This
newsletter is available online in an Adobe Acrobat Reader
PDF
file (297k). You can view it using the Reader
plugin for your browser and/or download it for viewing
offline. Free Reader software is available at the Adobe
Systems Incorporated Website.
ITS CANADA AWARDS 2007 MICHEL VAN AERDE MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP
FOR GRADUATE STUDY IN ITS
By
William Johnson, TRENDS
ITS Canada’s Education
and Training Committee is pleased to announce the
recipient of ITS Canada's Michel Van Aerde Memorial
Scholarship for 2007. The award of $5,000 is made
through a competitive process to a student registered
full-time in a graduate studies program related to
intelligent transportation systems at a Canadian university.
Mohamed
Wahba of the University of Toronto is the
successful winner of the award for 2007. The Review
Committee made its selection based on his strong academic
record, clearly stated goals, demonstrated understanding
of ITS and strong letters of recommendation.
Mohamed
is a graduate student for the Ph.D. degree in Transportation
Engineering at the Department of Civil Engineering,
University of Toronto. He demonstrated in his application
an outstanding academic record, with degrees in Science
(Cairo – B.Sc. in Operations Research), Management
Sciences (Cambridge – M.Phil.) and Transportation
Engineering (Toronto – M.Sc.) He has demonstrated
innovative thinking in his research on transit system
analysis, has gained research and field experience
in ITS applications, and demonstrated in his written
submission an understanding of the role of ITS in
transportation.
The
Review Committee was impressed with his letters of
recommendation and with the indications of his teaching
and mentoring skills. His Masters thesis topic at
Toronto was “A New Framework for the Transit
Assignment Problem: A Multi-Agent Learning-Based Approach”,
which formed the basis of several of his conference
papers.
ITS
Canada extends congratulations to Mohamed and wishes
him every success in his graduate studies.
We
thank all the candidates who competed for the 2007
award, and invite potential applicants to watch the
website for future scholarship opportunities.
www.itscanada.ca/english/scholarships.htm
INDUSTRY
OPPORTUNITIES IN SOUTH AFRICA
The
Johannesburg Roads Agency (JRA) is beginning the implementation
of an extensive transport plan in preparation for
the 2010 soccer World Cup. Intelligent transport systems
form the foundation of the City's plan that will see
a proposed R350 million spent on a number of key transport
projects. For this financial year, about R54.6 million,
funded by the City of Johannesburg, will go toward
the initiation of some of these advanced traffic management
systems projects. For the next financial year, R190
million, funded by the Department of Transport, has
been allocated.
JRA
operations manager for network mobility Peter Filbey
explains that it is necessary to first optimize the
efficiency of the existing basic transport infrastructure.
This refers specifically to traffic signals (traffic
lights) in the City that are often the cause of congestion
owing to power outages or general equipment failure.
Filbey says that, for the past six months, a pilot
project has been running whereby traffic signals at
key intersections have been equipped with uninterruptible
power supplies. Two models have been tested, one providing
battery power for 2 hours and the other for 12 hours.
About
R8 million is also being spent on traffic signals
for the conversion of conventional lights to light-emitting
diodes (LEDs). Filbey explains that the LEDs, which
will soon be implemented across the City, are brighter
and use about 60 percent less energy than traditional
lights. He adds that although the initial spend is
higher, it will cut the energy bill for running the
lights by up to 50 percent.
After
dealing with basic infrastructure, the plan covers
more advanced transport systems. In July, construction
will start on a new traffic management centre (TMC),
located in Martindale. The TMC will accommodate the
central computers required to support the ITS elements
and its operators. Filbey comments that it will function
as a control room for all the ITS, and will also enable
operators to view the real-time footage gathered by
the closed-circuit television cameras along the road
network.
Members
of the JRA, the Johannesburg Metropolitan Police Department,
the emergency services and disaster management personnel
will be stationed at the centre. Filbey notes that
the most important focus of the plans leading up to
2010 is the provision of efficient, safe and reliable
public transport systems in Johannesburg.
A
number of ITS projects will be implemented in the
development of public transport. Advanced public transport
management systems (APTMS) will be implemented between
March 2008 and August 2009. In conjunction with this
project, the advanced traveller information systems
(ATIS) project will run from February next year to
the end of January 2010. The APTMS is aimed at enhancing
the efficiency of public transport fleets and creating
a positive user experience through the provision of
information and an effective fare collection system.
The ATIS involves providing information to travellers
through the Internet, variable-message signs and different
forms of media. Through these projects, travellers
will have access to an intermodal journey planner.
On a dedicated website, an individual will be able
to put in a destination and receive information regarding
the bus and Gautrain schedules and which modes to
use. The user will then be able to plan a trip and
have an accurate indication of how long the journey
will take.
The
bus rapid transit system will also benefit from ITS.
