Cross-cutting Issues

To date, most ITS deployments have focused on large metropolitan areas. Over the last few years, the Minnesota Department of Transportation (Mn/DOT) and the Minnesota Department of Public Safety’s Minnesota State Patrol (MSP) and Office of Traffic Safety (OTS) have reached out to its rural areas in an effort to extend the range of ITS benefits. These agencies are experiencing reductions in cost, improvements in safety and increases in efficiency by undertaking an initiative for deploying ITS user services across the state. As a result, Mn/DOT and the MSP have developed a strong partnership through recent tests of ITS technologies while having deployed the nine rural Transportation Operation Communication Centers (TOCCs) throughout Minnesota. This program has spanned over six years and has brought together the resources of both departments in order to provide comprehensive communication services and systems statewide.

Minnesota DOT

Presented at the ITS America Annual Conference and Exposition, May 19-22, 2003 Minneapolis, Minnesota

In the effort to respond to media inquiries for access to freeway closed circuit television (CCTV) video images, a system was developed in the Los Angeles area to demonstrate feasibility of implementing and operating such a media access system. Development of the means to implement CCTV media access evolved over a multi-year timeframe.

Both technical and institutional issues were encountered and resolved in order to bring about deployment of the system. Formal agreements were negotiated and executed to govern the terms and conditions for granting external access to the freeway CCTV video camera images. A partnership of media participants developed the technical design details and completed the system installation. An operational test period uncovered means to provide various refinements to improve the use of the system.

California Department of Transportation

Presented at the ITS America Annual Conference and Exposition, April 29 –May 2, 2002 Long Beach, California

A preliminary study revealed that Washington State Department of Transportation’s dual-loop detection system was not functioning properly. In order to identify types and severity of dual-loop errors, an in-depth evaluation on the accuracy of aggregated dual-loop data was performed. The sample dual loops were all under optimal working condition, which minimized the possibility that system failure resulted in inaccurate loop measurements. Aggregated dual-loop data were compared to video data on 20-second intervals so that errors were captured whenever they occurred with an error range of ±20 seconds. Two major errors, miscount and misclassification, were quantitatively identified; possible causes of dual-loop errors were investigated; further research directions were also recommended.

University of Washington

Presented at the ITS America Annual Conference and Exposition, May 19-22, 2003 Minneapolis, Minnesota

This paper describes the second in a series of studies to identify best locations for presenting information on an automotive head-up display (HUD). A total of 16 participants (8 under age 30, 8 over age 65) drove a simulator (at 3 controlled levels of driving workload) while responding to messages appearing at 8 locations on a HUD. Depending on the condition, participants either pressed buttons to indicate the gender (male, female) of a first name shown on the HUD or detected the appearance of a scrambled name. The overall pattern of the results was generally similar for both young and old drivers, though the driving performance of older men was better (less variable) than other age-gender groups. Their responses to HUD messages, however, were slower, and they committed more errors.

University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute

Nissan Motor Company Research Center

Presented at the ITS America Annual Conference and Exposition, June 4-7, 2001 Miami Beach, Florida

This paper focuses on the primary public-private partnership (PPP) that often is formed after public-public partnerships have been created: those that occur as a result of the deployment of Advanced Traveler Information Systems (ATIS). More specifically, the private partner can play a variety of roles that range from efforts that remain almost separate from public efforts to collect, fuse and disseminate data to those in which the private partner is hired to perform all ATIS related functions. Whether or not these partnerships are successful or effective has been difficult to assess in most metropolitan areas where deployment has already occurred. In general, using the criteria of numbers of users that subscribe to customized or specialized ATIS services, low numbers of users indicate a decided lack of success in many instances.

Department of Public Administration: University of Central Florida

Presented at the ITS America Annual Conference and Exposition, June 4-7, 2001 Miami Beach, Florida