Empowering the Transport Sector with Geospatial Technology

Maria Gove’ MSc GISc Senior Manager Policy Coordination and GIS Admin Enforcement Directorate

Advances in technology have made GIS more valuable in almost every field, not least of all transport, and Transport Malta is making sure to keep abreast with technology. In 2011, Transport Malta sought EU funds to build the necessary Architecture required for the building blocks to deploy an enterprise GIS.

Over the years, the GIS Unit developed a robust GIS architecture to serve the Authority for Transport by providing Geographic Information Products and services through the development of GIS services, Databases, Mapping, Spatial Analysis, Education, Consulting, and Technical support to ensure that we communicate, collaborate and coordinate through Technology. The Unit strives to provide an integrative approach whilst leveraging the power of geospatial technology to enable our individual systems to become part of a larger interconnected platform. The end result is an integrated service aligned with public policy and dynamic needs of the Authority. The embracing of such technology into the Authority for Transport is continuously evolving.

Over the years, this technology has seen the convergence between geospatial technologies, namely GIS, GPS, and Remote Sensing technologies such as satellite images, and nowadays’ LiDAR data. This technology breaks down the barriers within organisations, fluidly integrating different disciplines, and simplifies the ability of sharing of data within our Directorates of the Authority, as well as other entities and stakeholders. At Transport Malta, through the GIS Architecture we can scale up and integrate more silo systems through dynamic linking and visual overlays.

Through business process reengineering we strive to achieve a Single Source of Truth (a concept to ensure that everyone within the Authority bases decisions on the same data) across Transport Malta and facilitate communication with stakeholders. By achieving the Single Source of Truth, the data is aggregated from the various

systems deployed across the Authority into a single location which in turn can be disseminated to other Stakeholders and other mediums i.e., Mobile users, Google Maps. and so on. The growing need to optimise and streamline internal processes to fully integrate them into an enterprise GIS is the steppingstone to achieve the single Source of Truth, and most imperative to achieve real time data.

Figure 1 - Live Control Room Traffic Flow showing on the GIS Platform

Figure 2 - Live Vessel AIS in the Grand Harbour – a Ports Service within the GIS Platform

Figure 3- Current Locations of Live Road Permits issued in the GIS Platform

Location Intelligence

Evidence-based spatial analysis can inform policies and empower better decision-making. The maps below illustrate bus stops at different buffer zones. The buffer zones show, for example, 200 metres, 500 metres, and 800 metres of walking distance. The 800 metre buffer zones clearly show that within an 800 metre walking distance there is a bus stop.

Figure 4 - Use of LiDAR DATA obtaining the height of Structures and Street Levels Figure 5 - Use of LiDAR DATA obtaining the height of Street Levels

Figure 6 - The Heat Map shows the locations where this service is mostly used. Gżira Msida Ta’ Xbiex Tas-Sliema St Julian’s Swieqi Pembroke San Ġwann Valletta Ħal Luqa (Airport) Marsaskala Birkirkara Buġibba Mellieħa Ħamrun Ċirkewwa Mġarr, Gozo Victoria, Gozo

The Car Sharing Concession Project

During the last quarter of 2020, the Unit took over the Project Management of the service concession for the operation of the National Car Sharing Program. Through this Concession agreement signed in 2017 after a call for tender, Transport Malta is promoting a shift from private car ownership to a car sharing option. In turn, this will reduce traffic congestion in urban centres and address the problem of on-street car parking whilst promoting electric mobility. The Car Sharing Concession Project puts the responsibility on the concession operator to deploy privately owned and operated Electrical Charging Pillars (which will later also be open for third party EV-owners wishing to charge their vehicle), as well as make provisions for the use of on-street and off-street Public Parking Spaces for the exclusive use of car-sharing and readily accessible parking spaces, thus limiting the need to drive around to find an empty parking slot.

The Unit is currently working to proceed with the deployment of the remaining Charging Pillars to be installed, and to identify additional parking spaces as part of the concession. Statistics below indicate that subscribers using such a service are increasing. The Journey towards the Digitalisation of Permanent Traffic Management and Technology Refresh of the Temporary Traffic Management Projects

As per various national/EU obligations, Transport Malta is committed to upgrading Permanent and Temporary Traffic Management Systems. The initial phases of gathering the requirements for both the Permanent and Temporary Traffic Management Systems is currently underway. Transport Malta is working towards a technology refresh of the Road Permitting System, with the added spatial component to integrate the actual

interventions required within the system.

This process shall digitalise the location of such intervention within the System and disseminate this information on the actual intervention, both internally and to other Stakeholders in real time.

Another important project currently underway is the completion of the digitalisation of the Permanent Traffic Management System. This project is streamlining the Permanent Traffic Management process, such as in the case for applications to introduce various new Stop Signs, Reserved Parking Bays, Keep Clear signs, Loading and Unloading Bays, Road Humps or silent policemen measures, Bus Parking Bays, Bus Stops, One Way Signs, Bus Shelters, and other Traffic Management related road signage measures. The digitalisation of both the Permanent and Temporary Traffic Management shall facilitate the communication between internal and external stakeholders, but most importantly, this project aims to deliver information and analysis as per National, European Union, and other international requirements and standards.

Infusing Location Intelligence with Artificial Intelligence A study is currently underway to use AI (Artificial Intelligence) to optimise traffic light control and waiting time flows. This pilot project will deploy an AI engine to manage traffic flow on a particular junction or road intersection. The solution will use real-time unanimous data feeds to detect the number of vehicles on a particular road section, following which, the AI software will process this information and adjust the traffic lights in real time to keep traffic flow moving in the most optimal way.

Another phase of this Project is the introduction of a Mobility Analytics Dashboard that can investigate location intelligence of different modes of transport in real time whilst leveraging the potential of anonymous Big Data derived from Malta Public Transport (MPT) data, Taxi location tracking, School Transport journeys, and other available data feeds from other means of transport.

The identification of a particular location and collating location data in real time from all transport stakeholders make it pivotal to provide and reveal insights in traffic flows and the identification of potential traffic bottlenecks on the Network.

Through the Mobility Dashboard, Transport Malta would be able to:

• Transform massive spatial data into insights; • Ingest real‑time data from Bus

Locations, Taxi Tracking, and other modes of transport; • Derive mobility patterns and improve the experience over time; • Automate the prediction, classification, and clustering of data; and • Dispatch Enforcement Officers to locations where Traffic bottle necks will be accumulating as visualised on the map, and alerted in the Control Room:

Figure 7 - Mobility Dashboard Bridging the Gap between the Industry and the Academia

In conjunction with the University of Malta, a course on using GIS

Figure 9 - Smart Street Furniture

technology was introduced as part of the module on Transport Engineering within the Department of Spatial Planning and Infrastructure within the Faculty for the Built Environment. This course allows students reading for a master’s degree to experience a hands-on approach to the technology used in the Transport Sector. By leveraging Street Furniture that the students captured during the course, they also designed the required Smart Street Furniture for an area in San Ġwann as shown below:

Figure 9 - Street Furniture of San Ġwann