A real-time passenger information system will give
passengers access to the bus schedule with arrival
and departure times. Cameras will be installed on
buses and at the bus stops to facilitate the provision
of the real-time information.
The
efficiency of the bus system will be further augmented
by the implementation of an intersection priority
control system. The system will be linked to the traffic
signals, enabling operators to coordinate signals
to allow buses the right of way and ensure that the
signals are green at the intersections along their
routes. A headway system will also be put in place
to internally manage the buses. It will identify the
distance between buses and the number of passengers
on board, and will determine which vehicle needs priority.
Reprinted
with permission from Creamer Media’s Engineering
News – www.engineeringnews.co.za
TREMENDOUS
POTENTIAL FOR ATMS IN WESTERN EUROPE
Advanced
traffic management systems (ATMS) are receiving considerable
attention across Western Europe, particularly given
surging traffic congestion and pollution levels. While
the UK, France and Germany together account for around
63 percent of total market share at present, future
revenues will come primarily from Scandinavia, Greece,
Portugal, Italy and Spain. This is because these markets
are growing rapidly, as they focus ever more intensely
on improving traffic management activities.
New
analysis from Frost & Sullivan, Strategic Analysis
of Advanced Traffic Management Systems in Western
Europe, reveals that revenues in this market totalled
US$884.79 million in 2006, and are likely to reach
$1,216.32 million in 2015 due to significant advances
in processing technologies for video detection and
rising congestion in urban and interurban areas.
"Rising
congestion levels on road networks are creating plenty
of scope for advanced traffic management systems in
Western Europe," notes Frost & Sullivan research
analyst Sraavani Dodletti. "Traffic volumes have
been on the rise despite the implementation of congestion
charging schemes, forcing government authorities to
implement traffic management systems as a means of
reducing journey times and cutting costs."
In
addition, increased investment by the Trans European
network (TEN) in the traffic sector is leading to
growth and development in the ATMS market. The total
investment made by TEN ranges from US$1 billion to
$2 billion, and six European projects have been selected
to drive forward this growth and development. These
projects span 14 member states in Europe, and involve
major national and regional traffic authorities and
operators.
As
regards market trends, there is an increasing shift
from loop detectors to overhead detection systems.
Overhead detectors have proven themselves to be effective
alternatives to inductive loop detectors, since traffic
flow patterns measured with these non-intrusive sensors
meet the accuracy requirements of a large number of
trunk-road applications. Aside from this, the video
detection market is an emerging market, which is steadily
gaining pace, and is witnessing significant advances
in technology related to improving the processing
power and flexibility of applications.
However,
despite all these positive aspects, budgetary constraints
remain a major impediment to the further uptake of
advanced traffic management systems. Given their limited
budgets, local authorities are less likely to experiment
with new measures that have not yet been tried and
tested in the field.
"Given
the enormous scope for revenue generation in the traffic
sector, it is essential that the government and public
authorities recognize the importance of increasing
budgetary allocations for the traffic industry,"
says Sraavani. "This will in turn encourage more
companies to create new technologies through research
and development."
Government
and public authorities can increase their budget allocation
through revenues from congestion charging and toll
collection schemes. This will increase budgets for
the traffic management industry. Increased budgets
are also available through strategic partnerships
with private companies.
Strategic
Analysis of Advanced Traffic Management Systems in
Western Europe is part of the Automotive and Transportation
Growth Partnership Service program.
Reprinted
with permission from ITS International
ITS
CANADA SUPPORTS USE OF 5858 5925 MHZ BAND FOR ITS DSRC
The next breakthroughs in
ITS will be based on wireless telecommunications between
vehicles, and between vehicles and the roadside. A
key component of this will be the use of Dedicated
Short Range Communications (DSRC) to make transportation
infrastructure “intelligent”. This approach
is expected to result in the highest level of road
safety, efficiency and travel convenience benefits
that should be achievable with such systems.
Making
infrastructure intelligent is currently a priority
undertaking in the United States, where the Vehicle
Infrastructure Integration (VII) initiative is working
to deploy advanced vehicle-vehicle and vehicle-infrastructure
communications that could keep vehicles from leaving
the road and enhance their safe movement through intersections.
U.S. automobile manufacturers are investing heavily
in VII in cooperation with the U.S. federal government.
There
are a wide range of safety applications suitable for
DSRC, including adaptive cruise control, intersection
collision avoidance, lane departure alerts, incident
detection and notification, approaching emergency
vehicle warning, braking information sent to surrounding
vehicles, lane changing assistance, road works warning,
adaptive lighting, etc.
There
is also the possibility of “train-to-vehicle”
and “grade crossing-to-vehicle” communications
for grade crossing collision avoidance applications,
particularly for road-rail crossings not equipped
with automatic crossing warning systems. “Crossing-to-vehicle”
communication may also offer a solution for an alternate
route if it is suspected that the crossing may be
occupied by a train for a long period of time. Given
that trains are unable to stop in a short distance,
trains and crossings should be classified as “public
safety”.
