SEPTEMBER 2005
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511 IN CANADA
By Paul Frigon, Coordinator, Canada 511 Consortium
The application to the CRTC for a 511 service is progressing well. Some concern was generated in August when the CRTC process was expanded to include "interrogatories", at the request of a telecommunications company. The interrogatories provide an opportunity for more detailed questions to be asked.
The Canada 511 Consortium received a total of 17 questions from two telcos (Bell and MTS Allstream). They were successfully addressed and the process is proceeding. The Interrogatories and Responses can be found in Section 4(d) and Section 5 at the following CRTC web address: www.crtc.gc.ca/PartVII/eng/2005/8698/c12_200506719.htm#2d.
The revised CRTC schedule, due to the interrogatories, is:
- Comments are to be submitted by any party by September 19
- Responses, by the 511 Consortium, by October 10
- Await CRTC decision.
At the TAC Annual Conference on September 20, 2005, ITS Canada led a panel discussion on 511 and deployments in North America. Participants from Canada included Denis Paquette, Environment Canada; Gerry Chaput, Ontario Ministry of Transportation (MTO); and Nancy Lynch, New Brunswick Department of Transportation.
Also participating were special guests from the U.S.A.: Ms. Brandi Hamilton from the State of Montana, and Mr. Scott Cowherd from the State of Virginia, at the same time representing the 511 Deployment Coalition and the I-95 Coalition, respectively. Their experiences and insights were much appreciated. Ms. Hamilton is particularly interested in "amber alerts", and would like to hear from any ITS Canada members, or Canadian jurisdictions, on this subject.
Presentations from the TAC 511 Panel Session can be viewed at the ITS Canada website at www.itscanada.ca/english/project511.htm.
REPORTS FROM ITS CANADA’S COMMITTEES
MEMBER SERVICES COMMITTEE
By Doug Mackay, Committee Chair
The Member Services Committee is very active, with a dedicated group of participants who, during this period, typically met by teleconference on a monthly basis to pursue Committee issues and work items. The Committee regularly makes minutes of meetings available through the website in order to keep members apprised of ongoing activities.
The Member Services Committee is responsible to:
- develop strategic direction and policy with regard to member services for approval by the Executive Committee and the Board of Directors
- develop an annual action plan with the associated budget for approval by the Executive Committee
- monitor the delivery of elements of the action plan and budget, and report to the Executive Committee
- provide direction and assign tasks to staff as appropriate.
Committee participants include:
- Doug MacKay, Regional Municipality of Durham (Chair)
- Paul Frigon, PSR Group
- William Johnson, TRENDS
- Keenan Kitasaka, TransLink
- Tim Schnarr, Delcan Corporation
- Bernard Champoux, University of Saskatchewan.
ITS Canada’s Secretariat has participated in all meetings and taken minutes. ITS Canada’s General Manager attends meetings upon request of the Chair.
Activities and accomplishments from fall 2004 to May 2005 include:
- Preparation and submission of the Committee’s budget for the 2005-2006 fiscal period, completed in March 2005.
- Following the Board’s approval of the Member Services Committee’s recommendation to increase fees, renewal invoices were issued in May 2005. There has generally been very little resistance to the fee increase. The primary reasons to raise membership fees for the Corporate membership level were to reflect a mature Society and to reduce the difference in fee levels between the Corporate and Sustaining Corporate level.
- A Member Services Committee meeting was held in Quebec City to allow attendees at the Annual Conference the opportunity to participate in the Committee.
- The Member Services Committee organized a table at the Annual Conference to allow ITS Canada committees to provide information and pertinent documentation to delegates.
- An outline of work items to consider in order to develop a Marketing Plan for the Society has been completed. It was agreed that, once the Board completes the update to the Strategic Plan, the Member Services Committee and the General Manager (perhaps in conjunction with other ITS Canada committees) could then begin work towards the development of a formal Marketing Plan that links to the Strategic Plan.
- A proposal for a Policy Workshop was developed and submitted to the Executive Committee for approval.
- The website is a key contributor to member services. Specific accomplishments related to the website include:
- Posting of RFPs and employment opportunities was implemented in early 2005, and e-mails to notify members regarding these activities were discontinued in an effort to reduce overall e-mail to members. However, there is been very little web access on the new pages.
In July 2005, the Executive Committee directed that e-mails be re-instated to notify members regarding postings. The Secretariat has been actively contacting Corporate and Sustaining Corporate members who are advertising ITS-related positions in the newspaper, to encourage them to use the employment posting web page. This has increased the profile of this service, and has generated additional revenue for the Society.
