Surface Transportation?”  – Wednesday, July 8,  from 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.
• “How is California Addressing Surface Transportation Issues?” – Wednesday, July 15, from 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.
• “What is Detroit Doing to Alleviate Environmental Concerns in Surface Transportation?” –  Wednesday, July 22 from 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.

The registration fee for members of ITS America is $45 per Webinar (or $105 for the series) and $90 per Webinar for nonmembers or ($240 for the series).

To register, download the registration form here.

Advancing Traffic Signal Management Programs through Regional Collaboration

Description

This T3 webinar will explore Regional Traffic Signal Management Programs from an intuitional and organizational perspective. Over the last decade, Regional Traffic Signal Management Programs have developed in many metropolitan areas with the primary objective of improving traffic signal timing. How successful have these programs been at achieving and sustaining this objective? What types of organizational structures, funding, and technology facilitate the operation of the system? There are many approaches to starting, organizing, and sustaining regional programs; a cross section of these, will be explored from the perspective of State DOTs, Metropolitan Planning Organizations and Local Agencies. The activities, funding sources and champions that sustain regional programs are as diverse as the regions themselves; exploring and discussing these is an important step in improving and advancing traffic signal operations nationally.

The webinar will include brief presentations describing each regional traffic signal program followed by a Question & Answer discussion of questions submitted by webinar participants.

Audience

Politicians, managers and practitioners interested in improving traffic signal management, operations and maintenance practices to reduce the impacts of traffic signals on climate change, improve the quality of life of customers and advancing a world class transportation system that interoperates across multiple modes and facilities.

Learning Objectives

• Identify approaches to “sell” regional traffic signal programs as a viable strategy to improve traffic signal operations.
• Identify organizational structures and methods of overcoming institutional barriers to the formation of regional traffic signal management programs.
• List activities that promote regional collaboration among traffic signal operators.
• Identify how planning organizations and agencies that manage and operate traffic signals can work collaboratively to improve traffic signal operations.
• List the benefits of regional traffic signal operations.
• Identify emerging strategies for measuring performance and prioritizing regional objectives and projects.

Federal Host:

Eddie Curtis, FHWA Resource Center & Office of Operations

Eddie Curtis is a Traffic Management Specialist with the FHWA Resource Center and Headquarters Office of Operations. He manages the Arterial Management Program responsible for providing research, guidance and outreach to advance arterial operations and traffic signal management. Via the Resource center Mr. Curtis provides training and technical assistance on issues related to traffic signal management, operations and ACS-Lite. He has 14 years of experience in traffic signal operations and has held positions with the City of Los Angeles and PB Farradyne. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering from California State University Los Angeles and is a licensed P.E. in the states of California.

Presenters:

State Department of Transportation Perspective on Regional Traffic Signal Management

• North Carolina Department of Transportation

Greg Fuller, North Carolina DOT — ITS & State Signals Engineer

• Metropolitan Planning Organization Perspective

Jim Poston, Regional Transportation Commission (RTC)

Metropolitan Planning Organization Perspective

• Ron Achelpohl — Mid-America Regional Council — Operation Green Light Kansas City

Ronald Achelpohl is the Assistant Director of Transportation for the Mid-America Regional Council (MARC). He is responsible for a variety of initiatives related to the funding, operation and management of transportation systems in the Kansas City area including:

• • Project Manager for Operation Green Light; an initiative to enhance the coordination of traffic signals to improve traffic flow and air quality throughout the region;
  • Program Manager for the regional Congestion Management System to ensure that regional decision-makers have solid information about the impacts of congestion as they make major transportation investment decisions;
  • Oversight of regional transportation safety programs;
  • Oversight of the Regional Intelligent Systems Architecture;
  • Oversight of the regional Transportation Improvement Program;
  • Oversight of the regional RIDESHARE program; and
  • Other initiatives involving Intelligent Transportation Systems, Travel Demand Management, freight transportation, transportation finance and transportation policy.