At
a recent meeting of the World Road Association (PIARC),
both VII and a parallel European initiative called
the Cooperative Vehicle-Highway Systems (CVHS) were
discussed. The general sentiment at the meeting was
not ‘if’ intelligent infrastructure was
coming, but ‘when’.
Transport
Canada has been an active participant in the process
of assigning the 5858 5925 MHz band to ITS applications.
ITS
Canada has submitted a letter of support to Industry
Canada regarding the proposed spectrum utilization
policy, technical and licensing requirements to introduce
dedicated short-range communications-based intelligent
transportation systems applications in the band 5850-5925
MHz. The proposal can be found on Industry Canada's
website at: http://strategis.ic.gc.ca/epic/site/smt-gst.nsf/en/sf08744e.html.
ITS
applications using DSRC offer a number of benefits
that fall within key transportation objectives. Since
a continuing priority is the safety of the transportation
network, the use of DSRC for ITS applications is strongly
supported because of the safety applications this
would enable. While it is not Industry Canada’s
intent to provide an exhaustive list of all ITS applications
using DSRC, ITS Canada supports an emphasis on safety
as a primary driver of the designation of the band
for ITS applications.
Transportation
goals also often include improving the efficiency
of the transportation network, helping to reduce congestion,
and mitigating the negative effects of transportation
on the environment. ITS that use DSRC can also contribute
to these priorities.
ITS
Canada supports the use of the 5850-5925 MHz band
for these applications and other commercial uses such
as electronic tolling and traveller information.
Finally,
it is very important that the Canadian spectrum utilization
policy for ITS be harmonized with the U.S. This implies
identical standards for the equipment and its operating
software. The continental mobility of travellers requires
that DSRC-accessed ITS services available to Canadian
motorists should also be available in the U.S. and
vice versa, implying that all On-board Units (OBUs)
should be able to communicate with all Roadside Units
(RSUs) in both countries. Again, this is a safety
consideration so that travellers do not lose the safety
benefits of their DSRC-based equipment. In addition,
automobiles sold in Canada are designed for the U.S.
market, so intelligent infrastructure initiatives
in Canada will inevitably need to closely parallel
the U.S. initiative. Anything that may jeopardize
the complete cross-border compatibility of the system
should be avoided.
ITS
Canada supports the use of the American Society for
Testing and Materials (ASTM)-DSRC standards, to ensure
that Canadian equipment will be interoperable with
U.S. equipment. ASTM has already been adopted in Canada
for other applications. Furthermore, ITS applications
operated by government entities in Canada can benefit
from lower procurement and operating costs when standardized
equipment can be sourced from and supported by a variety
of competing suppliers.
Should
you have any questions, please contact Colin Rayman,
ITS Canada’s General Manager, at colin.rayman@itscanada.ca.
NEWS
bITS
New U.S. Publications
Available
ITS/Operations Resource Guide 2007
(U.S. Department of Transportation)
Contains
a compilation of over 400 documents, videos, Websites,
training courses, software tools, and points-of-contact
related to ITS and transportation operations. Visit:
www.resourceguide.its.dot.gov.
Weather Applications and Products Enabled
Through Vehicle Infrastructure Integration (VII)
– Feasibility and Concept Development Study
(U.S. Federal Highways Administration)
This
document examines current and future vehicle data
elements that have the potential to be used directly
or indirectly to sense weather and road conditions.
VII involves the two-way wireless transmission of
data from vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-infrastructure
utilizing Dedicated Short Range Communications (DSRC).
VII
will enable the development of weather-related products
and applications designed to improve safety and
increase mobility and efficiency along the nation's
roadways. The potential contribution of VII-derived
atmospheric and road condition information in the
analysis and prediction of weather-related hazards
is also explored. To make effective use of mobile
data for weather-related applications, it is necessary
to invest in research to understand issues associated
with current and anticipated data elements; therefore,
VII-related research and development topics are
surveyed, as well as the feasibility of utilizing
VII-enabled data to mitigate the impact of road
weather-related hazards. Visit: www.ops.fhwa.dot.gov/publications/viirpt/index.htm.
MEMBERS
IN THE NEWS
ITS
Canada Welcomes New Member
SUSTAINING
CORPORATE
Johny Tiedown
Responding
to client demand for even greater orientation accuracy
and superior performance in areas where Global Positioning
System (GPS) coverage may be limited, Applanix
has announced the launch the POS LV 610, a turn-key
solution designed for the specific needs of mobile
mapping service providers and engineering/survey professionals.
The first Applanix POS LV 610 unit has already been
purchased by Toyota Central R&D Labs Inc. for
use in vehicle dynamics reference data gathering to
better study vehicle motion and road positioning.