- The Fee and Benefits Structure, a chart that summarizes member services for each level of membership, was updated to reflect the latest benefits available to members. This chart is available on the website to assist potential members in determining the optimum level of membership for their needs.
- A new web page has been implemented that lists all Corporate and Sustaining Corporate members, in alphabetical order, with a link to their website, accessible by all site visitors. Sustaining Corporate members enjoy a higher profile as their logo is also displayed.
- The PDF of the Corporate Members Directory, available online, now sports a new front-page graphic that includes a variety of ITS deployments. Thanks to TransLink for developing this graphic at no charge to ITS Canada. Changes to provide a higher profile for Sustaining Corporate members were also implemented. The PDF is updated and reloaded to the website on a monthly basis.
- Translating the website to French, both the current/static website and dynamic requirements, is at a standstill pending resolution of discrepancies between work completed and expected for translation of the existing website. Once this is complete, the General Manager will arrange to issue a Call for Proposals to provide dynamic translation.
- The Website Approach document continues to be updated as required. The Member Services Committee considers the Website Approach as ITS Canada’s guidance and advice on the operation of the website.
Upcoming Activities
- Work on the Marketing Plan and update of materials to recruit new members is expected to proceed (with Board concurrence).
- To support a targeted recruitment campaign for municipalities, the Executive Committee has approved three articles to be published through the newsletter. The subjects will likely include an overview of ITS, a review of transit applications, and cost/benefits (or perhaps traffic management), and would use materials from discussion papers from ATLANTIC as well as other sources. This work is currently in progress, under the direction of William Johnson.
- The website’s ITS glossary/acronym list is under review.
- The Committee will revisit the idea of creating a Deployment Database, using as a base the report created by the University of Waterloo.
The activities considered and accomplished by the Member Services Committee take a great deal of time and effort, and would not be possible without the dedication and hard work of the Committee members. The contribution to the Society by these volunteers should be commended.
See the October newsletter for the Architecture and Standards Committee report.
EDUCATION AND TRAINING COMMITTEE
By William Johnson, Committee Chair
The Education and Training Committee is dedicated to raising awareness of ITS in general and in particular in the academic community, and in organizing training activities related to ITS. The Committee is responsible for overseeing scholarship awards and travel subsidies and for training related to the Canadian ITS architecture. Both these activities require the Committee to coordinate with other ITS Canada committees as well as other professional societies.
The Committee Chair is William Johnson (johnswf@attglobal.net) and the Vice Chair is Ahmad Radmanesh (aradmanesh@calgary.ca), both members of the ITS Canada Board of Directors.
ITS Canada is very proud of its annual scholarship award in memory of Michel Van Aerde, a founding member of ITS Canada and an accomplished academic and leader in ITS research. For 2005, the Education and Training Committee is pleased that the scholarship award has gone to Mark Gunter, a graduate student at the University of New Brunswick and a researcher at UNB’s National Centre for Rural ITS Research. Mark will be continuing his studies at UNB and we look forward to following him as his career progresses.
The Education and Training Committee is pleased to report that it has undertaken a number of other activities since February 2005, including:
- Participating in the TAC Education Council – the Chair of the Education and Training Committee represented ITS Canada at the TAC Council meeting on June 20, 2005. The Council work priorities are:
- Student needs and opportunities, such as a session for student papers at the TAC Conference.
- Succession Planning Primer for which TAC is now seeking funding partners.
- Discussing options for coordinating scholarship competitions with the TAC Foundation, a registered charity to support transportation education and research in Canada; it has been agreed to investigate a partnership with the TAC Foundation to coordinate advertising of the MVA Scholarship in parallel with TAC Foundation scholarships; ITS Canada will retain full responsibility for the MVA Scholarship including funding, review, awards ceremony and administration costs, but will gain profile and potentially more applicants.
- Presenting a proposal to the Board for a three-year program of course and workshop sessions aimed at developing regional knowledge and expertise related to the Canadian ITS architecture; this is expected to form the basis for the future plans of the Committee.
- Met informally over lunch with interested ITS Canada members at the 2005 Annual Conference in Quebec City to exchange information and ideas.
- Began work on an article on "ITS for municipalities" for publication later this year.
The Education and Training Committee is planning new activities for the coming year. These include plans for a series of ITS training workshops that will emphasize regional perspectives and system integration. They will be open to government, private sector and academic participants.
ITS Canada members who would like to participate in future activities of the Education and Training Committee are invited to contact the Chair or the Vice Chair for further information and to discuss your contribution. Your participation would be most welcome as collaborators in the conduct of the planned series of training workshops. We look forward to hearing from you.
