U.S. Department of Transportation releases the 2011 update to the Intelligent Transportation Systems Benefits, Costs, Deployment, and Lessons Learned Desk Reference
This new report presents information on the benefits, costs, deployment levels, and lessons learned regarding ITS deployment and operations obtained since the 2008 report.
The report is based upon four related web-based databases, known collectively as the ITS Knowledge Resources (KRs). The Knowledge Resources were developed by the U.S. DOT’s ITS Joint Program Office (JPO) evaluation program to support informed decision making regarding ITS investments by tracking the effectiveness of deployed ITS. The Knowledge Resources contain over fifteen years of summaries of the benefits, costs, lessons learned, and deployment status of specific ITS implementations, drawn primarily from written sources such as ITS evaluation studies, research syntheses, handbooks, journal
The Intelligent Transportations Systems Joint Program Office’s (ITS JPO) research program focuses on the overall advancement of ITS through investments in emerging ITS technologies, as well as supporting the evaluation of deployed ITS.
ITS JPO is a program within the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Research and Innovative Technology Administration. Click here to view Report.
For persons who want an online opportunity to increase knowledge, refresh skills, and earn Continuing Education Units (CEUs); the Consortium for ITS Training and Education (CITE) is offering a series of blended courses throughout 2011:
ITS America has created wiki page for state chapters...click here to view
New report shows how Smart Technology can ease traffic congestion, improve transportation options and strengthen global competitiveness....
Do you have a funny, interesting or unique transportation photo you would like to share? Email to web@itsrm.org.
May 1, 2012, Boise, ID - It's a common, humiliating and time-consuming scenario: A driver gets pulled over by a police officer, who asks for proof of insurance. The driver opens his wallet or pops the glove compartment and takes out — oh, no — an expired card.
The driver just signed himself up for a ticket and a trip to the courthouse to prove he was actually insured — or to pay a $126.50 fine ($131.50 starting July 1). More
May 1, 2012, Helena, MT - Starting soon, Montana Highway Patrol troopers will be able to instantly verify whether drivers have liability insurance coverage on their vehicles as required by state law.
Sitting in a patrol cruiser, a trooper can enter a vehicle's license plate number or the driver's name into a laptop computer and immediately learn online whether the person has liability insurance. More
March 29, 2012, Boise, ID - Idaho is the first state in the nation to enact smart new legislation that allows motorists to use smart phone technology to demonstrate they have insurance coverage. Governor Butch Otter signed SB 1319 which gives Idaho motorists the flexibility to either show proof of coverage with an App or PDF copy saved on a phone or the traditional hard copy proof of insurance card. More
February 23, 2012, Aspen, CO - Better signs to direct pedestrians to a bike path along Highway 82 on the outskirts of Aspen will be the initial response to last month's accident in which a woman was struck and killed by a bus while she was walking in the highway bus lane at night.
Officials with the Colorado Department of Transportation visited the accident scene Wednesday to discuss potential safety improvements for pedestrians in the area. More
February 23, 2012, Salt Lake City, UT - Texting while driving became illegal in Utah in 2009. Three years later, rapidly changing cellphone technology has lawmakers scrambling to catch up.
A new proposal, SB98, would update the texting ban to prohibit drivers from sending emails, reading text, viewing images or sending data on their cellphones as well. More
February 7, 2012, Ada County, ID - Traffic signals that spot large groups of vehicles and tweak a road's signals to ease the congestion will soon debut in Ada County.
These "smart signals" constantly monitor traffic flow along major roads and adjust the amount of green time to best serve the demand. The technology differs from the existing signal timing in that it will deviate from pre-set timing programs — calibrated for the usual traffic volumes known to occur on specific days and times — and make adjustments to better move large groups of vehicles. More
January 26, 2012, Ada County, ID -Traffic signals that spot large groups of vehicles and tweak a road’s signals to speed the traffic glut through will soon debut in Ada County.
An example would be adaptive signal technology, the next-generation of signal timing software and hardware that ACHD hopes to acquire this year and deploy in 2013. Such “smart signals” constantly monitor traffic flow along major roads and adjust the amount of green time to best serve the demand. The technology differs from the existing signal timing in that it will deviate from pre-set timing programs – calibrated for the usual traffic volumes known to occur on specific days and times – and make adjustments to better move large groups of vehicles.More
January 17, 2012, Salt Lake City, UT - Forecasting Utah weather can be challenging, since much of the state's population lives in the valley of northern Utah, with mountains on either side. During the winter, the Utah Department of Transportation has a unique challenge — forecasting and reacting to the dreaded "lake-effect" snow coming directly from the Great Salt Lake to the west of the capital city. More
December 13, 2011, Denver, CO - A $5.5 billion upgrade to the Global Positioning System moved a step closer to launch this week when a prototype arrived at a Lockheed Martin complex in Colorado to begin months of tests.
It's the guinea pig for a new generation of GPS satellites, called Block III, that's expected to make military and civilian receivers more accurate, powerful and reliable. More
