Personal Mobility

In recent years, road traffic environments, which enable further safe and comfortable
driving, have been needed to create through road maintenance and improvement with
consideration given to a variety of people and, consequently, there has been a rapid
increase of necessity to provide rest facilities on roads. On the other hand, for regional
improvements in each region, information provision and forums of people have been
required to provide, thus setting up “road stations” in each region. This research started
with the analysis of data on road stations throughout the nation and then that across the
whole Kinki Region. Furthermore, in order to perform analyses on regional characteristics,
for three stations located in North Hyogo Region as road station in a specific region,
analyses of users’ awareness of the road station were performed through a questionnaire
survey. According to results of these analyses, this research paper recommends the
desirable future of the road station. The functions of the road station include “function of
rest station” for road users, “function of information exchanges” for road users and local
residents, and “function of regional alliances” by which towns partner with each other to
create a vibrant region with the road station as a start.

Osaka Sangyo University

Presented at the 12th World Congress on Intelligent Transport Systems, November 6-10, 2005, San Francisco, California

Floating car- and loop detector-based methods are two different methods that are
most frequently employed to collect travel time delay information across a freeway network.
More often than not, these two methods are jointly used to achieve the necessary freeway
network coverage, because of either the high labor costs of the floating car-based method or the
dependence of the availability of sufficient freeway network instrumentation of the loop
detector-based method. For example, both floating car- and loop detector-based methods are
implemented in the Highway Congestion Monitoring Program in the California Department of
Transportation. This situation makes it necessary to evaluate the compatibility in terms of
estimation accuracy between these two different data collection methods. In this paper, the
compatibility between these two methods was empirically evaluated. Corresponding delay
information estimated using both methods from 37 freeway segments in the Greater Sacramento
Area were collected and analyzed. It was found that the loop detector-based method is able to
estimate very similar delay to that as estimated by the floating car-based method, as long as the
later is enhanced by the real time loop-detector measured traffic flow information. The average
difference is less than six percent (6%) when delay is defined using a reference speed of 60 mph
or higher. It was also found that a one-mile spacing of loop detectors and 15-minute floating car
interval were sufficient to achieve such compatibility. This research supported that loop
detector-based method might be a more cost-effective choice for travel time delay data
collection if the freeway system is sufficiently instrumented.

California Department of Transportation

Villanova University

Presented at the 12th World Congress on Intelligent Transport Systems, November 6-10, 2005, San Francisco, California

Dynamic message signs (DMS) are used to communicate accurate, timely, and pertinent
information to travelers on roadways. This information helps travelers avoid hazards or delays
and respond properly to changing roadway conditions. In an ideal environment, the state
transportation departments would be able to allocate DMS to various areas of the state based
upon changing needs. The location of each sign would be monitored, and the message could be
controlled and checked remotely.
Unfortunately, there are problems standing in the way of reaching this ideal situation. The
Kentucky Transportation Cabinet initiated a research project to identify and address these
problems. The research project included collecting an inventory of the DMS in the state,
reviewing policies of other states and organizations, and identifying needs and issues with regard
to management and use of the signs using a focus group session. All this information was used
to develop recommendations for ways to improve the management and use of the DMS.

University of Kentucky

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

This paper will present the conclusions of the ITS Integration Plan developed for the Gateway Cities, which is
comprised of 27 cities in southeast Los Angeles county and the Port of Long Beach. This Integration Plan is unique
because it has a heavy emphasis on goods movement and the private sector as a critical partner in developing solutions
that will be effective. The focus of the paper is on the importance of the private sector in public sector plans. The
partnership of the public and private sector is critical to implementing and operating systems that benefit both the
Goods Movement industry and the public sector.

California Department of Transportation

Kimley-Horn and Associates, Inc.

Gateway Cities Council of Governments

Presented at the 15th World Congress on Intelligent Transport Systems, November 16-20, 2008, New York, New York

This article presents an express lane network concept called “High Occupancy
Vehicle-Credit” or HOT-C lanes that could be implemented in a short period of time.  A network of free-flowing express lanes would be created by re-striping freeways to convert the left general-purpose lane(s) into HOT-C lanes during rush hours and creating a dynamic shoulder lane on the right side to replace the converted left general-purpose lane.  To gain public acceptance, a limited quota of credits would be made available to all employees in the
metropolitan area for free use of the lanes during rush hours.

Federal Highway Administration

Presented at the 15th World Congress on Intelligent Transport Systems, November 16-20, 2008, New York, New York