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Sample
Canadian ITS applications are provided below within the framework
of the main User Service Bundles of the ITS Architecture
for Canada. This page is intended to provide representative
samples of various intelligent transportation systems applications
and to demonstrate the breadth of current ITS deployments
in Canada. It is not intended to provide an exhaustive list
of all ITS applications in Canada. The information includes
applications of various technologies through pilot and demonstration
projects, as well as fully operational system deployments.
Below
is a snapshot of the inventory of ITS deployments as reported
at December 2003.
Inventory of ITS Deployments in Canada
1. Traveller Information Services
The
existence, depth of, and access to traveller information
by telephone across Canada varies from province to province
and territory to territory. A summary of existing services
at the federal and provincial levels is outlined in the
document below.
Current
Weather and Traveller Information Services Across Canada
(PDF)
ITS Canada has initiated an effort to establish the '511'
telephone number as an automated ìtraveller information
serviceî number in Canada. The service will be based on
Canadian content and consistency guidelines which are yet
to be developed. Harmonizing with U.S. efforts, 511 is anticipated
to become a future North American-wide corridor information
service for highway and public transportation. The service
will include basic and optional content. For more information,
visit ITS Canada's 511 web page.
2. Traffic Management Services
High
Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) Lanes – inventory of Canadian and international deployments
British
Columbia
Ramp metering – installed in Vancouver
City
of Vancouver has a traffic control centre
City
of Richmond Traffic Control Centre (Richmond, BC) houses
the traffic management system, traffic computers, specialized
software, electronic test equipment, communications cable
network hub, and multiple workstations.
TransLink’s
SkyTrain Operations and Management Centre controls and monitors
SkyTrains and the SkyTrain system.
Reversible
lane systems:
Pitt
River Bridge Reversible Lane System (Port Coquitlam, BC) – A traffic counterflow system for the Pitt River swing bridges, a system that originally included 117 signal heads, 33 traffic gates, 17 CCTV cameras, 31 custom control cabinets, and 8 changeable message signs. Lane control signals on the four lanes bridge to manage peak hour flow. Three lanes in peak direction during peak hours.
Lions
Gate Bridge Reversible Lane System (Vancouver, BC) – Lane control signals on the three lanes bridge. Two lanes in peak direction during peak hours.
George
Massey Tunnel Reversible Lane System – Lane control signals used to manage peak hour flow traffic in the four-lane tunnel. Three lanes in peak direction during peak hours.
Ontario
High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) Lanes
Ramp
Metering
COMPASS
is a high-tech Freeway Traffic Management System developed
by the Ontario Ministry of Transportation (MTO) to respond
to traffic congestion problems on urban freeways.
City of Toronto – Don Valley Corridor Transportation Master Plan
City
of Toronto – Freeway Traffic Management System (RESCU)
The purpose of the Road Emergency Services Communications
Unit (RESCU) is to significantly reduce the number and severity
of vehicular collisions on the Toronto road system (primarily
expressways) by providing early detection of incidents and
to improve the movement of people and goods by providing
accurate and timely traveller information.
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Highway 401 |
Gardiner
Expressway – Remote Traffic Information
System (RTIS) sensors |
Queen Elizabeth Highway: |
Burlington
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Halton/Peel
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Niagara
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SCOOT – Split, Cycle, Offset Optimization Technique (Toronto, Ontario)
SCOOT
is an adaptive urban traffic control system that
responds automatically to traffic fluctuations,
removing the need for signal timing plans by utilizing
a set of advance vehicle detectors typically installed
50 to 300 metres upstream from the stop line. The
advance detectors provide a count of the vehicles
approaching at each junction. This gives the system
a higher resolution picture of traffic flows and
a count of the number of vehicles in each queue,
and this information is provided several seconds
before they reach the stop line, allowing time for
communication between the traffic signal controller
and the central SCOOT computer. It also provides
exceptional queue length detection information to
the system, which is triggered when the traffic
queue backs up to the upstream detector. Under the
SCOOT system, green waves can be dynamically delayed
on a "just in time" basis, based on the
arrival of vehicles at the upstream detector, allowing
extra time to the previous green phase where warranted
in heavy traffic conditions. During morning and
afternoon traffic peaks, SCOOT assesses and manages
cycle times dramatically to assist traffic flow
fluidity along main routes by reducing the incidence
of start/stop events that might otherwise bring
traffic to a standstill.
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Centralized
Traffic Control System (CTCS) at the York Traffic Management
Centre (York Region, Ontario)
Quebec
The Ministère des transports
du Québec has developed a comprehensive system to
monitor and manage traffic in a network of highways that
includes the elevated portion of the Metropolitain Boulevard,
Highway 15-Décarie, and Highway 25 in the East. In
addition, variable message signs are used on the major highways
leading to the island of Montréal.
Montreal cameras
3. Public Transport Services
Many transit operators struggle to meet the growing needs of their riders. ITS technology in the transit arena provides sophisticated options for the vision of where and how transit technologies could migrate. With buses and trains getting smarter, new technologies, both on board the vehicles and roadside, are being applied to better serve operators as well as customers. Many technologies utilize on-board Global Positioning Systems (GPS) with Automated Vehicle Location Systems (AVL).
Examples
include:
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Light rapid transit and bus
rapid transit systems |
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Transit
signal priority that provides transit vehicles on
designated urban routes with green signals upon approach
to intersections |
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Real-time passenger information
via the Internet and other service channels |
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Electronic signs at stops and stations
that provide passengers with information on when the
next vehicle will arrive |
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Information on board vehicles –
next stop, transfer information, etc. |
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High-occupancy vehicle lanes and/or
transit-only lanes |
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Automated passenger counting systems
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Dispatch and fleet management systems,
with automatic vehicle location systems |
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Automated fare collection systems
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Interactive driver interface systems.