TRAFFIC OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT AND SAFETY COMMITTEE
By Ahmad Radmanesh, Committee Chair
The role of this committee is to act as liaison to the TAC Traffic Operations and Management Standing Committee (TOMSC) and the Road Safety Standing Committee. The purpose is to coordinate representative ITS Canada views and priorities in order to advance the interests of ITS Canada on these two TAC committees, and to inform ITS Canada members of the activities of these committees.
- De-briefed previous Chair (Milt Harmelink) on the activities and status of the "ITS Design Guide for Traffic Management" (ITSDGTM).
- Mr. Harmelink communicated with Dave McCusker (Chair of TAC-TOMSC Committee) on June 20, 2005, via e-mail and tendered his resignation as ITS Canada’s representative on this committee. He informed Mr. McCusker that Ahmad Radmanesh was appointed as his replacement during ITS Canada’s Board meeting held in Quebec City in May 2005.
- Communicated with ITS Canada’s General Manager regarding the committed level of funding to this project so far, options for going forward and other potential sources of funds for the project.
- Developed a Business Case for the City of Calgary to join this project as the eighth committed member. The other seven are Alberta Infrastructure & Transportation, Ministry of Transportation of Ontario (MTO), Ministry of Transportation of Quebec (MTQ), City of Edmonton, City of Ottawa, City of Winnipeg and Town of Oakville.
- ITS Canada has also become a committed member. This brings the total to nine organizations. No decision has yet been made on who will be ITS Canada’s representative on the Project Steering Committee (yet to be formally formed).
- The Project Steering Committee (PSC) may hold its first meeting during the TAC conference in Calgary (September 18-21, 2005). Assuming it does so, the PSC will elect a Chairman and will review the scope document produced by Mr. Harmelink. The document is titled "ITS Design Guide for Traffic Management – Proposed Project Terms of Reference (Draft 2, 2004.08.27)". The PSC may choose to adopt this document as is, reject it and start fresh, or change it as they see fit to define the project scope and the Terms of Reference.
- TAC’s website currently shows this project as "In progress" with a start date of August 2005. The URL for TAC information about this project is http://tac-atc.ca/english/projectsandpublications/pro-progress.cfm#its.
The Committee plans to continue working as ITS Canada’s representative on TAC-TOMSC on issues of mutual interest.
A service award was presented to Milt Harmelink at ITS Canada’s Board of Directors meeting held September 9, 2005. On behalf of the Board, Chairman Joseph Lam made the presentation, thanking Milt for his many years of contribution not only to the Society, but to the ITS industry in Canada. "Milt is one of the pioneers of ITS Canada and, for many years, he has contributed a substantial amount of his time to help ITS Canada prosper," said Joe.
Joseph Lam, Chair (left), presents award to Milt Harmelink
WELCOME NEW ITS CANADA MEMBER
University of British Columbia
ITS LESSONS LEARNED
The ITS Joint Program Office has published a searchable ITS Lessons Learned Database. A "lesson learned" is the knowledge gained through experience or study. It is a reflection on what was done right, what could be done differently, and how to be more effective in the future. The following are the project’s major objectives:
- Capture experiences of stakeholders in their planning, deployment, operations, maintenance, and evaluation of ITS.
- Provide all ITS stakeholders with convenient access to the lessons learned knowledge so that they can make informed decisions in their future ITS actions.
The ITS Lessons Learned Database is now available online, accessible as a resource from the ITS JPO website at www.itslessons.its.dot.gov. Users can browse the database by:
- Lesson category (e.g., design and deployment, management and operation, etc.)
- Application area (incident management, traveller information, etc.)
- Goal area (safety, efficiency, etc.)
- Location (by state or country).
As an example, under "What’s New", the following represents a sampling of recent lesson entries specific to an Advanced Traveller Information System (ATIS) implemented in the Seattle area. Full details are available for each lesson listed below:
- Develop long-range plans to ensure the success and continuity of advanced traveller information systems
- Use an appropriate procurement mechanism to support the implementation of multiple advanced traveller information technologies
- Involve the private sector in the implementation of multiple advanced traveller information technologies
- Understand system standards and protocols to save time during the development of an ATIS.
Visit the site for full details.
MEMBERS IN THE NEWS
On August 25, 2005, the Texas Department of Transportation and the Texas Transportation Commission approved Raytheon as the prime contractor to develop, build and maintain open-road toll collection systems in Texas. Once implemented, Texas' open road tolling system will include the most advanced technology in the world, and will facilitate convenient and safe travel for millions of drivers throughout the state. Canadian Raytheon staff participated in the proposal, showcasing Toronto’s Highway 407, and they will play a significant role in the supply of toll systems in Texas over the next five to eight years.