Applanix POS LV units are used around the world for
a variety of applications, including advanced vehicle
design research and engineering, roadway geometry
surveying and pavement inspection, mobile mapping
operations for road and rail right-of-ways and robotic
vehicle automation. For more information, visit www.applanix.com.
Daktronics
has been awarded a project to engineer, manufacture
and provide walk-in dynamic message signs (DMS) for
use by the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT)
on freeways near Columbus, as part of a US$8 million
ITS improvement. ODOT has purchased 12 full-matrix
Vanguard® walk-in signs with the latest in light
emitting diode (LED) technology, providing reliability
and allowing easier access for service and maintenance
inside the sign cabinet. The full-matrix capabilities
of the sign allow the combination of graphics and
text to effectively communicate important traffic
information to motorists. The signs are controlled
by the Daktronics VFC-3000 sign controller. ODOT will
use the signs to display traveller information and
AMBER Alerts.
Delcan’s
California Department of Transportation’s (Caltrans)
District 7 project to relocate the existing Traffic
Management Center (TMC) to the new Los Angeles Regional
Transportation Management Center (LARTMC) was awarded
the “Best of ITS” award under the Partnership
Deployment category. The award was presented at ITS
America’s Annual Meeting & Exposition in
Palm Springs, California, in June 2007. Delcan developed
and implemented the plans to transfer operational
systems from the existing TMC in Los Angeles to the
new LARTMC, as well as upgraded the existing Advanced
Transportation Management System (ATMS) software to
a new web-based ATMS system. The Delcan team provided
operational and system requirements to the architectural
design firm so that the building design properly reflected
the spacing, electrical, HVAC, cabling and communications
needs of the TMC’s operations. Delcan’s
plan minimized and, in most cases, eliminated system
downtime. For more information, visit www.delcan.com.
Telvent
has been awarded two contracts for the deployment
of the electronic National ID (NID) system in Spain.
Valued at more than 30 million euros, under the project
all Spanish citizens will have a high-security document
that includes both the physical and digital identity
of the holder. Using the card, Spaniards will be able
to securely access a wide range of services, including
transactions with government agencies, financial institutions
and Internet purchases. Telvent will supply personalization
systems for the electronic NID, specifically the hardware
and software required for laser recording of citizens’
personal data on their NID cards. The electronic NID
system is expected to be available throughout Spain
by the end of 2007, and complements Telvent’s
recently completed project for electronic verification
of identification documents at Spanish border check-points.
UPCOMING
EVENTS
| 2007 |
| |
Asia Traffic
July 9 to 12, 2007 – Singapore
www.asia-traffic.com |
| |
ITE 2007 Annual Meeting
and Exhibition
August 5 to 8, 2007 – Pittsburg, PA
www.ite.org |
| |
23rd World Road Congress
(PIARC)
September 17 to 21, 2007 – Paris, France
www.paris2007-route.fr |
| |
Vll Congreso Espanol ITS
September 18 to 20, 2007 – Valencia, Spain
www.itsspain.com |
| |
6th Chilean ITS Congress
September 26 to 28, 2007 – Santiago, Chile
www.itschile.cl |
| |
Trafic
October 2 to 5, 2007 – Madrid, Spain
www.trafic.ifema.es |
| |
75th IBTTA Annual Meeting
and Exposition
October 6 to 10, 2007 – Vienna, Austria
www.ibtta.org |
| |
National Rural ITS Conference
October 7 to 10, 2007 – Traverse City, MI
www.nritsconference.org |
| |
|
14th
World Congress on ITS
October 9 to 13, 2007 – Beijing, China
www.itsa.org |
| |
Intertraffic
North America
October 10 to 12, 2007 – Fort Lauderdale,
Florida
www.intertraffic.com |
| |
TAC
Annual Conference and Exhibition
October 14 to 17, 2007 – Saskatoon, SK
www.tac-atc.ca |
| |
CUTA
Fall Conference and Trans-Expo 2007
November 10 to 14, 2007 – Québec,
QC
www.cutaactu.ca
|
| |
Gulf Traffic
Exhibition and Conference
December 10 to 12, 2007 – Dubai, UAE
www.gulftraffic.com |
| |
| 2008 |
|
ITS CANADA ANNUAL CONFERENCE AND GENERAL
MEETING 2008
Montreal ~ Quebec ~ Canada
www.itscanada.ca/montreal2008 |
| |
15th World
Congress on ITS and ITS America’s 2008 Annual
Meeting & Exposition
November 17 to 20, 2008 – New York, NY
www.itsa.org/worldcongress.html |
Newsletter
published by ITS Canada.
Submissions
or comments can be emailed to askus@itscanada.ca.
|
ITS/Operations Resource Guide 2007 (U.S.
Department of Transportation) 