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Examples
of ITS deployments:
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Richmond Transit Centre (Richmond,
BC) – serves the 98-B Line |
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Urban
Transportation Showcase – Main Street, Vancouver
(PDF) |
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York
Region Viva – rapid transit
Report:
ITS Canada's July 2005 Newsletter – Regional Updates
/ Ontario |
4. Electronic Payment Services
Highway
407ETR – Just Outside Toronto
Highway
407 ETR Overview
Smart
Cards
Developed in the 1970s, smart
cards are plastic cards embedded with a computer chip.
Applications include telecommunications (GSM mobile phones,
DirecTV), financial services (electronic purses, bank cards,
online payment systems), retail, transportation and healthcare
(insurance cards) industries.
5. Commercial Vehicle Operations
Ontario
The AVION/ADVANTAGE project is
a corridor where a majority of all transborder movements
to and from the U.S. are carried. Officially opened in December
1995, the goals were to increase industry and state/provincial
productivity; improve safety; and reduce congestion. Prior
to AVION, commercial vehicles were regularly stopped to
verify permit, weight and manifest compliance causing delays
and increasing administrative paperwork for the transportation
jurisdiction, shipper, and carrier. These delays affected
the cost competitiveness of shippers and carriers alike.
With the introduction of ITS technology, transponder equipped
trucks are permitted to travel any segment along the entire
length of I-75 and Hwy 401 at mainline speeds with no more
than a single stop at the inspection station upon entering
the corridor. Throughout the corridor, the truck can then
bypass down-line inspection stations and avert unnecessary
stops.
AVL
– Vehicle Location – at Toronto International
Airport
Lester B. Pearson International Airport - Vehicle Monitoring and Control System
Asset
Management – Revenue Management Electronic Tags/Dedicated
Short Range Communications and Standards Development DSRC
– I-75 Corridor
DSRC
Marine Assets Management – Atlantic – St. Lawrence Seaway Corridor
Marine: Sailing
the St. Lawrence (DGPS)
British
Columbia
Vancouver
Port Authority Security Control Centre – A state of the art security control center that includes the installation of Canada’s largest digital video recording system to monitor the Port, 24 hours a day and 7 days a week; the reporting of suspicious activity and security incidents is now coordinated through a VPA security control center.
Weigh-in-motion
station east of the Port Mann Bridge on the Trans Canada
Highway (eastbound)
6. Emergency Management Services
The
Role of ITS in Law Enforcement and Emergency Response
The
partnership between transportation agencies and law enforcement
agencies (especially those responsible for enforcing the
traffic laws and providing first response in emergency situations)
is an important one. With the heightened focus on security
of the nation's transportation systems, the role of law
enforcement agencies has greater significance.
The
emergency service providers (fire, police, ambulance), and
their ability to respond quickly with the right resources,
are integral to the optimal operation of the ground transportation
system. ITS offers the tools for the emergency
service providers and transportation agencies to integrate
their services through the provision of appropriate real-time
information. This enables them to be more responsive, thereby
serving the public better.
A
prime example of how ITS can assist is the RESCU
program in Toronto, which provides integrated police and
transportation services from a single operations centre.
Signal pre-emption devices allow emergency vehicles to have
priority passage through intersections.
Whether stationary or mobile, sophisticated
Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) systems link license
plate readers for cars, trucks, vans, and motorcycles with
the data to assist in electronic toll collection, or help
police forces, port authorities, cross-border agencies,
and other security organizations identify criminals.
E-Comm (Emergency communications centre) – E-Comm provides emergency communication services and support systems to emergency responders and the two-million residents of southwest B.C. – the consolidated dispatch centre acts as the 9-1-1 call taking and dispatch centre for police, fire, and ambulance.
7. Vehicle Safety and Control Systems
In-vehicle
intelligent transport systems are on-board systems that
utilize information received from direct sensing (such as
radar) and/or telecommunications via the road infrastructure
or other sources. Certain ITS applications use advanced
technologies to provide in-vehicle support for reducing
the number of crashes and attendant injuries and deaths.
Other ITS applications provide in-vehicle information for
purposes other than improved safety.
Telematics
involves the management of vehicles using the road system
to improve the journey time, reliability and safety for
the vehicle, and to improve road network efficiency. Systems
include commercial vehicle applications with on-board platforms
to enable applications such as weigh-in-motion; infrastructure
integration, incorporating information systems and roadside
equipment to deliver a range of applications; smart traveller
services that provide dynamic travel information for multi-modal
operations with integration between vehicle-oriented and
other journey stages; fleet management systems that provide
monitoring and management of commercial fleet and freight
deployments; and integrated on-board communications (vehicle
to vehicle, or vehicle to infrastructure).
Initiatives
include:
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Collision avoidance
systems |
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intersection collision avoidance
obstacle detection |
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lane change assistance |
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lane departure warning (alerts the
driver of an unintended movement of the vehicle out
of a designated traffic lane by recognizing lane markings
through the use of a small camera mounted behind the
rearview mirror) |
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rollover warning |
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road departure warning |
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forward collision warning |
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rear
impact warning |
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Navigation systems |
8. Information Warehousing Services
Road
Weather Information Systems (RWIS) are automated weather
reporting stations with special sensors embedded in and
below the road, and on nearby towers. These systems collect
detailed data on weather conditions at and near the road
surface, which can assist weather forecasters in predicting
icing conditions. Transport Canada, under the Intelligent
Transportation Systems Research and Development Plan for
Canada, has identified road weather information
as a priority. R&D projects involving weather include
identifying the most useful data for road maintenance purposes,
and constructing user-friendly interfaces for traveler advisories.
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