Ronald has held previous positions in MARC and the Missouri Department of Transportation and has earned a Master of Science, Engineering Management from the University of Kansas and a Bachelor of Science, Civil Engineering from the University of Missouri.

Ronald is a Registered Professional Engineer in Missouri and a member of the American Public Works Association, the Institute of Traffic Engineers, and ITS America, Heartland Chapter.

Professional Organization Perspective

• Institute of Transportation Engineers, Douglas Noble, P.E., PTOE

Douglas Noble is the Senior Director — Management and Operations at the Institute of Transportation Engineers. He is responsible for the integration of transportation management and operations issues into ITE programs and publications. Doug has more than 20 years of experience in project development, financial management and administration in the transportation engineering field with an emphasis in project management, organizational development and change management, traffic engineering, transportation operations, neighborhood traffic management and planned special events.

Doug’s professional background spans both the public and private sectors: He has been the Chief Traffic Engineer for Washington, DC and prior to that a principal transportation engineer for the consulting engineering firm Parsons Transportation Group in its Washington office. He received his bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from Purdue University, and an M.S.E. in transportation systems from the University of Texas at Austin. In addition to being registered as a Professional Engineer, Doug has received certification as a Professional Traffic Operations Engineer™ and is a Fellow of the Institute.

Where is the “IT” in ITS?

Description

IT and ITS have a common technical framework and similar technical challenges. As such, practitioners in both fields have much to gain by partnering together. The Oregon and New Hampshire State Departments of Transportation will present their experiences in bringing these different organizational groups together to promote efficient and successful ITS project deployment based on systems engineering principles. Each agency will share their successes, challenges, and lessons learned with the organizational and technical issues these new partnerships engender. Representatives from both agencies will discuss the ways that IT and ITS staff in program offices collaborate to support ITS deployments, making this an informative and interesting session and providing the audience with practical steps for initiating and maintaining collaborative, cross-departmental work partnerships.

This webinar is part of a webinar series on Systems Engineering for ITS projects. Many agencies use their Information Technology group as a source for systems engineering and information technology skills and as a way to build competency across different agency departments.

Audience

• Individuals involved in planning, deploying, and operating ITS
• ITS and IT staff and managers
• Human Resource and workforce development professionals

Learning Outcomes

• Understanding of the positive impact on ITS project outcomes derived from collaboration between the agency’s IT department and the ITS program office
• Steps that can be implemented to initiate cross-departmental (IT and ITS) collaboration
• Benefits of using systems engineering in the development and management of ITS projects
• Best practices for maintaining cross-departmental collaboration through the project lifecycle

Federal Host:

Mac Lister

Mac is the Manager of the ITS Professional Capacity Building Program at the U.S. Department of Transportation’s ITS Joint Program Office (ITS JPO). He has over 35 years of experience in the field of information systems. Before joining the ITS JPO, Mac was an ITS Specialist at the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) Resource Center. Before that, Mac worked as an IT manager for 25 years, the last 12 of which were for a public transit agency. His ITS areas of expertise are 511 technology/overall operations, the National ITS Architecture, ITS professional capacity building and workforce development, and systems engineering.

Mac has provided training, outreach and technical support for the National ITS Architecture and Systems Engineering programs. He has also the team leader for the FHWA‘s National Field Support team; the field co-chair for the FHWA Operations Council’s architecture and systems engineering working groups; and a member of the 511 Deployment Coalition Working Group.

Mac is a certified instructor and a master trainer for NHI. He has taught courses in ITS Software Acquisition, Systems Engineering and National ITS Architecture. He has also been an independent consultant to ITS America.

(Source: Eventbrite via Bernie Wagenblast)

Newcastle University and Imperial College would like to invite you to participate in a different sort of Workshop to help shape future research into sustainable intelligent transport.

It will be sparky; it will be challenging; it will think the unthinkable – and it will be FREE with refreshments provided.

