Deploying effective ITS to meet the mobility needs for people and goods

Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) are usually defined as the application of information and communication technology to surface transport modes. As one would expect, ITS is a fast moving sector with research progressing all the time, and new developments being continuously implemented.

ITS United Kingdom is the UK association for those who work in ITS, whether in the public, private or academic sectors. ITS (UK) pulls together the clients, suppliers, designers and researchers at all levels, and provides an open forum for information exchange. ITS (UK) also works to define and promote the benefits of investing in and maintaining ITS for the benefit of travellers and freight operators.

UK public sector spending cuts

Readers who are familiar with the UK will not need to be told that 2010 has shaped up to be an interesting and a challenging year for UK ITS professionals in all parts of the sector. The signals were there at the start of the year as far as public spending was concerned, and the election of the new Conservative/Liberal Democrat coalition Government around the mid-point of the year, very shortly translated into a clear message to everybody in the public sector and its suppliers. Public spending would be cut severely in order to address the large fiscal deficit accumulated by the UK. Obviously, transport cannot be immune from these measures, and it follows, neither can ITS.

In European terms, the UK finds itself in an ‘interesting’ situation. The UK was an early adopter of ITS with systems in Glasgow and London leading the way, and all major towns and cities having some form of what we would now call ITS for their traffic management needs, by the 1980s. The Highways Agency (responsible for operating, maintaining and improving the strategic road network in England on behalf of the Secretary of State for Transport) has also long been a major ITS user, and public transport systems proliferate on bus and rail, from basic to very sophisticated information, location and ticketing systems. The UK has therefore long enjoyed the benefits of ITS on its streets and roads, but the downside of being an early adopter is that while many European countries now settle down to enjoy the benefits of investment in ITS over the last 10 years or so, the UK is having to grapple with the renewal and replacement needs of systems dating back 30 years. This coincides with the UK having to adopt strict fiscal restraints, more so than most other European countries at this time.

ITS, then, has a well-established and vital position in the provision of efficient and effective transport in the UK. The service it provides to travellers and freight is fundamental from efficiency, safety and information perspectives. Quite simply, much of the UK road network could not deliver against its objectives – ITS is key to the economic and environmental well-being of the UK. It is essential to reconcile the need to maintain and extend ITS provision with the need to accommodate spending cut-backs.

This is a key window of opportunity for UK ITS practitioners – the opportunity to develop a more mature approach to the procurement, deployment and maintenance of the national ITS asset. A scientific approach to whole-life cost management will not only make the existing ITS asset easier to sustain, it will make the deployment of additional ITS functionality more attractive to cash-limited government and to private sector promoters.

In some cases, of course, the efficiency, environmental or safety benefits of investing in new or upgraded systems are such that a good case can already be made even in this time of financial austerity. Improving the efficiency of our existing motorways through measures such as managed motorways and other journey smoothing applications, yields benefits to the wider economy through delivering more predictable journeys with less harmful emissions. Area wide or point-to-point speed enforcement systems deliver safety benefits and also reduced emissions through smoother traffic flows.

All-in-all, this is a strong challenge to the UK Government and to the ITS community, which is challenged to support Government in bringing the UK’s ITS infrastructure through the next few years, maintaining the services the country relies on, while reducing spend.

The ITS Action Plan and Directive

At the same time, the UK along with all the other EU Member States, will now have to implement the ITS Directive which came into force during the summer of 2010.

To begin with, the Directive identifies four Priority Areas:

» Optimal use of road, traffic and travel data

» Continuity of traffic and freight management ITS services

» ITS road safety and security applications

» Linking the vehicle with the transport infrastructure.

These link to six Priority Actions:

» The provision of EU-wide multimodal travel information services

» The provision of EU-wide real-time traffic information services

» Data and procedures for the provision, where possible, of road safety related minimum universal traffic information free of charge to users

» The harmonised provision for an inter – operable EU-wide eCall

» The provision of information services for safe and secure parking places for trucks and commercial vehicles

» The provision of reservation services for safe and secure parking places for trucks and commercial vehicles.

The UK Department for Transport (DfT) has the responsibility for negotiating with the European Commission regarding the Action Plan and the Directive. The DfT is a Foundation Member of ITS (UK), and during 2009-2010, ITS (UK) hassupported the DfT in this by undertaking workshops and other activities in order to deliver the stakeholder input required by DfT for these negotiations. As the focus now moves to implementing the Directive, ITS (UK) remains committed to supporting DfT in this important work.

It is extremely early days as yet, as far as the implementation of the Directive is concerned, but ITS (UK) is of course already considering what the major implications of the Directive may be for the UK.

The Directive is strong in the area of interoperability and data exchange. This will lead to far better ITS services particularly cross border, and will benefit travellers and hauliers. The UK already has a home-grown ’standard‘ for interoperability in the Urban Traffic Management and Control (UTMC) specifications, which go back a decade and were developed by the DfT. The key to making sure that the UK benefits from the new specification and standards envisaged by the Directive, will be strong participation in their development. The Directive is explicit in promising consideration and respect for legacy systems, which will be in the UK’s favour in this area.

The emphasis on Co-operative Vehicle Infrastructure Systems (CVHS) in the Directive makes the future look interesting. Research on CVHS has been on-going in Europe and in the US for many years, but it has been an ITS slow to make the transition from test track to open road. It offers many benefits through maximising the use of the network, reducing environmental impact, and also in safety. The fact that most EU countries start from the same low base in CVHS, looks promising for a smooth and truly cross border development of this technology. The key will be to get the automotive manufacturers and infrastructure managers to agree on both goals and methods.

The Directive will play a big part in the professional lives of all the Members of ITS (UK), and the society is committed to supporting UK Government and its other Members in getting the best for the UK out of the implementation process.

What next for ITS (UK)?

ITS (UK) has a busy publication and events schedule, delivering a constant flow of infor – mation to its Members and keeping them in touch with one another and with overseas colleagues. This of course carries on in to the future, but the emphasis for 2011 will be different from that of the past few years.

The priority now will be to work towards a consensus that ITS is and remains an essential tool in delivering the mobility needs of the UK. This consensus needs to be established in order to ensure that the deployment of ITS is, firstly, not disproportionally disadvantaged during the public spending austerity which is being implemented in the UK and, secondly, is seen as a very constructive way of minimising the detriment to the transport network as a result of that austerity. ITS (UK) with its Members, who include the decision makers as well as the technical experts, is ideally placed to deliver this message. ITS (UK) accepts the need to share out the savings that have to be made and recognises the need for greater efficiency in ITS provision, but there is a lower limit below which ITS expenditure must not fall to maintain the benefits of the last 30 years of investment. A successful modern state requires effective ITS to meet its mobility needs for people and goods.

About the Author

Mike Schofield

Mike Schofield is Chairman of ITS (UK), the UK’s association for organisations involved in ITS, whose 160 corporate members include national and local government, academia, consultants and suppliers. Mike’s day job involves heading up Atkins’ 350-strong ITS group, providing consultancy and operational support to HA, Welsh Assembly Government, Transport Scotland and various local authorities in transport communications and information systems. This portfolio includes motorway and urban traffic control, passenger and traveller information and 24/7 control room operation.