On September 12, 2005, International Road Dynamics Inc. (IRD) announced that it has received a contract from Asian Traffic Technologies (ATT) in Dhaka, to supply four Weigh-in-Motion (WIM) systems to the Roads and Highways Department of the government of Bangladesh. Each WIM system is a combination of High Speed (HSWIM) and Slow Speed (SSWIM) scales integrated with enforcement cameras and traffic control signaling. The contract is valued at approximately CAD$600,000.
On September 15, IRD announced it has received a contract from T.M.S. Engineering Co., Ltd, in Bangkok, Thailand, to supply six Weigh-in-Motion (WIM) Pre-Screening Systems to the Department of Highways of the Government of Thailand. Each WIM system consists of IRD’s Single Load Cell (SLC) high speed WIM scales and sensors integrated with enforcement cameras, traffic control signaling and vehicle tracking. The value of the contract is approximately CAD$900,000.
Navteq has been named by TeleCommunication Systems, a global specialist in mission critical wireless communications, as a supplier of map data for wireless applications. TCS has used Navteq data for the United States and Canada; the extended license includes maps of Brazil and Mexico. The company’s map data has powered TCS' wireless location-enabling software for several years. The relationship enables wireless carriers to bring location-based consumer applications to market with high-quality map data.
The agreement provides TCS with Navterq’s geographic map data for use in its wireless location-based applications.
PAN AM ITS CONGRESS
First Pan-American ITS Congress and Exhibition
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
October 18-21, 2005
This will be the first event of its kind – an ITS congress and exhibition featuring speakers and exhibitors from all the countries in the Americas. Organizations interested in South American and Brazilian ITS markets are encouraged to attend and/or exhibit.
The program is co-sponsored by ITS Brazil, ITS Argentina, ITS Chile, ITS Canada and ITS America, and includes about 50 technical sessions. ITS professionals from all over the world will participate in this important event.
For more information, including the program, exhibition details and sponsorship opportunities, please e-mail congress@itspan.org or visit the official website: www.itspan.org/paits/precongresso/usa_index.asp.
URBAN TRANSPORT BENCHMARKING INITIATIVE
This European Commission-funded initiative is now in its third year for all urban transport stakeholders in European cities seeking to compare their urban transport systems and practices. The aim of the initiative is to encourage the exchange of good practices and the facilitation of shared learning between transport stakeholders, in order to advance the knowledge base available to urban transport policy makers in European cities.
The results from year two of the initiative have recently been published on the website for the Urban Transport Benchmarking Initiative, and can be downloaded at the following link: www.transportbenchmarks.org/publications/reports.html.
UPCOMING EVENTS
- TAC Annual Conference
September 18 to 21, 2005 – Calgary, Alberta
www.tac-atc.ca
- Transport and Sustainable Mobility Conference
September 19 and 20, 2005 – Brussels, Belgium
www.euconferences.com
- Intertraffic North America
September 27 to 29, 2005 – Baltimore, Maryland
www.intertraffic.com
- 1st Pan American ITS Congress & Exhibition
October 18 to 21, 2005 – Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
www.itspan.org/paits/precongresso/usa_index.asp
- 12th World Congress on ITS
November 6 to 10, 2005 – San Fransicso, CA
Preliminary Program: www.itsworldcongress.org under the "About World Congress" menu
- 2nd International Conference on Driver Behaviour Training
November 15 to 17, 2005 – Edinburgh, UK
www.dbt2005.info
- CUTA 2005 Fall Conference and Trans-Expo
November 19 to 23, 2005 – Vancouver, BC
November 22 – Trans-Expo, Canada’s Transit and Bus Exposition
www.cutaactu.on.ca
- Highway-Railway Grade Crossing Workshop
November 21 and 22, 2005 – Montreal, QC
www.tc.gc.ca/tdc/events/7workshop.htm
- Gulf Traffic
December 12 to 14, 2005 – Dubai, UAE
www.gulftraffic.com
- 2nd Abu Dhabi International Road Exhibition & Conference (ROADEX 2006)
March 12-15, 2006 – Abu Dhabi, UAE
www.roadex-uae.com
- ITS America’s 2006 Annual Meeting & Expo
May 7 to 9, 2006 – Philadelphia, PA
www.itsa.org/annualmeeting.html
Newsletter published by ITS Canada.
Submissions or comments can be e-mailed to askus@itscanada.ca.
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