You’ll not want to miss it, will you?

• Will the Internet and technology influence how we travel? Whether we travel at all?
• Can technology help mobility?
• How useful is “user-generated content”?
• How far can mobile Internet and Web2.0 get you? – literally
• Where is transport research going?
• Did Beethoven have a food processor?

Come and listen to new thoughts on old problems; share with us what you think matters; show us what you’re up to; join in when people ask the questions they’ve always wanted to pose on transport and the Internet; suggest the areas you think need investigation.

Proceedings will be live blogged and tweeted from the event; together with remote contributions. These will be forwarded to EPSRC as the outcome of the workshop and the SIMM final report.

If you’d like details about attending, exhibiting, making a short presentation or demonstrating a product or technology, or following the workshop online please contact Hannah Bryan:hannah.bryan@newcastle.ac.uk at Newcastle University (0191 222 6420).

This is the outline programme. It is still a work in progress, and is likely to change before the actual event, especially as we’d like your comments on it .

So, your thoughts and comments are welcome, particularly for the interactive panel sessions in the afternoon…

The Intelligent Transportation Society of America (ITS America), in partnership with IBM and Spencer Trask Collaborative Innovations (STCI), has launched a global challenge to identify innovative ideas for combating transportation congestion.

“The average metropolitan commuter in the U.S. spends nearly a full work week stuck in traffic each year, wasting precious time and fuel and impacting the environment, safety conditions on roads, and economic productivity to the tune of more than 1 percent of GDP,” said ITS America President and CEO Scott Belcher. “Allowing congestion to grind cities, suburbs and supply chains to a halt every morning and afternoon is unacceptable when we have innovative tools, technologies, and strategies available to manage our transportation systems and utilize our infrastructure more effectively.”

The ITS Congestion Challenge is a global competition to identify the best and most creative ideas to effectively reduce congestion and its impacts on the economy, environment, and quality of life.

The competition is open to entrepreneurs, commuters, transportation experts, researchers, universities, and citizens from all fields around the globe. All ideas will be reviewed discussed and rated by an open global community, to determine the best and most creative ideas to effectively solve the consequences of traffic congestion.

The winner will be announced during the 16^th World Congress on Intelligent Transportation Systems in Stockholm, Sweden, September 21 – 25, 2009, and will receive a cash investment of $50,000 USD, as well as development and implementation support to pursue turning the ideas into real-world solutions.

More information is available on the competition including key attributes winning entries will be expected to incorporate. Participants will be able to post solutions, collaborate in an open community to improve solution entries, and ultimately vote for those solutions they believe best relieve the issues caused by congestion.

Road Pricing Beyond the Technology

Sunday 20 September, 2009 @ 9.00 – 17.00

Radisson SAS Royal Viking Hotel, Vasagatan 1 SE-101 24 Stockholm, Sweden

PRELIMINARY PROGRAMME

(As of 4 June, 2009; Subject to Change)

Road Pricing is an economic instrument that can be part of a package of measures to address overall mobility. This is not a seminar about the technology of road pricing but about strategic objectives, policy, monitoring, measuring and managing of road pricing schemes which are the core values of IBEC. Be prepared for frank discussions!

The benefits of pricing include the immediate traffic impacts but also the economic and social benefits that effective pricing can generate. Of course these benefits vary widely depending on the type and scale of pricing. Systems that provide a « guaranteed » level of service, such as those that involve some form of variable pricing should help business and individual travellers to solve a key transportation problem of the 21st Century – reliability. Then, there are the environmental concerns; to what extent does road pricing provide a useful contribution to greenhouse gas reduction? But, it’s all got to be implemented, and road pricing has a public image problem to address also.

Key Issues

● What are the economic benefits of road pricing and how can they be measured?

● Can road pricing provide large scale and long-term economic stimulus for a 21st Century economy?

● How should we inform and consult with stakeholders?

● What about social equity – do we understand the social distribution of costs and benefits?

