Unlocking the value of data

Unlocking the value of traffic data

The ability to analyze combined weigh-in-motion, tire footprints and traffic flow data has the potential to unlock information that will allow transportation agencies to improve safety, reduce infrastructure damage and develop a better understanding of local and network-wide trends that impact efficiency

Words | Michael Wieck, International Road Dynamics, USA

Road agencies face pressures to get the most out of road infrastructure. They must ensure road surfaces are protected from damage from overweight vehicles, while ensuring transportation efficiency is maintained.

Since the 1980’s, IRD has been using weigh-in-motion (WIM) systems to enable weight-compliant trucks to bypass inspection stations. Today, automated commercial vehicle inspection systems include advanced sensors, machine vision and e-screening to improve throughput while maintaining the highest level of safety. The next logical step is using data from these systems to track performance of transportation infrastructure against benchmark indicators, to provide actionable information for stakeholders.

Collecting data on individual commercial vehicles and their compliance with regulations directly improves safety. In addition to vehicle weight measurements, recent technological advances enable the measurement of other vehicle parameters also affecting safety. Laser and infrared sensors check for vehicles that exceed allowable dimensions. Most recently, IRD has developed the Tire Anomaly and Classification System (TACS) to detect whether tires are missing, overinflated or underinflated, so that any vehicles with potential tire problems can be checked by directing them to report to inspection stations.

Advanced data processing

To date, most data processing by automated inspection systems occurs locally, providing a closed monitoring and control loop at the roadside. Information collected at these local sites is often under-utilized. Agencies can benefit from using the information collected not only to improve the underlying operations (e.g. truck compliance checks), but also to help solve today’s challenges in freight logistics, mobility and transportation management. To support this need for transportation intelligence, IRD has developed a Vehicle Information in Motion (VI2M) software suite to assist transportation professionals in unlocking the value of the information collected at commercial vehicle operations and traffic data collection sites on their road networks.

The VI2M software suite provides traffic data and statistics in a cloud-based environment, facilitates off-line reporting, and supports the monitoring of traffic operations on a network-wide basis. VI2M collects traffic count, volume and vehicle classification, and weight data in conjunction with commercial vehicle information from individual sites and provides access to a multitude of reporting, analysis and monitoring capabilities that are all accessible through a widget-based user interface. This modular approach to visualization includes a zoomable map view with dynamic site and station

information, standard reporting widgets, and a site summary widget that generates histograms, such as plotting commercial vehicles with potential weight issues, versus vehicles with actual violations. In addition, all current traffic data reports from IRD’s iAnalyze software product are available through VI2M.

Application-as-a-Service

IRD’s VI2M solution provides a core data service platform, offering actionable information, notifying the agency or customer of anomalies and providing trend analysis and reports tailored to their needs, for planning activities, operational improvements and funding proposals. The system is provided as a web-based Application-as-a-Service (AaaS) through a secure portal. Every user can define their own dashboard, selecting the information most relevant to their needs.

Using standard VI2M reports, users can determine the percentage of screened commercial vehicles that bypass an inspection station facility or the distribution of vehicle classes over a specific time interval. They can see the number of potentially overweight trucks that passed the site while an inspection station or virtual weigh station site was closed, and adjust operating hours if needed. The site status widget monitors the status of equipment providing operational status and up/ downtime at a specific site. These reports can easily be enhanced; the modular concept facilitates adding customer-specific reports and analysis. In addition, VI2M facilitates the provision of quality-checked data and information to other enterprise level systems in the organization.

Providing performance measurement solutions to support commercial vehicle compliance processes and transportation effectiveness can increase transparency and accountability, thereby setting the foundation for network and operations process improvements. n

Local Monitoring / Control (e.g. sort decisions, speed/ volume/occupancy data)

Opposite: IRD’s

VI2M software makes it easier for traffic data to be processed, reported and stored

Above: The

components of VI2M

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