Subject: [NEXTEL-1] Mobile phones used to track road traffic congestion

From: [email-masked]
Date: Fri, 20 Jun 2003 10:20:53 -0400

Mobile phones used to track road traffic congestion (we have this before)

This summer, LogicaCMG is introducing an innovative service package for traffic
information customers. Under the name of Mobile Traffic Services (MTS), based on
information from the existing GSM network, the ICT service provider will be
supplying traffic information about national, provincial and municipal roads.
Information can be gathered via MTS on the entire road network without needing to
set up any new, expensive, logistically awkward infrastructure. The province of
North Brabant in the Netherlands is the first customer for the new service.

The requirements of the government (as road operator) and the motorist in the area
of traffic information have increased dramatically in recent years. Traffic
information from approach road to exit is no longer enough. Road operators and
users are demanding more and more information on the situation on roads during a
trip from door to door. Traffic detection has therefore also become necessary on
provincial and municipal roads. The current loop detection only generates indirect
information concerning travelling time on national motorways. In view of the close
concentration of loops needed, this method would entail extremely high costs for
the other provincial and municipal roads.

It was this situation that prompted LogicaCMG to develop Mobile Traffic Services.
The innovative basis of MTS is the use of the mobile telephone network, in
cooperation with Scottish partner, Applied Generics, and the telecom company,
Vodafone. The MTS traffic information is calculated using data drawn anonymously
from the GSM network. Innovative use of the characteristics of the GSM network
provides - through coded data - insight into the movement of mobile telephones on
the road network, on the basis of which travelling times and speeds are
calculated. Passive monitoring of the mobile network provides anonymous
information without involving individual mobile telephones. With extra hardware
and software the mobile network has to be adjusted slightly to make data
available.

With MTS, LogicaCMG is providing traffic information that generates historical
and/or real time traffic information in a large area. As MTS is being offered as a
service in the form of a subscription, there is no need for the customer to set up
any additional management organisation and there are no extra costs, unlike the
current gathering of traffic information.  LogicaCMG takes over the responsibility
of traffic detection from the customer and provides the information in the
requested form so it can be immediately deployed in the operational process.

LogicaCMG will be providing the first services in part of the province of North
Brabant.  Initially, the province will be purchasing historical information. This
information consists of speed images for national, provincial and municipal roads
and travelling times for certain stretches of these roads. An extensive
measurement programme will also be carried out to establish the quality of the
information in various different traffic conditions.

LogicaCMG is catering to the trend towards outsourcing, where organisations
contract out those tasks that are not part of their core activities. Road
operators purchasing MTS information, like the province of North Brabant, can
therefore concentrate fully on their core activities, such as preparing and
actually implementing measures for Dynamic Traffic Management (DTM).
Based on up-to-the-minute data on the traffic situation, this enables the province
of North Brabant to inform the traveller/motorist regarding the traffic situation,
recommend alternative routes or apply measures for leading the traffic over the
road network more efficiently. Until now, gathering information for DTM has only
been possible when road operators invested in, maintained and managed the systems
themselves.
'

For the time being, the province of North Brabant will be using MTS up until mid
2004, after which they will decide on whether to continue with the service, based
on experience.  Should it prove successful, LogicaCMG will be offering the service
nationally, not only to the government, but also for traffic information services
for motorists and the business sector. LogicaCMG's MTS pilot in the province of
North Brabant is being made possible partly with subsidy by the Ministry of
Transport, Public Works and Water Management's Intermezzo project.

http://www.cellular-news.com/story/9099.shtml

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