● How should we manage politics and public expectations?

● Are HOT lanes a step in the right direction or a dangerous distraction?

● What have we learned from current efforts at implementation?

● Where have real benefits been delivered and what have we learned from the failures?

Time Schedule

9:00 Welcome

9:15 Session 1: What each region is doing in Road Pricing

This session will provide an international survey of Road Pricing policies and activities from around the world. More than being descriptive, each speaker will put developments into context by explaining transport objectives and how pricing is seen as a tool to address the transport challenges faced.

Chaired and coordinated by Alan Stevens, TRL, UK

10:45 Break

11:00 Session 2: Deployment challenges in relation to Stakeholders

Public acceptance is crucial for road pricing success. In this session, experts from the Road Pricing community will describe the challenges of informing and consulting stakeholders, particularly transport users, about the benefits of pricing.

Coordinated by Jane Lappin, Volpe National Transportation Systems Center, USA and Amy Ellen Polk, Citizant, Inc., USA

12:30 Buffet Lunch at the Fisk restaurant

13:15 Session 3: Evaluation challenges

This session will consist of presentations and discussion of Road Pricing deployment and evaluation challenges and how can these challenges be overcome. This will include a wide range of issues and all workshop attendees are invited to participate in the lively discussion that is anticipated.

Chaired and coordinated by Steve Morello, Egis Projects, France

14:45 Break

15:15 Session 4: Business case for society

This session will tackle the broad macro view of the economic and other benefits to society of road pricing and how we can tell if we are doing a “good job”.

Chaired by Kevin Borras, Thinking Highways, UK – Coordinated by Dick Mudge, Delcan, Inc., USA

16:45 Wrap-up

17:00 End of seminar

Registration Fee and Payment:

Fee: € 75 incl. taxes (approx. SEK 793 based on 5 May, 2009 exchange rates on www.xe.com).  It includes seminar materials, 3 coffee breaks and lunch at the venue restaurant.

For registration and other related event information, please contact:

Odile PIGNIER – Harmonised Events – Email: odile@harmonised-events.com

Tel: +33 (0)2 41 54 76 30 – Fax: +33 (0)2 85 52 00 08

Find more information @: www.ibec-its.org

(Source:  Stateline.org via Planetizen)

States are hoping to use federal stimulus money to add technological advancements to their streets and highways to create “smart” roads.

Not all the highway improvement projects states plan to pay for with federal stimulus money involve widening roads, fixing bridges or repaving highways. Nearly half the states plan to use some of their new funds to pay for high-tech gadgets that will reduce congestion, help the environment and create jobs quickly.

At least 22 states have told the federal government they want to make their roads “smarter” by installing traffic cameras, creating express toll lanes, improving traffic signals and alerting drivers about accidents or delays ahead, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.Such projects are “quick, they can move forward very fast, they create jobs and they’re effective in the short and long term,” said Jaime Rall, an NCSL analyst.States are under the gun to tell the federal government how they plan to use $26.7 billion in federal stimulus money for transportation. They have until June 29 to commit half of that money to specific projects, so states are focusing on projects that can get started quickly.Three-quarters of the money committed by states so far will pave or re-pave roads. Some of the money can go to passenger and freight rail efforts, too.

The Obama administration announced earlier this week that another $1.5 billion in transportation stimulus money can be used for innovative road projects.But included in the mix already are dozens of efforts to use technology to make roads function better. The “smart road” improvements include signals for on-ramps in Colorado, new E-Z Pass toll booths to allow drivers to pay without stopping in Delaware and traffic lights connected to fiber optic cable to reduce bottlenecks in Utah.

Technology improvements, in particular, have a bigger bang for the buck for the economy, the federal government points out, because more of the money goes straight to workers’ salaries. Only 20 percent of material-intense projects such as laying roads or fixing bridges typically goes to payroll, according to a January analysis by the U.S. Department of Transportation. For technology upgrades, about 50 percent goes to paychecks.